Introduction: VessRaid SAS Chassis (Storage Array) Hard Drive Tray Alternative

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If you are starting to get into home networking and you're looking into a way to store a decent amount of data (and hopefully RAID it) and don't feel like spending a ton of money, I certainly feel your pain. Internet searches will give you many different options and unfortunately, most of them are not very cheap. One place that you can find some good finds is on eBay...but there are some small 'problems' there as well.

In my case, I saw a Promise Technologies VessRaid 1000 (1830s to be exact) series storage array for around $80 shipped. One of the biggest reasons why it was so cheap is because it didn't have any of the hard drive caddies (trays) included with the sale. Since this system has been discontinued by the manufacturer for some time now, good luck finding the trays; and when you do, they go for about $40 per tray used.

However, if you are not afraid of a little work, I did figure out a little trick that has allowed me to use the storage array without completely frankensteining something together.

Supplies

Material is really what you have at your disposal. Technically, you could use Lexan, Plexiglass, Aluminum, Stainless Steel, etc. and it would still work.

In my case, since I was going to use my laser engraver to cut the pieces (because I'm lazy), I ended up going with 1/8" (0.125" or 3.175mm) thick clear acrylic. This also had the bonus of acting as a large light pipe on the right side of the drives so that I could see the status lights for each drive.

Either way, it doesn't really matter what you use or if you cut it by hand or 3D print it, just keep these things in mind:

  1. Material thickness must be between 0.120" (3mm) and 0.125" (3.175mm). That seems to be the sweet spot and worked without any issue.
  2. I've included a CAD dwg file, a PDF, and a 3D STL file. All of these are 1:1 and are in inches.
  3. I've added dimensions to the CAD file and PDF for reference in case you print them out as 'templates' and want to double-check that everything is still 1:1.
  4. In regards to the STL file, it already has the countersink for the 6-32 screws, so instead of including 2 files, just mirror the STL in your slicing software to have both "rails".

Attachments

Step 1: Slice and Dice

3D Print or cut your hard drive "rails" out of your selected material. For those who are making it by hand, make sure that you are paying attention to the countersink notes in the drawing file(s). The hard drive holes are not centered on the rail, make sure that your countersinks are on the correct side.

I put an additional 6-32 clearance hole (0.150") hole on the "left rail" of mine so that it is a little bit easier to remove the drives if I need to.

Afterward, install the rails with 4 (or 6 if you want) 6-32 x 1/4" Long countersink phillips head screws and slide the drive into the storage array.

Step 2: Conclusion

These aren't difficult to make but I wanted to write up an Instructable in case anyone out there was also having issues finding hard drive trays. This 'trick' might also work with other storage arrays, but you'll probably have to do some measuring and trial/error.