RAK19003 Meshtastic Weatherproof Case

This is a weatherproof (or waterproof depending on the version) case for a RAK19003 based Meshtatic node. Since the RAK19003 includes a Li-ion charging circuit and solar panel input port, the cases have room for a 2000mAh Li-ion battery and some models have a hole for running wires from a solar panel.

Features

The various versions have differing combinations of these features, indicated by the .stl name:

Case

USB - has a slot for accessing the USB-C port on the board (this is a power+data port) Solar - has a threaded hole to accept an M8 cable gland to run wires from a solar panel Mag - has a hole in the back of the case to fit an M3 heat-set insert for attaching a countersunk magnet to the case NoAntenna - has the antenna hole omitted in case you want to use a small embedded PCB antenna

Lid

Holes - has holes for M3 bolts for attaching the solar panel arm Oled - has a cutout for a 0.96" OLED display (this version is definitely not weatherproof)

The Solar-Arm and Arm-Mount models are for attaching a pivoting solar panel directly to the lid of the case (simply using 20mm VHB tape), making an all-in-one solar-powered Metastatic node.

Waterproofing

• The USB feature obviously can't be used as it's just an open hole in the case. For general weather resistance, the hole should be fine since it's on the bottom of the case.
• The model TPU-Seal should be either printed out of TPU (or other flexible material) or cut out of some flexible gasket material. This provides a seal between the case and the lid.
• The SMA antenna hole has a countersink on the inside of the case to use an o-ring seated between the rear hex of the SMA connector and the case.
• The M8 threaded hole has a countersink to accept an o-ring on the cable gland, which, in combination with a round wire (as opposed to multiple wires) should create a water-tight seal for the solar power input.
• The model TPU-Mag-Seal should be either printed out of TPU (or other flexible material) or cut out of some flexible gasket material. This provides a seal around the hole used to mount the magnet. Alternatively, a 16mm OD 1.5mm thick o-ring can be sandwiched in the groove in between the magnet and the case.
• The Lid-Holes model includes indents to accept o-rings around the screws, providing a water-tight seal for the Arm-Mount.
• Finally, the 3D prints themselves have to be waterproof, so using PETG, printing slower, hotter, and with less cooling, and using at least 3-4 perimeters is recommended.

Materials

Note: The links are just example parts that will definitely fit, they're probably not the cheapest way to get the parts. Also, the links may die in the future if the listings are removed, in which case, you're on your own for finding the parts (that should be pretty easy though).

Basic Case

• 4x M3x6mm heat-set inserts Amazon
• 4x M3x8mm machine screw Amazon
• 4x M3 washer Amazon
• 3x M2.5x4.5mm heat-set inserts Amazon
• 3x M2.5x8mm standoffs Amazon
• 3x M2.5x3mm machine screws (I used the ones that come with the RAK19003, but any that are 3mm to 8mm long should work)
• 1x SMA to U.FL 5cm cable Amazon (you can use longer, but it will get messy having extra cable in the case)
• 1x 5mm o-ring Amazon (I used the o-rings that people buy for keyboard modding because they're extra soft and very cheap)
• 1x SMA LoRa antenna Amazon (link is 915MHz for North America use)
• 1x 2000mAh Li-ion battery Amazon (any battery will work as long as it's less than or equal to 46x44x9mm)
• 1x RAK19003 Mini Base Board rakwireless
• 1x RAK4631 (nRF52840) or RAK113100 (RP2040) Core Module rakwireless-RAK4631 rakwireless-RAK113100

Magnet Add-on

• 1x M3x6mm heat-set inserts Amazon
• 1x M3x10mm countersunk machine screw Amazon
• 1x countersunk magnet Amazon
• 1x 16x1.5mm o-ring Amazon

Solar Add-on

• 1x M8 nylon cable gland Amazon (I may try to modify the case in the future to support the much more common M12 cable glands)
• 1x 5V solar panel Amazon For solar arm assembly:
• 2x M3x8mm countersunk machine screws Amazon
• 2x M3x6mm heat-set inserts Amazon
• 1x M3 nylon lock nut Amazon
• 1x M3x25mm machine screw Amazon
• 1 piece of VHB tape for mounting solar panel Amazon (or you could use glue)

Printed Parts Basic Case

• 1x case variant (any of the cases are compatible with any of the lids)
• 1x lid variant
• 1x TPU-Seal (the .dxf file is provided in case you'd rather cut this out of something)

Magnet Feature

• 1x TPU-Mag-Seal (.dxf file is provided here as well)
• case variant must include the Mag keyword in the file name

Solar Panel Mount Feature

• 1x Lid-Holes lid
• 1x Arm-Mount
• 1x Solar-Arm

Other Notes

• None of the models need support.
• The M8 threads on the Solar variants of the case don't come out super clean, so running an M8 tap through them is recommended.
• I've provided the standalone STEP files for the basic lid and basic case models in case you want to modify them. I've also provided the STEP file for the whole set, which won't be a clean to work with, but should make adjusting tolerances much easier.
• The cases all have passages on the back to allow them to be cleanly zip-tied to a post or something.

Planned Upgrades/Changes

• I plan to make versions of all the cases that don't use heat-set inserts, instead having the screws bite into the plastic directly. This would be less strong and would wear out if threaded in and out multiple times, but should be simpler to make.
• I might try to remove the M2.5 standoffs as well, replacing them with built-in stands.
• I might try to adjust the Solar variants to accept the more common M12 cable glands instead of the M8 that they currently use.

Feel free to modify these models however you want, I added the CAD files to make that easier. Also, I don't care if anyone want to take these models and sell them, I don't honestly think they're worth selling, but if you do want to sell them, just leave a link back to this page somewhere in your listing.