Woody admin panel - how to support the glass at the bottom

[edub]

Hello all,

I have been drawing and planning a woody-inspired cab for awhile. Soon, I hope to actually START the darn build. But you all know the frustration with time and other priorities in life. I have received SO MUCH help on this forum - thank you so much.

For those of you familiar with the woody design and admin panel, I was under the impression that he used a 3/4" thick admin panel (well, that's about the max most buttons will fit through). Ok, let's make that assumption. Of the 3/4" thickness, I thought Knievel notched out 1/4" (back top) of the thickness for his glass to rest on at the bottom. This gives a 1/2" INSET from the side of the cab to the glass - looks good.

Some woody clones actually place the glass BEHIND the 3/4" admin panel (no notching of the admin panel) - providing a bigger inset. If this is what I plan to do (look at the Penney Arcade post for a GREAT picture of this), what is the best way to STOP the glass at the bottom? Simply put a 1/2" tall/thick support JUST ABOVE the admin button holes and attach it to the admin panel from behind?

FYI - I am not using the same mount as Knievel did. So, I will actually have 1/4" black bezel and 1/4" glass sandwiched together resting in front of the LCD monitor. I could make the bezel 1/8" thick also instead of 1/4" thick. So, I need "room" for 3/8" or 1/2" of glass/bezel and a way to STOP them above the admin panel buttons.

I have been struggling with this "small" detail for awhile and scratching my head a bit. Any help is much appreciated.

Cheers,
edub

[Donkbaca]

you can just screw some L brackets to the back of the admin panel to stop the plexi or glass from sliding down.  That is what I am planning on doin

[DNA Dan]

Router a 1/4" dado cut (if you plan on using 1/4" glass) on the edge of a small piece of scrap. Take that piece and glue one in each corner behind the admin panel. I would make it as long as you can without hitting the buttons. If your buttons are in the corners, then glue a long piece in the middle. L-brackets will also works for this, but you have to be careful on the screw length. Also make sure they are coated or something because metal and glass edges don't usually like each other.

[edub]

Thanks for those responses. Both are excellent suggestions.

So, for the router idea, let's say I take a 3/4 inch piece of scrap - oh, about 6" long (where it doesn't interfere with the buttons). Dado out 1/4":

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and attach this to the back of the admin panel - so, in this picture (looking from the left side of the cab, the admin panel would be sandwiched to the right of that ugly textual diagram I just attempted to draw). That way, the glass would sit on that 1/4" shelf. If I wanted the bezel to go there also, I could use 1/2" dado. They keys would be:

1. the HEIGHT of this piece (one on each side of the cab), would have to be such that the glass would rest ABOVE the button area - obvious, but noted
2. The screws used would only go 1/2" into the admin panel - thus not protruding - obvious, but noted.

You know - this is simple - and I guess I was just thinking too hard about it. Thanks.

My other option is to use a 3/8" dado on the back of the admin panel itself and use 1/8" bezel and 1/4" glass. Then, the "inset" of the glass going up the sides of the cab would be 3/8" instead of 3/4" if I put the glass BEHIND the thickness of the admin panel.

What do you guys think looks better? A 3/4" inset of the glass or a 3/8" ?

The other thing I like about the dado idea and another piece of wood is that there is a STOP for the glass going INTO the cab as shown in the picture above. I plan to have a 1/2" "frame" going up each side of the cab for the glass/bezel to rest against - but this little dado piece adds more security.

When you measure your glass/bezel, my last concern is the glass. I plan to take EXACT measurements of the glass AFTER the cab is built (no pre-ordering here - because, hey, I could make mistakes and the construction could be 1/16" or 1/8" off) - then order the glass 1/16" narrower than the opening - just to make sure. At that point that it is installed with 1/16" gap shared between the two sides, is there any issue with the glass not being FLUSH with each side of the cab? Do most people just "let it be" or do they put a small amount of weather stripping (like 1/8" piping) on top of the glass to cover any "imperfections" in the glass/wood-side-panel joint?

Thanks,
edub
 

[DNA Dan]

Hmmm. I personally like the glass to be inset more than usual. So 3/4" isn't too "deep" into the cab for my tastes. A lot of people try to match this inset to the other inset of the cab, the sides, top, etc. The real reason for doing this (other than laying the monitor flat like a cocktail cab) is to cut down on the glare from other light sources. Remember arcade cabs were typically lined up one next to each other, so having the monitor pushed deeper into the cab gives the gamer less glare issues and more "privacy"? Whether you do this bottom router job on a scrap piece glued to the admin panel, or cutting the admin panel itself is entire aesthetics. Do you want the admin panel to look the same thickness as the sides? Since this edge is not a structural piece, you probably don't need screws. Just put your routed scrap on there with some glue, then clamp it LEVEL. Trying to make this piece completely square to your sides will help avoid issues later on when you have the glass cut. Speaking of the glass, I would say a few things:

1) Not all openings are completely square or at 90 degree angles. Measure each dimension in 3-4 places and make sure you either take the lowest measurement or have the glass people cut a non-square piece.

2) Talk to your glass person about their precision. Can they cut within 1/16", 1/18" etc. Only by knowing their precision can you make adjustments to your numbers.

3) Expansion. This probably isn't too big of an issue, but if you make it SUPER tight, be aware on hot days or when the monitor heats the glass it will expand and can break. I think since the size is relatively small, 1/16" on each side sounds okay. However if your glass guy is +/- 1/16" then this might not be okay. I think you get what I am saying.

Another option for the glass is to route into your side panel the length of the glass. Then open up your top so you can slide the glass all the way down to a 3 sided channel. This removes the gap that would typically be there and the thickness of the dado can be backfilled tighter if laminating the surface. This is a much more challenging setup and needs to be thought about in the design while building. I don't know if your cab allows for that, however, you could have 1/4" dado on each side and have the glass cut with a looser spec and still not have gaps on the sides. just something to think about.

If you're already committed to just laying the glass, pushing up, then setting in the bottom channel, I would just leave those gaps there. The glass need to expand/contract. Whatever you do, don't put U-channel on the sides to "tighten up" the glass, if it needs to expand from the monitor's heat, it won't be able to.

[Epyx]

I used a wooden L Bracket for mine.  It recesses in behind my CP which rests on the glass (back part is cut at the same angle as the glass).  The glass then meets the L Bracket just 1.5" or so behind the top of the CP. 

To remove the CP top to be able to take out the glass (for cleaning etc) I take the top of the CP off.  The glass is kept on the L bracket by angle but also with one centered right angle metal piece that I have screwed in to a threaded insert (since I didn't want to keep having to unscrew and loosen a plain hole).

[edub]

Honestly, I'm not good enough to cut a slot in each side panel for the glass. It restricts too many variables that might go wrong. I actually thought of that, but it is more than I would put on myself during construction. But thanks for the idea. Also, thanks for the hints on measurements and the reminder that maybe 1/8" total (left to right) short of perfect is just about right to leave room for expansion/contraction.

Like trim covers a multitude of "sin" in our homes, is it advisable to place a small (1/8" thick) piece of weather stripping along each side to cover the glass-to-side panel gap - if there is one? (which there most likely WILL be). If it is black, and the rest of the cab is black, it shouldn't be that noticeable. Just wondering what people use for this - if anything.

Also, the comment about "deeper in the cab" regarding the monitor makes a lot of sense - I hadn't thought of that either. 3/8" matches the rest of the "insets" around the cab, but 3/4" on the glass may not look that bad next to 3/8" for the speaker panel and top. But insetting it further is better for glare. I guess I'll have to think about this some more.

Cheers,
edub

[Epyx]

Using the L Bracket you don't  need to do any cuts at all...I can take a picture if you like so you can visualize it? Its probably the easiest way to keep the glass in place.