Lab Rax Side Panel Connector & Post joiner

Lab Rax Side Panel Connector & Post joiner V2

While LabRaxMaxxing, I noticed something: if you make your LabRax taller than 5U (mine are 10Us), the side panel seams and the post seams don’t line up.

So I made this thing that lets you connect the lower and upper panels on the outside of the rack. It also doubles as a replacement for the standard post joiners.  Which, in itself, isn’t exactly groundbreaking. 

But it does let you stack two panels without ending up with a misaligned seam between them. And my lizard brain finds that very satisfying, yes.

Disclaimer (which will be explained shortly but i need to put this at the top)

YOU NEED TO USE 2 “EXTENSION/EXPANSION” TYPE PANELS, “STANDARD” TYPE PANELS ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THIS

The description but longer

Before continuing:  If you just need to make your Extended Lab Rax sturdier but want to use the normal side panel configuration (standard + extended panel) check out my other version: Lab Rax sturdy long Post joiner.

So basically, in the standard Lab Rax there are 2 types of panels:

1. Standard panels: (NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THIS) which you use on a non-extended Lab Rax or in combination with…
2. Extension/Expansion panels:  which are slightly shorter (5.9mm) than the standard panels, in the original version you use them in combination with standard panels to make an extended Lab Rax

The only issue is that the seam ends up offset from where the posts meet, even in a 5u+5u configuration. So I made this model to fix that. You can use it in any setup, as long as you’re not stacking more than two panels: I don’t think the math holds up beyond that.

TL;DR “which panels should I use?” <MS-paint edition>

Recommendations

Print this using PETG, remove all supports, just be extra careful when removing the ones on the sides.
After taking off the rafts, I recommend grabbing any random metal object to scrape the bottom and clear out any leftover support because the tolerances are pretty tight.

Changelog

V2: Now parametric with customizable total depth to support Jeffrey's Lab Rax Customisable Depth Spacers just input the same value you use on his generator. check the bottom side of the generated models to know if it's the bolted or brass insert version. Use normal snug 20° supports (check print profiles). thanks @sebschmidt1981 for the idea	Remember to split to objects and keep the version you need
V1: Initial release

Obligatory Shilling Corner

Check out my other 10 inch rack projects in this collection here