Introduction: Shotgun Shell USB Stick Case
So I broke my USB stick's case and had to think long and hard about what to re-case it in. After a search of my house, I found a couple of old shotgun shells, and this idea was born.
Help clean up your local hunting sites by collecting shotgun shells!
Step 1: Materials
Gather materials.
You will need:
- Two 12 gauge used shotgun shells (This means already fired, empty. NEVER EVER cut into a live shell) If you're wondering where to get used shells look in shooting ranges or hunting grounds but make sure they are aware of your presence and there isnt a hunt going on. One needs to have a longer brass casing (about 25mil in length)
- One USB Flash Drive
- A knife
- A cork (not pictured as I didn't know I needed it)
Step 2: Cut
No measuring here. Just cut the longer shell down to the brass. It has to be at least 25mil long otherwise it won't fit.
Step 3: Clear It Out
Clear out the case down to the white plastic at the bottom. You cannot fully remove this because it is attached to the head by the primer. I just left it in.
Step 4: Cut Again
This part will be the case for your drive so make sure to measure it. Take the drive out of its case and place it inside the shell. All USB devises have indents marking in how deep they fit into the port, so only up to them will need to be showing out of the top. Mark around this line on the outside and cut.
Always remember you can cut more off but not put more back on, so cut it a bit too long first.
To test if it's the right length, temporary attach the drive into the case (I used bluetack, fairly foolish and hard to clean up), and place the lid on. it should fit on snugly. Mine fitted on about 7mils.
Step 5: Cork
I originally planned to place the drive in there in its case, as it was a snug fit. Unfortunately, but ironically for the better, I measured it on the outside and cut the case too short so it didn't fit.
Being British, I used my initiative and took inspiration from =SMART='s Champagne USB key and fungus amungus' Pink Eraser USB Flash Drive. (unfortunately I forgot to document this solution). I got a cork and cut it down so it fitted tightly into the shell with no gaps. I then marked out the flash drive on the top and used a dremmel to drill / bore a hole into the cork.(see other two instructables for details)
Step 6: Finish
I wrapped my drive in electrical tape (for better or for worse?) and then slotted it in the hole. You can use the slithers of cork from the previous step to wedge it in. Clean up your edges and you're done. Have fun with your new case.
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58 Comments
12 years ago on Step 3
you can remove casing and the plastic bit all in one go by heating up the brass then when it is hot it will seperate from the plastic easily sometimes leaves a little bit of the white plastic
Reply 11 years ago on Step 3
+1 on heating the brass base. Use pliers to grip the plastic part and hold the brass over a heat source. Use another pair of pliers to gently tug at the brass until it comes out clean.
14 years ago on Introduction
make a nerd/geek bandoleer!
Reply 12 years ago on Introduction
I would absolutely LOVE that!
12 years ago on Introduction
i made one, it got stolen after a week......
15 years ago on Introduction
Helpful thought- never bring this into school.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
Or to a Church, Airport or Government building for that matter..... That's be really funny to see people's reactions though...
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
ye and your laptop would be a shotgun convertede into one LOL
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
what about a childrens hospital?
13 years ago on Step 6
2 things: (1.) Great instructable! The pic of mine should be attached. (I know its not so great. My thumb drive was small and my shotgun shell was different.) (2.) My dad says (I know, not a great way to start an arguement) that if you wrap the- I guess you would call it-motherboard of the drive in tape, it gums up the parts. And trust me, that would be QUITE the hassle to clean. What I did, I split the cork in half, put the drive into the two pieces, like a sandwich. Then I wrapped the sandwich in electrical tape and shoved it down into the shell.
13 years ago on Step 2
do you mean the brass has to be 25 mm or the plastic?
14 years ago on Introduction
to remove the primer place it over a hole in a board and hit it from the inside with a screrwdriver, it should pop right out, thay are made so thay can be replaced to ferill the shell.
Oh and to remove the plastic heat it GENTLY over a stove on simmer and carefully wiggle it out, the push down the burrs of brass on the bottom instide with an upside down nail and a hammer.
It works very well.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
proof,
it works very well!
14 years ago on Step 6
I would have used epoxy instead of cork, would have looked smoother too! Great 'ible.
14 years ago on Introduction
you can also put some hotglue instead of the cork and it could be more stable but however great instructable. it would be an excellent gift for a hunter..... wouldn't it???
14 years ago on Introduction
Thanks for the info about "NEVER EVER" cutting into a live shell cause I was gonna.
15 years ago on Introduction
lol i have the same laptop (it sucks)
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
My sister has the SAME EXACT laptop! Except hers works flawlessly. Maybe you looked at some sites you're not supposed to and got a virus?
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
no i got the early model that is so flawed its not even funny. but i found ppl that got them about 3 months after are working perfectly. ive gone threw 4 of them (all of which broke within 5 hours of having them , hadnt even gotten on the internet yet) there are also about 1,000 other ppl who got the bad batch, i fixed the problem but the fix runs down the battery faster than it should BUT there is no other known fix so yah. my model by the way is A215-S4747
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
My laptop model is A205-74707. Looks the same as the one pictured above. I use it for a while and then the screen goes black, still has a back light, but the screen is black. It seems to still work, music will still play, and I can blindly click around; but I can't do anything but restart it. Any ideas? Oh, and by the way, great and unique Instructable!