Mounting a trackball in 3/4" MDF

[wee beastie]

Hey guys,

Here's the situation.  I'm trying to mount a 3" imperial trackball into 3/4 MDF.  The trackball housing is about 8 inches wide, and shaped like a football if you look at it from the top.  How can I mount this in MDF?  Are the trakball mounting kits big enough (wider than 8 inches) to cut out a square that will fit the whole "footall shaped casing into it?

any help is appreciated!

[rampy]

Hey guys,

Here's the situation.  I'm trying to mount a 3" imperial trackball into 3/4 MDF.  The trackball housing is about 8 inches wide, and shaped like a football if you look at it from the top.  How can I mount this in MDF?  Are the trakball mounting kits big enough (wider than 8 inches) to cut out a square that will fit the whole "footall shaped casing into it?

any help is appreciated!

I just recently mounted mine in 3/4" plywood, and I used a mounting plate... the one with squareholes andyou supply yer own carriabge bolts...

I cut the hole roughly in the shape of the football...  In the upper right and lower left corner it's a little tight - i.e.  there's not a lot of wood between the outer bolts and the hole the trackball housing is in... (i know..  a pic would be better sorry)...    I used the drill bit for making button holes 1 1/8th inch hole saw bit... to "Start" the cut and then just dropped my jigsaw in and followed my  traced outline as best I could...

does that help?   I imagine if you make your square big enough to drop the tball housing in but small enough to not have the mounting bracket fall in/have wood to screw in the corners...

*Shrug(

rampy

[SirPoonga]

what are you measure from to make it 8" wide?  I thought it was the standard 3" housing size so it can fit in machines with 3" trackball mounts:)

My wico and Happ 3" trackballs are about 7" wide.  The trackball plate is 7.5" wide.

even looking at the picture
http://www.gatorcade.com/imperial.html
it looks like a normal trackball.  you aren't measuring from point to point, are you?  the sides are the flat sides.  point to point is a diagnal on the trackball.

[wee beastie]

rampy,

yes, thanks for the help.  I guess I'll have to get a mounting plate.  Did you get it from bobroberts.com or happs?

When I measured 8 wide, I meant from one end of the "football" to the other.  Turns out the "football" doesn't mount horizontally like I thought, it's on a diagonal.  So the football more resembles a square with opposite corners rounded.  And 8 inches is the diagonal measurement

[SirPoonga]

When I measured 8 wide, I meant from one end of the "football" to the other.  Turns out the "football" doesn't mount horizontally like I thought, it's on a diagonal.  So the football more resembles a square with opposite corners rounded.  And 8 inches is the diagonal measurement

I figured that's what you did.  I am going to get the screwless mounting plate from happs someime, I don't like the screwheads in the way.

[rampy]

rampy,

yes, thanks for the help.  I guess I'll have to get a mounting plate.  Did you get it from bobroberts.com or happs?

When I measured 8 wide, I meant from one end of the "football" to the other.  Turns out the "football" doesn't mount horizontally like I thought, it's on a diagonal.  So the football more resembles a square with opposite corners rounded.  And 8 inches is the diagonal measurement

I went with happs as I need some other misc stuff that got me over the 25 buck limit... but the one bobroberts sells will work as well and he doesn't have a minimum order.

rampy