Mechanical question

[Bruce]

The ones made for metal work just fine on plastic enclosure panels. I've used them. You just drill a hole in the end panel large enough to pass the bolt through.

But they are expensive, and you don't need a steel punch for plastic. If you have a local machine shop, see if they will make one for you out of aluminum. I had one made 10+ years back for knocking out DB9 holes in plastic enclosure front panels for < $50, and it looked just like the $450.00+ units you see for metal from Greenlee.

They are dirt-simple to have made in most any machine shop, and with todays economy, I'll bet you could have one made even cheaper.

If you don't want one where the pass through nut & bolt is used, have a stamp made. Place a peice of hard wood under the plastic panel, and a few taps with a hammer will do the trick.

If you want really cheap, gut a DB9 connector leaving just the metal shell. Place it on the plastic, and tap with a hammer. You'll have to do a bit of filing on the edges, but it works.