Fred,

That would certainly provide clearance for the RTC by mounting the fan sideways.

I guess the only question would be whether the displaced fan would give adequate cooling to the main chip.

This would be a minimally invasive way of getting what I would need, thank you for suggesting this.

I spent a couple hours searching online for a Pi case that was tall and included a fan and came up fairly empty, with only a couple plausible solutions.

It would seem that I would not be the only one looking for a little more clearance in a Pi case.

Another possible solution would be finding a RTC that didn't mount directly on top of the pins.

Hi Fred,

I have found the 3D printing world opened a world of things to help astro gadgets.
Here is a printable case, designed with RTC and fan in mind and used by author for astronomy.
www.printables.com/model/30600-raspberry...an-case-supports-rtc
www.printables.com/model/30600-raspberry...e-supports-rtc/files

You do not need a printer if only doing a few one off's, I have used various services to print models. Not an endorsement, upload file to print and then see various vendors willing to print along with cost.
www.treatstock.com/

Using PLA material is good enough if scope not going to be out in the sun for extended periods of time, going PETG if it is.

Gene

Paul,

I never had a cooling problem that I was aware of/encountered. Since the fan is really only offset by a fraction of an inch, it still has vents it can exhaust air through covering the entire fan surface. Also, the offset is so small that the fan still covers all the heat sinks/chips on the RPi board. The fan isn't really mounted 'sideways' but rather just moved a fraction of an inch diagonally from it's 'normal' position.

Best of luck,
Fred

Gene - thanks very much for the links. I've been hearing more about these services and knowing that there are drawings out there for use in astro applications is great. I'll check it out!

Fred

Hi Fred,

Be advised, if you (or anyone) decides to get a printer, the number of things I found to print/fix keep growing.
Len's caps for finders, knob for RedDot, side bracket (broke and glue was no use for original) for RedDot, ESP32 cases for DSC control, DSC gears/adapters, 2inch to T-2 adapter, plus a multitude of adapters/gadgets for around the house and car.

The printer 'justification' came about when I picked up an 8inch Dob for a great price that adding a printer would come up to about what the scope's value.
Then adding the DSC's to it.
www.cloudynights.com/topic/824855-dsc-fo...dsh-8/#entry11909602

Gene