• Please review our updated Terms and Rules here

If you have a 3D printer, heres a 5.25" full height to 3.5" floppy adapter I designed

R

redruM69

Experienced Member
Joined
Jul 18, 2007
Messages
64
Location
Salt Lake City, Utah
If you have a 3D printer, heres a 5.25" full height to 3.5" floppy adapter I designed

I'd love feedback on this!
I was surprised I couldn't find one online, so I modeled this up last night and tossed it on Thingiverse. I haven't printed one just yet, but it should work fine. I plan on using it for machines I install a gotek/HxC floppy emulator into, starting with my Osborne.

1394be1500c6b6a709d51da0c53b3009_preview_featured.jpg


Enjoy!
 
I think that the reason you don't find anything like this "in the wild" is because floppies made a transition to half-height before the 3.5" drives came out. The early 3.5" drives were half-height also, not 1/3-height as they're commonly seen. In any case, a full-height 5.25" drive was probably replaced by two half-height drives long before 3.5{ became available.

Similarly, you don't see too many 3.5" drive adapters to fit in an 8" full-height slot.
 
Tabor produced a full height 5.25" bay adapter designed to accept a single 3.25" drive which would have provided an excellent guide for a similar 3.5" drive mounting. I have only seen it in an ad.

I think the adapter looks right but maybe modifying it to allow 2 half height drives might be more useful even if it lacks symmetry when only one drive is installed.
 
Chuck(G) said:
I think that the reason you don't find anything like this "in the wild" is because floppies made a transition to half-height before the 3.5" drives came out.
Click to expand...
With that in mind it seems the niche for this device would be kinda limited to something like the 5150/5160 cases where fitting standard HH floppies is not natively supported.
 
I understand they were never commercially produced. I was referring to me being unable to find an open source STL model like the one I made.
My intent is aimed at hobbyists installing gotek/HxC floppy emulators in their machines and want to print it themselves. I can totally make a dual bay version also. I'll work on that soon.

If there is some interest, I may print some out and toss them on eBay.
 
Looking good. Would it be possible to add small support tabs to keep the two drives separated by a little space and permitting removal of just the lower drive in order to conduct repairs? I don't know the limits of 3D printing.
 
Another idea would be to add a second set of mounting holes on the bottom mount, behind the ones there currently, this would allow you to mount a HDD there if you did not want the second 3.5" floppy. You could also design a blank insert (maybe with an LED hole) to go in front of the HDD.

This would mean someone could print it all and then mount either a single floppy in the top or bottom with the blank above or below, or mount 2 floppies or a floppy and a 3.5" hdd. Would be extremely useful.
 
I have a whole case of the 5.25 to 3.5 adapters both in metal and plastic but I never put them on my site because I didn't think they would be useful. I just collected them up from clones that were "broken up" for parts.

Are they really in that short supply?
 
Druid6900 said:
I have a whole case of the 5.25 to 3.5 adapters both in metal and plastic but I never put them on my site because I didn't think they would be useful. I just collected them up from clones that were "broken up" for parts.

Are they really in that short supply?
Click to expand...

I'm assuming they are half height? These designs are full height, which I have been unable to find.
 
krebizfan said:
Looking good. Would it be possible to add small support tabs to keep the two drives separated by a little space and permitting removal of just the lower drive in order to conduct repairs? I don't know the limits of 3D printing.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure how having them against each other would inhibit removal. If the top one is screwed in, the bottom one will still slide out.
 
Last edited:
lutiana said:
Another idea would be to add a second set of mounting holes on the bottom mount, behind the ones there currently, this would allow you to mount a HDD there if you did not want the second 3.5" floppy. You could also design a blank insert (maybe with an LED hole) to go in front of the HDD.

This would mean someone could print it all and then mount either a single floppy in the top or bottom with the blank above or below, or mount 2 floppies or a floppy and a 3.5" hdd. Would be extremely useful.
Click to expand...

Not a bad idea. That could be done.
 
redruM69 said:
I'm not sure how having them against each other would inhibit removal. If the top one is screwed it, the bottom one will still slide out.
Click to expand...

Some 3.5" drives had an exposed circuit board on the bottom. Drives touching or being dragged along could damage that circuit board so I prefer having them not touch. There is also the inconvenience of trying to hold the upper drive in place to insert or remove when the lower drive isn't in place.

Obviously, not having the tabs isn't critical but if the design can easily add them, it might be beneficial.
 
krebizfan said:
Some 3.5" drives had an exposed circuit board on the bottom. Drives touching or being dragged along could damage that circuit board so I prefer having them not touch. There is also the inconvenience of trying to hold the upper drive in place to insert or remove when the lower drive isn't in place.

Obviously, not having the tabs isn't critical but if the design can easily add them, it might be beneficial.
Click to expand...

True. I can add a small gap. Personally I've never seen a drive where the PCB is sticking out further than the frame.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top