How-To: Rackmount your gear for cheap

Our simple network rack is an easy project that can really clean up a home network installation. Just a few square feet of floor space now keeps our cable modem firewall, Ethernet switch, server, wireless AP, KVM, monitor, keyboard and UPS neatly tucked away -- in a (decently well ventilated) closet, for example. It's also built to support rack mount hardware of shallow depth, like a router (the real kind) or network switch, so if you want to clear off that folding table in the basement, check out today's how-to.

For today's How-To you'll need:

• kitchen rack from Target ($30)
  
• 3/4-inch wide, 1/2-inch deep aluminum channel ($6.50)
  
• 11/64 drill bit
• 1/4-inch drill bit
• m5 x 0.8 tap ($3.50)
  
• four 1-1/2-inch 1/4 x 20 bolts, washers and nuts ($1)
  
• m5 x 0.8 rack mounting screws (probably came with your rack mountable hardware)
  

We bought this rack at Target for about $30. It's nearly the perfect width for adding rack rails. The posts of the kitchen rack are 18 3/4-inches apart. A standard rack is about 17 3/4" wide. By adding 1/2-inch of rails to each side, we get a standard rack with room for the mounting screws to co-exist.

Standard rack mounting machine screws are metric 5mm x .8. The aluminum U channel is available in most hardware stores. Labeled as 3/4-inch plywood trim, it's 3/4-inch wide, and 1/2-inch deep. Industrial telco racks are much thicker, but there's enough material for lightweight use.

Cutting the aluminum is easy, we used a fine-tooth model saw, but a hacksaw will do as well.

Marking the channel for the mounting holes is easy. We measured the hole pattern at our secret test facility. The spacing between the holes, center to center, is 1/2-inch, 5/8-inch, 5/8-inch, 1/2-inch, 5/8-inch, 5/8-inch... Got it?

You can drill the 11/64 holes with a hand drill, but we prefer the drill press. Clamping a board  across the platform is an easy way to keep the holes in uniform position.

Tapping the holes gets old using a tap handle. The aluminum is soft enough that you can get away with using a cordless drill to tap the holes. Just take your time and give the tap a chance to cool between holes. Your hands will probably need a break, so give them a rest before moving on.

Drilling holes in the round posts is the most difficult task. Place the open face of the channel against the post and hold/clamp it in position. Drill the aluminum rail where you want the mounting bolt. Then use the rail as a guide to get the hole started on the post. Using progressively larger bits will make it much easier to drill the 1/4-inch hole. It may be easier to drill these holes before you assemble the rack. Just don't hold the rail right behind the area you're drilling. Take your time and do the job safely.

When the first mounting hole is done, flip the rail and bolt it up. On the aluminum side, we use a washer between the nut and rail to prevent deforming of the aluminum. Don't worry if it's not quite square to the front of the rack. A large pair of pliers, vice grips or channel locks can be used to rotate the post into the right position.

Tighten up the hardware with a ratchet and a wrench. Go ahead and torque it down.

Once the rail has one bolt holding it to the post, placing a clamp on both sides of the rail and the post will keep the rail centered on the post. Drill the lower mounting hole through the rail and post. Garnish with a second bolt, washer and nut.

One rail down, one to go. For mounting the other rail, be sure to measure and mark the mounting height. The lines on the posts are handy for aligning it. Now that the rails are mounted, get ready to mount your hardware.

Install the rack mount tabs on your gear. In our case it's our Cisco Ethernet switch. If you need lots of ports, these can be had off eBay for decent prices.

The fit is pretty tight, but ours came out just lovely using standard rack mounting hardware and our custom rails.

With our switch mounted, we added some cable management clips that we dug up. The sliding shelf made a great place to mount our KVM. Up top is our firewall, cable modem and console. The UPS and server live on the bottom shelf. The weight is a bit much for the lightweight casters, but for occasional movement they'll do the job.

If you'd rather roll your own rack and avoid all the drilling and tapping, Muscians Friend sells loose rack rails.

[J @ Apr 11th 2006 1:13PM]

Wow, talk about a waste of time. You can (and should) BUY your tapped rails as they undoubtedly will not be made of aluminum (you are rack mounting with aluminum rails?!?!?), the holes will be predrilled by an engineered bit, and it will fit EXACTLY as it is supposed to.

This stuff really isn't that expensive, it is impossible that drilling (?) your own rails is going to be easier than just buying them from a rack mount supply shop.

I do a lot of infrastructure work for a living, and this article is BAD ADVICE, even for a small data closet in your home or office.

[Pedro Pinheiro @ Apr 11th 2006 1:14PM]

I have a different setup - not for rack equipment, not as cheap, not as well ventilated, but much more stealth... :-)
http://matsu.blogdns.net/?p=28

[Your name (required) @ Apr 11th 2006 1:14PM]

Good post. The info was a good first step for me to get all my equipment organized and off the floor.

I have some equipment that is rack mountable but some requires shelving. Anyone have any idea how to build cheap shelves?

[ooglek @ Apr 11th 2006 1:20PM]

Could someone find and post the SKU at Target for that Kitchen Rack?

Also, J -- can you post a link to somewhere where you can buy tapped rails?

[Terc @ Apr 11th 2006 1:21PM]

musiciansfriend down from the.. um... ENGADGET effect?

[mang @ Apr 11th 2006 1:30PM]

Engadget, I think you solution is too time intensive to warrant the cost, especially considering the alternatives out there.

If you're only mounting a few pieces of gear, a small slant rack like this ($30):
http://www.zzounds.com/item--MUPRB7030

is an excellent option. I use mine for audio gear & it's mounted on the edge of my desk.

[J @ Apr 11th 2006 1:30PM]

Chatsworth makes plain rail kits that you can cut to size. If you want a nice enclosure you can check out Anthro as you can have it custom built to your specs (a little pricey though).

There are huge catalogs of this stuff (lots of surplus deals too). I can't believe someone took the time to do this and then document the whole process. Aluminum rails? Your equipment WILL drop.

[Tim Dorr @ Apr 11th 2006 1:33PM]

" Wow, talk about a waste of time."

And looking at the switch they've got there, one would wonder why they'd spend hundreds of dollars on a switch (unless that's a 3xxx class Cisco, in which case we're talking thousands) and NOT spend just a hundred or two on a decent 1/4 rack. I mean, you spend that much money, you might as well spend a good amount to keep it from crashing onto the ground and breaking...

[J @ Apr 11th 2006 1:49PM]

It looks like a Catalyst 3550/24 switch to me, so we are talking about at least $1000 sitting on some aluminum hand drilled rails.

[james waldron @ Apr 11th 2006 1:58PM]

Almost everyone responding to this content really needs to get a life. It doesn't take that much effort to be constructive by showing alternatives and 'help' others out there thinking of building a rack instead of showing the world how much better your ideas are.

This home-made rack idea shows creativity and merit for anyone who already owns everything they need except the personal inspiration to solve an un-noticed deficit.

The rack would not take very long to build. Thanks for the ideas!

[Jared Dilg @ Apr 11th 2006 2:06PM]

I agree with James, it looks like a fun little project - just buy the $10 rails available from the Musician's Friend link to save yourself some time.

[Tyler @ Apr 11th 2006 2:14PM]

"Your equipment WILL drop." -J

Evidence? One of those bolts could easily hold the entire amount of weight being placed across four without snaping or shearing. The aluminium rails, while not something I would want to use in a street luge vehicle, also have plenty enough strength to hold the equipment. While I agree that there are relatively cheap alternatives out the're going to, keep your equipment "from crashing onto the ground and breaking." any more than this setup. This has more bragging rights and that's most likely why it was undertaken as a project.

[Brian @ Apr 11th 2006 2:57PM]

For those looking for a source of pre-drilled rack rails.... I use these:

http://www.smarthome.com/prodindex.asp?catid=914

Work rather well in both my home theater and home office applications... They also have racks with "wood" sides (MDF)for those that were looking for that type of thing... slap on a few wheels from Home Depot and you have yourself a rolling rack case. Heck... get two and screw them together for an even bigger case.

That's if your lazy... want to save even more? A 4x8 sheet of melamine coated MDF only cost me $30 at a local shop... takes some work on the table saw, but you can save over the pre-made ones.

[Trenton Lipscomb @ Apr 11th 2006 3:33PM]

Many pre-drilled options from which to choose:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/home/navigation?q=rack+rails

[gx @ Apr 11th 2006 4:47PM]

I did the same thing, but used a wooden shoe rack that fits into half a hallway cupboard - the rack has 5 slatted shelves, so there's plenty of air movement. It's a cheap pine job, and set me back less than a couple of cards.

The top (5th) shelf comes at stomach height, and perfectly houses a laser printer - the rack is about 2 laser printers wide. The 4th shelf houses consumable boxes (two A4 sized, about the height of a ream of paper) and equipment boxes. The 3rd shelf houses two more consumable boxes and electronics toolkit, box of parts, packs of blank DVD/CDs. The 2nd shelf houses a notebook (household network server), a mini-itx box (household file/application server), a wireless dsl gateway/hub, a NAS box and a phone line ATA. The 1st shelf (lowest) is for cable management: power board, excess spools, etc. I mounted a small cigarette pack sized antenna on the wall at about 8 foot up (nice 9 foot ceilings) and lead the cable in and down to the wireless box.

I had new power outlets put in the cupboard, so no external cabling. I mounted an internal flourescent switched strip light above the rack. I had the main phone line looped through the cupboard -- so it breaks out to the DSL box and to the ATA, then the ATA line site goes back into the wall. It means that the main phone line in the house is transparently hooked directly into Asterisk.

It's absolutely great - takes up only the bottom half of a cupboard, yet fits everything (and it could fit more) unobtrusively -- the only giveaway is the small antenna pack on the outside.

In the rest of the house we have seven wireless clients (notebooks, desktops, pdas, etc). If I'd had the chance to renovate the place, I would have cabled everything and also terminated in the cupboard - current 802.11g speeds suck.

The cupboard (two doored) is also the hallway coatrack when opened on the other side. It's warm enough in there that anything damp dries quickly.

[mr.leeho @ Apr 11th 2006 7:34PM]

standard rack width is 19in.
you can purchase rack rails at any music retailer, Guitar Center has them for under 10 bucks.
hell, you can buy a freestanding rack for less that 30.

[Petar Smilajkov @ Apr 11th 2006 8:30PM]

I think this is really nice and awesome. Not everything has to justify the time and cost, some things are just fun to do.

I rather have this little self-made kitchen-rack, than the one from the link someone posted for $30 bucks.

This is really nice :)

[strider_mt2k @ Apr 11th 2006 9:31PM]

Want even lower cost? Ghetto stealth even?

Try a rectangular plastic milk crate some time. ;)
I mounted lightweight stuff using wood or sheetrock screws, and heavier items with #10 bolts and nuts.

You can even cut what is now the back out for more access.

I applaud the project! If it works for you it's great!
It doesn't have to do anything but work and satisfy the builder as far as I'm concerned.

[Meggeler @ Apr 11th 2006 9:47PM]

Aw common guys! Lighten up - really a neat project to say "I built it" and show off after a few drinks.

[Dave @ Apr 11th 2006 10:47PM]

I think the point of the negative posters is that projects like this usually are done to save money because the regular method is cost prohibitive. But in this case,the standard parts cost in the around the same as the project parts AND save time, AND look better.

I am all for saving a buck when it makes sense.

[Lee Gibson @ Apr 11th 2006 11:16PM]

You're going to mount a computer on threads you tapped in ALUMINUM RAILS?

Wow.

You're brave. And by 'brave', I mean 'bad at physics and metallurgy'.

[Will O'Brien @ Apr 11th 2006 11:57PM]

Guys,
I've spent alot of time around network installations. Aluminum racks are used all the time.
Remember that the thinner aluminum used here is intended for light weight equipment, *not* heavy rack mount computers.

[lwatcdr @ Apr 12th 2006 10:28AM]

Okay everyone know know that they can buy cheap rails. However I have to say this has one other thing going for it. It is attractive. I would upgrade the casters and use the pre drilled rails but this is a nice attractive rack.

[Byron Guernsey @ Apr 12th 2006 10:41AM]

Why do I hear the A-Team theme playing in my head while I view the pictures? I pity the fool!

[Morgan Aldridge @ Apr 12th 2006 10:44AM]

I built an 18U four post, open air, rack on casters for about $75 when I was in college and still use it at home to this day.

Basically, I bought two pairs of 18U tapped rack rails from Parts Express (http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=262-392) and angled, slotted, galvanized-steel as well as the customary nuts, bolts, and casters, from my local hardware store. I planned it so I only had to cut a few of the angled steel pieces in half to get a 26" deep rack, so it ended up not being too labor intensive other than extending a few of the slots in the steel and bolting it all together.

It's _very_ sturdy and currently houses an Xserve G5, a PowerMac G4 (with Marathon Computer G-Rack), switch, cable modem, stereo components, etc. I host my site off those servers.

I was going to write up how to do this back when I actually built it, maybe I should actually sit down and do it.

I do appreciate seeing others write how-to's like this as it can be a very education process to build your own rack. This how-to may be a little inelegant, not very cost effective, and limit what you can put in a rack, but it's still worth providing an option.

[John Laur @ Apr 12th 2006 10:49AM]

While I agree that buying pre-drilled/tapped steel rails is a way better solution, the aluminum rails are not really that bad. There are plenty of good racks that are made from aluminum. The problem is that he's putting equipment on those rails with a center of gravity very far back. That's OK on steel rails for the most part but certainly will deform those aluminum rails over time.

As to the question of mounting a rackmount PC on aluminum rails -- I wouldn't think twice about it if it were a four post rack. Really I would never use a front-only mounting for a system. You rackmount a PC for convenience and space saving, and if it can't easily slide in and out of the rack with one person then it's certainly not convenient!

[Peter Tripp @ Apr 12th 2006 12:09PM]

Commenters are arguing over what kind of Cisco switch it is, but I see something much more interesting in the picture...

I think the PC he's using is a Digital Celebris 6200.
Running everyone's (my) favorite processor: Pentium Pro.

<UselessInfo>

[Jonathan Boutelle @ Apr 12th 2006 12:31PM]

Nice project!
I did a couple (less intensive) home LAN organizer projects myself. It's a fun way to kill an afternoon.

http://www.jonathanboutelle.com/mt/archives/2005/03/home_lan_caddy.html
http://www.jonathanboutelle.com/mt/archives/2005/11/wallmounted_lan.html

People need to lighten up ... DIY isn't just about cost, it's about making yous own solutions, and learning a little bit along the way.

[nx99 @ Apr 12th 2006 5:39PM]

I have one of these kitchen racks and it wobbles more than a weeble. I wouldn't trust it anything more delicate than a wok.

[jason @ Apr 12th 2006 5:51PM]

Is there a better quality way to a DIY rack system? I'm a guitarist with alot of gear in my rig, but I'm dead out of cash to blow on a rack to hold it all. We guitarists have always been big on DIY projects (from effects, to pick-up mods, etc), so I'm open to suggestions.

[Ivan Minic @ Apr 13th 2006 4:33AM]

So lame :)

[Rowel @ Apr 13th 2006 5:34PM]

Sorry, but that Target rack wouldn't hold a lot of weight. I say get one of those rack cases used for home studios and use it as your equipment rack. They're cheap, sturdy, and will last for years! I'm using this one... only $170

http://www.zzounds.com/a--884937/item--MID2R12

On mine, I have a 3u APC UPS, (2) 4u servers, switch, kvm, and it can support a lot of weight and very sturdy too.

I think that Target rack will collapse if I try to bolt my APC UPS on that thing.

[Jimmycorn @ Apr 13th 2006 8:15PM]

Why bother? I've got my rack mount audio stuff in a cheap MDF cabinet I got from WalMart. I mounted 1"x1" oak strips to the inside of the case with epoxy, and simply used wood screws to drill right into the 1x1. No need for ground loop isolators, just a wood screw with a decorative washer. Works fine.

Leave the back off, or add a fan if heat is an issue.

[h0zae @ Apr 16th 2006 8:24AM]

2 x 4 and wood screws - another alternative

[Chris McDonald @ Apr 16th 2006 9:16AM]

The main problem with aluminum rack rails is that the threads won't last very long if you are taking gear in and out of the rack alot. If fine if you plan on installing it and leaving it. That rack will hold alot of weight, I wouldn't install a rack mount UPS in it, but a few 1 U servers, routers and switches should be fine. I would maybe put a few more bolts between the rack rail and the cart.

When ever you work with aluminum use a cutting/tapping lube. Your tools will cut better and last alot longer. The lube also should have a cooling agent in it. I just use my high speed dremel knock off and it cuts aluminum like butter. Tapping by hand is easier too.

[SED TV Forums @ Jun 16th 2006 1:02PM]

Thanks for the inexpensive ideas. For those of us who don't have lots of cash lying around, but a bit of time, it's inspiring.

[TykSak @ Jul 3rd 2006 1:01PM]

With the predrilled rails your rack would be really easy to make.
Like matsu I also tried to stealth my rack
this ist the old "normal" rack
http://rack.modzone.dk/Worklog_rack.htm
and here is the new rack
http://rack.modzone.dk/Worklog_rack2.htm

[Vlad @ Aug 22nd 2006 1:47AM]

I needed a black studio type rack for some gear I aquired lately. Just spent $600 so I resigned myself to waiting for the next paycheck.

I walked into Walmart today and there came the epiphiny.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?dest=9999999997&product_id=4529471&sourceid=0100000030660804902498


A $20 TV cart! Measures in Inches (L x W x H): 23.5 x 15.5 x 20.9 I cut the top and bottom to the same dimensions as the sides on a table saw to make it square. Stand it up on the side and you got a rack case. I just screwed the amps into the wood and bought some castors from Walmart. ( The castors that come with it suck )

Its strong, looks great and cost total about $30 The right side isn't finished in black but that doesn't matter to me as you can't see it in my case. [I]Guess I could always paint it later.[/I] Also the rack stuff is about an 1/8th inch too big on each side but who cares? I am very happy as I was planning on spending about $170 without castors for probably the same thing.

http://www.vexedband.com/rack.jpg

[Dan S. @ Sep 1st 2006 10:59AM]

I assume that the rack is this one:

Catalog # : 512609 ASIN: B00008616C DPCI: 249-02-1689

[Minok @ Aug 25th 2008 3:33PM]

m5 x 0.8 threaded holes? Last I checked 19" racks have 10-32 threaded holes.
But I guess if you are tapping aluminum to drive in steels screws, its 'good enough'.
I assume you are using steel bolts on the other side... or not mounting anything heavier than a small switch.