10-19inch Drawer for Raspberry Pi 3+4+5 [V2]

What’s new in V2

• Improved Raspberry Pi 5 + OLED clearance (V1 was very tight with some OLED/display stacks).
• Dedicated RTC battery compartment: fits the official Raspberry Pi 5 RTC Battery and common RTC battery box / coin-cell holders (often with ON/OFF switch and replaceable coin cell).
• Optional front SD card slot in the front panel (much easier OS swaps / backups).
  • Supports two SD-adapter approaches (common generic/no-name parts from eBay/AliExpress):
    • MicroSD (Pi) → Full-size SD (front) using a flat extension cable (recommended for a clean install)
    • MicroSD (Pi) → MicroSD (front) using a flat extension cable plus a common MicroSD → SD adapter in the front slot

To be used with rack mounts:

• 10inch rack: https://makerworld.com/de/models/1142290
• 19inch rack: https://makerworld.com/de/models/1142528

This drawer slot can mount a Raspberry Pi 3/4 or Raspberry Pi 5 and is designed for builds optionally using a Waveshare Micro HDMI adapter board, a MicroSD (TF) to SD-Card adapter and a 1.5” OLED display (SPI variant).

It also has enough space for up to two PWM modules, up to two 30x30x8mm fans (default Raspberry Pi fans, no screws needed) a step-down converter, different RTC battery models and several cable fasteners.

Note: Many SD extension cables/adapters are “China generic” with changing names. Search using the keywords below and compare the photos to the examples in this model.

Print files (4 main plates)

• Drawer (Main Plate) + Optional SD-Card fixation
• Raspberry Pi 3 Frontpanel (multiple variants, each as its own print plate)
• Raspberry Pi 4 Frontpanel (multiple variants, each as its own print plate)
• Raspberry Pi 5 Frontpanel (multiple variants, each as its own print plate)

The photos show: The Drawer (Main Plate) combined with Raspberry Pi 5 + HDMI + OLED + SD-Card Slot front panel. The HAT you may see is a AI HAT+, so HATs may fit depeding on nylon standoffs (M2.5 x 15 + 5 tested).

SD Card Slot: compatible adapter types (search keywords)

These are typical listings / keyword sets that work well for finding compatible parts:

• Type A (MicroSD → Full-size SD extension, UHS-I capable wording is common):
  • “Micro SD UHS-I Card Extension Cable SDHC SDXC UHS-I Card TF Memory Card 15cm”
  • Also try: “microSD to SD extension cable”, “TF to SD extension”, “FFC/FPC SD extender 10cm 15cm”
• Type B (MicroSD → MicroSD extension + standard MicroSD→SD adapter in the front):
  • “Micro SD to TF Card Kit Male to Female Flat Flexible Extender 15cm”
  • Plus a standard “microSD to SD adapter” (the common passive plastic adapter).

If your cheap sd card adapter/cable does not work (important note)

On some extenders there is an SMD resistor on the small PCB inside the SD-shaped end. In a few cases, removing that resistor has fixed Pi 4 boot issues for me. If you go that route: do it carefully, at your own risk, and expect the extender warranty to be void. I tested with Type B (resistor removal) and Type A. Both do fit, you only have to print the SD Card fixation from main plate (plate 2).

The UHS-I adapter worked out of the box since it was directly compatible with Raspberry Pi. If you like using MicroSD-Cards I used the adapter MicroSD to SD wich is mostly included with MicroSD-Cards because a MicroSD front panel itself would be to small and SD-Cards look pretty well.

RTC Battery Compartment (Raspberry Pi 5)

This drawer includes a battery bay for the Raspberry Pi 5 RTC backup power.

Fits the official solution

• Raspberry Pi official RTC Battery (ML2020, 2-pin JST plug)
  (the official accessory is a small rechargeable pack with an adhesive pad)

Also fits common “China generic” battery boxes

• Many sellers offer an RTC Battery Box / RTC Battery Holder with an ON/OFF switch and a replaceable coin cell.
• Typical product dimensions (very common listing): 33.00 × 28.00 × 5.00 mm, cable length ~19 cm.
• These modules are usually designed for 2032-size cells (often sold as LIR2032 rechargeable; same physical size as CR2032).

Search keywords (no brand)

• “Raspberry Pi 5 RTC battery box ON/OFF switch JST-SH 1.0 2pin”
• “RTC battery holder for Raspberry Pi 5 LIR2032 33x28x5 19cm cable”
• “Pi 5 RTC coin cell holder CR2032 / LIR2032 JST 2pin”

Hardware / additional components used

I have used the following additional components:

• Screws (M2.5, pointed) for Raspberry Pi and HDMI board mount (found none in bill of materials)
• M3 nuts and screws for mounting base plate with front plate (listed bill of materials)
• Optional: Nylon standoff for Raspberry Pi board: 2.5x15+5 if you like using HATs like AI HAT

Optional Parts (depending on front plate you use):

• 128x128 1.5” OLED display (SPI)
• Waveshare Micro HDMI adapter board for Raspberry Pi 4+5
• SD card fixation: 4x M2x4 mm screws (metal)
• 2x FAN 30x30x8mm
• 2x PWM Mosfet Trigger Board (15A 400W)
• DC-DC Converter Modul 30W (step-down module with USB port)
• 1x PCA9685 (16-channel I²C PWM driver board)
• RTC
  • RTC option A (official): Raspberry Pi RTC Battery (ML2020, 2-pin JST plug
  • RTC option B (generic): RTC Battery Box / Holder (LIR2032 / CR2032 size, often with ON/OFF switch, replaceable coin cell), approx. 33×28×5 mm, ~19 cm cable

Wiring reference (optional fan/PWM setup)

• Power
  • 12V DC jack -> DC-DC step-down.
  • Step-down USB output powers the Raspberry Pi.
  • Step-down 5V output (pads/terminal, not USB) -> MOSFET trigger board Power IN.
• Fans (5V)
  • Fan + -> 5V from step-down.
  • Fan - -> MOSFET board output (low-side PWM switching).
• PWM control
  • Raspberry Pi -> PCA9685 via I²C (SDA/SCL + 3.3V/VCC + GND).
  • PCA9685 PWM channel -> MOSFET trigger board signal input.
  • PCA9685 GND -> MOSFET trigger board GND.

Important

• All grounds must be common (Pi/PCA9685 ↔ step-down ↔ MOSFET ↔ fans),
• otherwise PWM control may behave erratically.

Optional smoothing:

• Electrolytic capacitor across 5V and GND near the MOSFET/fan supply
  (e.g., ~470–1000 µF) to reduce stutter at very low duty cycles.

Note:

• Currently only one MOSFET trigger board is populated/used, the second is optional.