first cabinet build, feedback welcome

[HatTrick77]

hey everyone, been reading through these forums for quite a bit and decided to post some pics of my very first attempt at an arcade cabinet.  i decided to go with an MK2 build as it brings back fond memories of cutting class with friends and spending our lunch money at the local bowling alley....oh, how i miss those days.  I got the inspiration for the bartop build after viewing some clips of a cabinet build by BigPete on youtube.  I thought he did a great job at scaling down the look of a midway cabinet, so i decided to try and recreate as best i could.  However, the one thing i wanted to change was to make it a 2P machine.

As it stands now, i used 5/8" PB for the sides and CP, 1/2" for the top, bottom, speaker panel and slide out shelf.  the bezel was cut from 1/4" mdf.  I opted to use the PB as it was lighter than the MDF and off the shelf it was as straight as i could hope for.  menards has the 2x4' handi-panels on sale for $2.99 every now and then so i purchased a few panels of each and began the layout.  i wanted to build this cabinet in a 'knock down' manner because if it turns out well i plan to ship one to my buddy's firehouse in San Diego.  I used 3/16" dowels and a few different sizes of threaded inserts to keep things together.  I have a bunch of the cam lock type IKEA hardware as well, but i believe a dab of glue on the dowels should be more than enough to keep it together, its surprisingly square and ridgid.  

the monitor is a viewsonic 19" 4:3 monitor that i got for hanging 30ft of crown in a friends bathroom.  to hold the bezel i used a 1/2" aluminum u channel on all four sides and slid the bezel and a 1/4" piece of tempered glass in for a nice secure fit.  the slots on the monitor bracket allow me to get the monitor tight and centered on the bezel.  in the pic, its just a quick rollers worth of semi-gloss but i plan to use the black laminate on that as well as the rest of the cabinet.  the marquee is held in place with brake metal that i bent at work and there's a 1/4" dado on the sides and 1/4" rabbets on the top and speaker panel.  i used 1/4" tempered glass in front of the marquee, but i should have taken others advise and used two 1/8" pieces instead.  I'm waiting on some fans before i attempt the back panel, as i only want to do it once.  

Still much more to do, but the easy part is done.  The computer part is going to be a challenge, i'm not very savvy with electronics.  I could use some advise on a good speaker setup and even a recommendation on a best bang-for-the-buck computer setup to run mame on.  i'd like to scratch build a computer to get more familiar with these things, I figure there's no better time to learn than the present.

Thanks for the input, i look forward to participating in this great community....but probably cant contribute to much more than the woodworking forum
Brian in Chicago    

[Mr.Ian]

Very tidy build. Great workmanship

What are the sides going to finished off with. Black Laminate would look fantastic


Nice work

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

Did you buy that button as-is or did you make the transparent inlay yourself? If so, how did you do it?

[leapinlew]

Looks good. Your using a MK3 button layout too? I assume you're using MAME then?

[pharoah007]

dude, that looks WILD!

U should supply us with your blueprints for those of us (cough) who would like to build one just like that


Keep up the good work!

[HatTrick77]

thanks for looking, i appreciate the positive remarks.  i'm having lots of fun building this little cabinet, and if all goes well, i plan to start on a touchscreen juke like some that i've seen here.   

@Ian- I'm using a black formica vertical grade laminate on the black parts pictured and i plan to do the rest.  i'm waiting on the rest of the cabinet to be completed before i finish the laminate, cause this stuff is not nearly as scratch resistant as i would have hoped.  just for the hell of it, i'm gonna try and shoot some semi gloss black out of my Graco airless sprayer to see what kinda results i get...this thing did such a great job on my 6 panel doors that i figure it might give comparable results at a fraction of the cost of laminate.  it seems kinda pointless to pay to laminate an area that will ultimately be covered in side art.   


@COS- If you're referring to the coin button, i got it from groovy game gear, i think its something like $8 IIRC.  the only thing i did was to take the spacer piece off the back to get a lower profile install.  I made a small template and used a guide bushing to route it out with my little Bosch Colt router.  little extra work, but i like the way it came out.




 



@LL-I decided on the MK3 layout as that is what i'm most familiar with, i plan to make a couple more tops for the CP so i can play tracball games and i'll probably make one with the more common 6 button layout.  there must be a reason so many people have chosen that layout, at the time i just thought it was more for Street Fighter geared cabs...and i was never too into the SF stuff.  i am running mame on my laptop, though it doesn't seem to run as smoothly as i hope this cabinet will.   

[HatTrick77]

dude, that looks WILD!

U should supply us with your blueprints for those of us (cough) who would like to build one just like that


Keep up the good work!

thanks, buddy.  kinda building this thing as i go and once that cabinet is completed, i'll be sure to make up a set of prints.  i have 1/4" mdf templates for the majority of the build and plan to do the rest.  as i get more free time i might make a couple sets of templates for those who might be interested, but i just have way too much on my plate at the moment.

[pharoah007]

hey no rush.

I do not only ask for myself, I ask because things like this are good for the community.

but again no rush, take your time...finish it right!   then start worrying about plans

any plans for MK side art?   My fave is MK2

[BobA]

Nice build. Looks very professional and I am sure many here will be interested. 

[taylormadelv]

Very nice woodwork there! I can't see t-moulding slots, this will have t-moulding, right?

[HatTrick77]

Very nice woodwork there! I can't see t-moulding slots, this will have t-moulding, right?

thanks, i plan to to do the t molding just want to get it out of mock-up stage before i get to that.  once i get the ventilation for the back panel situated i'll break it all down and finish the laminate and molding.  gotta decide on some fans and speakers and i'll be able to carry on with the build.

looking for opinions on some 4" speakers and amp...if anyone can give me some recommendations.  looking for much more than my little USB speakers are capable of delivering.

[pharoah007]

if you are running MAME from a computer, just get a set of computer speakers with a sub...your cabinet will POUND.

I have a mini mane with computer speakers (X4 in set) and a sub. The cab ONLY has 2 of the speakers and the sub installed and man does it pound

[jipp]

ok, you have convince me.. after i build my sisters cab.. i will be starting a bartop. 
looks great,
chris.

[pharoah007]

ok, you have convince me.. after i build my sisters cab.. i will be starting a bartop. 
looks great,
chris.

I am building my first Bartop right now, a Golden Tee.

I LOVE the look of this bartop and can not wait for plans

What are the approx L X D X W of this cab?

[HatTrick77]

ok, you have convince me.. after i build my sisters cab.. i will be starting a bartop. 
looks great,
chris.

I am building my first Bartop right now, a Golden Tee.

I LOVE the look of this bartop and can not wait for plans

What are the approx L X D X W of this cab?

i appreciate the kind words, i have some dimensions for you.  the body of the arcade is 20-1/2" wide by 21-3/4" deep at the widest point at the bottom.  the cabinet measures 29-1/4" at the tallest point and the control panel is a few inches wider than the width of the main cabinet and measures 24-1/2" wide by 9-3/4" deep .  i will be more than happy to post some plans, but it would probably be easier and quicker for me to post some hand-drawn drawings than to try and learn sketchup well enough to create a print.  i have a sidejob this weekend, but should be able to post the plans necessary to get you to where the cabinet stands as pictured. 

i also planned to build a GT machine, but i would add a few inches of depth for the CP so you dont have to worry about someones hands going through the monitor.  for this reason i had a piece of 1/4" tempered glass cut to protect the monitor for $30.  GT players have a tendency to get "happy gilmore' on the trackball at times

the cab can be built with common power tools like a circ saw, router, drill and a few different router and drill bits.  the only tool that may be less common is a doweling jig, however there are many other options as far as joinery is concerned.

as soon as i fit everything and have it up and running, i will sketch up the entire cabinet for others to use, the only thing i ask is that someone takes the time to produce a cad drawing from it that the community can use.  i have a mini itx board and a bunch of other goodies on the way, so hopefully i can get this thing fully operational within the next couple of weeks.

[Ond]

This is some nice clean, well thought out work right here.

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

@COS- If you're referring to the coin button, i got it from groovy game gear, i think its something like $8 IIRC.  the only thing i did was to take the spacer piece off the back to get a lower profile install.  I made a small template and used a guide bushing to route it out with my little Bosch Colt router.  little extra work, but i like the way it came out.

Yeah, I meant the coin button. Sorry, I didn't realize I'd quoted the wrong picture. Thanks for the info, found it:

http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=73&products_id=295

[HatTrick77]

dude, that looks WILD!

U should supply us with your blueprints for those of us (cough) who would like to build one just like that


Keep up the good work!

here's a quick sketch of the side dimensions. kinda crude, but should give you an idea.  do all your layout and save speaker and marquee area for last as these were developed from the intersection of right angles in the top and monitor areas.  i tried to sketch it up to scale and something wasn't quite working right, probably due to the tiny little protractor i was trying to pull the measurements from.  the protractor measurement are probably accurate to +/- one degree. 

i'll try and get a sketch of the control panel as soon as i get a chance. HTH   

[markronz]

Looks great!  What kind of hinges are those?

[HatTrick77]

Looks great!  What kind of hinges are those?

thanks, i got the hinges at rockler...not the cheapest but its a pretty beefy hinge.

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=10765&rrt=1

[pharoah007]

dude, that looks WILD!

U should supply us with your blueprints for those of us (cough) who would like to build one just like that


Keep up the good work!

here's a quick sketch of the side dimensions. kinda crude, but should give you an idea.  do all your layout and save speaker and marquee area for last as these were developed from the intersection of right angles in the top and monitor areas.  i tried to sketch it up to scale and something wasn't quite working right, probably due to the tiny little protractor i was trying to pull the measurements from.  the protractor measurement are probably accurate to +/- one degree. 

i'll try and get a sketch of the control panel as soon as i get a chance. HTH   

LOL, this is the same way I post my drawings...I draw them then take a picture    

It works right!

Thanks for the drawing, great looking cab!

[HatTrick77]

@pharaoh- never thought about the camera idea, actually i scanned it a few times trying to get it to show up darker.  I'm in the process of drawing it in Sketchup8 at the moment, but this program isn't nearly as easy to use as AutoCad

waiting on a new table saw to be delivered before i go any further with the woodworking, so i should have some time to get this thing drawn out shortly. 
 

[Mysteriozone]

Wow, that looks great!!! I have two of those in my basement but as single player cabs . Please keep posting updates, as I'd love to se the finished product.

[HatTrick77]

here's a little update...i mounted the DVD drive under the hinged control panel.  made a template for the router and had to use a small flush cut saw to take the radius off at the corners.  its mounted from behind with some hand made aluminum L brackets.  i have the computer up and runnning, just haven't figured out the best way to mount it all in there.  i have an idea just giving it a little more thought before i commit to anything.   



new table saw will be here thursday along with misc hardware and switches, should be able to get a good chunk of it finished over the weekend. 

[ragnar]

Your monitor mount is brilliant!  So simple yet so ... why did I not do that?

[jipp]

i really like how clean and how thought out your bartop is.  something i need to do a better job of in my own work.  rock on.

chris.

[SNAAKE]

looks great. yeah what kind of screws are those for the monitor mount? does it fit all monitors all.. ??

[Donkbaca]

How are the bezel and glass mounted? How would you remove the glass if you had to replace it?  I love the way it looks

[HatTrick77]

looks great. yeah what kind of screws are those for the monitor mount? does it fit all monitors all.. ??

thanks, the screws are M4x0.7.  i can't vouch that it'll fit ALL monitors, though it does look like the mounting pattern is similar to others that i've seen.  i just checked two of my samsung lcd tvs and they also use a 4"x4" mounting pattern with m4x0.7 threads, identical to the viewsonic monitor.  i really built this cabinet around this 4:3 monitor as i was looking to have the bezel the same width all around.  i'm really picky about the little details, almost to a fault.

How are the bezel and glass mounted? How would you remove the glass if you had to replace it?  I love the way it looks

 

i used 1/2" aluminum u channel all around the opening flushed up to the edge.  i have 1/4" tempered glass directly on top of a 1/4" mdf bezel and it slides into the channel for a nice secure fit.  i used #4 screws and countersunk the channel to attach each individual piece of u channel to the particle board.  with the cabinet on its side, like the one in my earliest pics,  i slid the glass and bezel into the 3 sided opening and then fit the side panel and dowels and tightened up the 1/4-20 bolts that fasten the monitor bracket.  thanks for looking, i'm really pleased with how it came out. 

[Donkbaca]

I totally dig it

[segasega]

This is the sort of design I want to go with for my cad. Sweet!