I have in mind a project to create custom Arduino-driven gauges in the [standard 3 1/8" (80mm) and 2 1/4" (57mm) round sizes used in aircraft, boats, kit cars, etc. These are generally rear-mounted through a sheet metal instrument panel or may be front mounted in a thicker panel, in which case the “WWII bomber” style of bezel below is very attractive.
Does anyone know where I might find ready-made round gauge enclosures, either housing the whole project (one of the smaller Arduino boards, sensors, display, LEDs, buttons) or perhaps housing just the display, LEDs and buttons and mounting the Arduino and sensors separately and driving two or three displays remotely?
This is certainly something that could be custom made (CNC-cut aluminum or plastic plate for the bezel, perhaps 3D-printed or custom injection-molded rear housing) but I would love to find something ready-made, at least to start.
Thanks, johnfinx, but the ones in the link are pods in which to mount gauges, not the enclosures/housings for the gauges themselves. Plus aircraft sizes are usually 3 1/8" (80mm) or 2 1/4" (57mm) diameter and are mounted through the instrument panel not on a bracket or in a separate pod. A little pod on a bracket could certainly work for a prototype, but I am trying to find a reliable source for housings like the ones above so it will fit in an aircraft panel and be easily replicated by others. Cheers, Matthew
Do you really need the back part? It seems to me that all you need is the front bracket. You’re not likely to mount anything to it that is so heavy that the bracket can’t support it properly. So the only problem is cutting out and drilling the bracket which I’m sure anyone building a kitplane would be able to do.
Thanks, Lyndon. I have found “blanking plates” or “cover plates” in plastic or aluminum used to fill in an empty space in an instrument panel that could be driller or dremelled to suit, but I was hoping to find a complete enclosure. One option might be to put the microcontroller, sensors, backup battery, etc. in a small, separate box and just run a single, multiwire cable to the display. I could use silicone sheet or something to project the back of the display unit. That kind of solution would also make it easy to run multiple gauges off a single processor.
http://classicrods.com/product_images/q … _38578.jpg](http://www.craggyaero.com/Drawings/Instrument%20Hole%20Templates.pdf)