Solution for 4 wire plug ?

Three possibilities. (1) make a square hole. Classic methods: chisel, router (you DID say plastic), or drill and follow up with a square punch (the drill hole is for the bolt that pulls the square punch into its die). A nibbler is a kind of manual square-hole maker, for thin sheet metal. Square drills exist. Electrochemical machining, or abrasive blasting, can do it. The hole can be in any material, just fasten that material to your box.

(2) Buy a square hole (panels, like for electric outlets, are available that take snap-in telephone-like sockets).

(3) > HI,

A punch is fairly quick. When its not quick enough I've sometimes used a lead coming out the box with connector on the end.

NT

a square drill?

My solution was a dremel with a drill stand. Turn the dremel sideways, and put the smallest router bit I could find. Put a platform next to the drill, and carefully route out the edges of the hole. If you need it really square, use a triangle file to sharpen the corners. The platform lets you keep the box flat and steady for hand cutting.

Charlie

Take a look at PS2 connectors.... circular and 6 pin. PS2 cables (plugs) are dirt cheap too.....

Custom dies for the Roper Whitney XX punch aren't all that expensive.

Nice! Thanks, Don, for the link! ...Jim Thompson

CNC Routing works very nicely!

I am getting a miller soon with DRO on it. THere are small semi CNC drive kits you can put on these things that work with the DRO encoders so that you can perform basic automation operations..

I've seen a cheap chinese miller used as a base to make chassis panel cut outs and PC software.

These low cost millers are great for starter bases to make such automation construction tools.

Jamie

only because thery're obsolete.

They were dirt cheap when the PS/2 was designed. They wouldn't have been used, otherwise. Of course an annual run rate of hundred million, or so, does wonders for driving down costs, unless the government is involved, of course.

Make a metal cookie cutter in the shape needed. Heat it up with a heat gun and use it to melt the hole.

A hot hole punch for plastic.

If his plastic boxes are of a brittle nature, a punch will cause fracturing.

A blade edged 'leather punch' or 'cookie cutter' type punch is needed and then heat as well will speed things up.

Yeah, he is gonna run right out and buy one of those.

I made a piezo driven lathe tool head that would cut a square peg from round stock on a spinning lathe. The external version of this in a way. Ten years ago. But that was not what they were for.

There are hole punches for square, rectangular, "D" connectors, etc..

Oh...did anyone say "Greenlee"?

I have a square one, but it's like 5/8" :-( ...Jim Thompson

Got any broken drill bits? Bob's your uncle.

Drill a round hole, and then use a dremel and dentists burr to clean up the corners of the square.