KKSB Cases Case for Raspberry Pi 5 with Space for Hats
KKSB Cases Case for Raspberry Pi 5 with Space for Hats, Add-on Boards, Coolers, and NVMe Hats
Metal Case for Raspberry Pi 5 – Space for HATs, Add-ons, Cooler, and NVMe HAT (Listing for the Case Only – Electronics are NOT Included)
Raspberry Pi 5, Addon Boards, Cooler, HATs, DIN Rail Mount, Camera Holder, and Electronics are NOT included.
Included Items:
- KKSB Case for Raspberry Pi 5
- Stackable Header
- 4x Male-Female M2.5 Hexagon Standoffs (18mm)
- 4x Male-Female M2.5 Hexagon Standoffs (20mm)
- Rubber Feet
This case is made to handle a hat easily with a Rpi 5. All the cables can be attached easily: the power, the 2 micro HDMI, microSD card, the 4 USB-A, and the Ethernet port. The power button has a metal cover that can easily be pressed to turn off and on the Rpi 5 computer. There are vertical metal tabs that can be permanently removed by twisting them; that allows access to cables or other items out of the two side of the case. The top is solid metal. The bottom has 4 screw holes in the form of a square, about 14mm to the corners. There also 2 cross holes to hang on a nail or something like that. This is the only problem I noticed with this case; the bottom of the Rpi 5 circuit board is exposed thru the cross holes so one can put it on a nail and possibly short out something. There was no included instructions on how to take it apart and reassemble it. The standoffs can be easily screwed in without a M2.5 hex driver by putting one standoff screwed into another standoff. Then screw them both in. Then use pliers to hold the bottom standoff still while unscrewing the top standoff. A cooler needs to be better to be able to cool off the Rpi 5 since the case restricts air flow some.
I had a Pi 5 and a bunch of HATs. I got this case so I could hopefully cram them all in it. One of the key things I liked was the removable side bits for port access which I sort of used for a serial port HAT.
What I ended up putting in it was:
Waveshare PoE HAT for Pi 5
MCUZone MPS2280 M.2 NVMe HAT for Pi 5
WisdPi PI-232 Serial HAT
== Issues during setup ==
Getting everything in required a few trial and error installs.
The wall mount slots in the base leave the back of the PCB exposed. I put in some plastic sheet to help protect it.
The PoE hat had to be on the bottom, but needed shorter stand-offs than included. Fortunately I just happened to have a set with the right height and screw thread.
Long HATs ran into the case sides. Particularly the MCZone NVMe (allows 2280 SSD) was an extremely tight fit. I had to partly remove the threads that hold the case top on to the lower piece, and bend the case out for a bit of clearance. This would be pretty easy to fix the design on the SD card side, but harder on the USB/ethernet port side.
I found it worthwhile to have some assorted M2.5 nylon standoffs to get the board spacing right.
Since I bent the case a bit I had to reshape the side panels, and it took a little effort to get them installed.
The serial port ended up a bit high so I need to use a file to remove some extra material. I also want to go back and attach a metal plate over the large hole created by removing the side bits.
== End result ==
I have my PoE powered Pi, NVMe SSD, and serial port all in a neat metal brick. There’s even a little more room on top where I could fit a low-profile Pi zero form factor hat.
== Other thoughts ==
The port cutouts are generous.
I like the flexible metal strip for the power button.
Feels like a solid little brick.
Using the male-female stand-offs makes the access annoying. Every hat has to be removed one at a time to get to the Pi.
Since this is a metal case I am also considering sticking a thick thermal pad under the CPU area to help conduct heat away.
This case for the Raspberry Pi 5 can be used for a variety of different applications. I needed a tall case that would work with an NVMe hat that I had. For that use, it did work well but I had a few issues with it. The kit comes with a GPIO header extension that lets you raise the hat further above the Raspberry Pi board to give it more room for better cooling. It also comes with a set of 20mm standoffs and 18mm standoffs. But using the extension, I needed 23mm standoffs. Fortunately, I had an assortment of standoffs on hand and was able to make it work.
Getting the standoffs on the back edge of the board screwed in was a challenge as they have to be threaded from the top and there is not a lot of space to work within the confines of the case. Attaching the PCIe cable to the NVMe hat was also difficult with it needing to be assembled inside the case as well. All of the threaded holes on the case are a standard M2.5 size, except for the two mounting holes on the top of the case which appear to be M3.0
I do like that the sides of the case have knockouts that can be easily removed to accommodate connectors on custom hats. Overall, this is a very sturdy and versatile case for a Raspberry Pi 5. As long as you don’t mind spending a bit of time getting everything mounted inside of it, I think it provides a good value.