The Smash Pad - kittens and cleaning and stools - oh my!

[Seith]

Videos, anyone?

Video 1 is of me and my father playing our first game of SFII together on the (as-yet-unfinished) cab:



And video 2 is just the machine booting up, me going through MALA and selecting a game:

[Falk3r]

Great project, man. I'm on the edge of dropping in on my own first build.

Quick questions:

 * I don't see any fasteners holding down the plexiglass, is it just the buttons holding it in place? How solid does it feel?

 * I hadn't thought to offset the T-molding slot to account for the 1/8" THK plexiglass CP topper, is that piece of MDF thinner than the rest by 1/8"? Is the T-molding a different size?

 * Are you still happy with 1x Admin button? I was leaning towards 4x (Pause, Exit, Quicksave, Quickload).

[Seith]

Great project, man. I'm on the edge of dropping in on my own first build.

Quick questions:

 * I don't see any fasteners holding down the plexiglass, is it just the buttons holding it in place? How solid does it feel?

 * I hadn't thought to offset the T-molding slot to account for the 1/8" THK plexiglass CP topper, is that piece of MDF thinner than the rest by 1/8"? Is the T-molding a different size?

It's just the buttons holding it in place.  The t-molding is 3/4", offset 1/8" from center on the 5/8" underboard, then covered by the 1/8" plexi to make a total of 3/4".

It feels fine, no sense of shifting or lifting at all.

  * Are you still happy with 1x Admin button? I was leaning towards 4x (Pause, Exit, Quicksave, Quickload).

Yeah, it's easy enough for me to use because I know the button shifting commands, and it keeps things clean which was the goal.  It also gives me the added benefit of running the cab in such a way that when others use it, they get as close to an authentic arcade experience as could be offered.  I was most concerned with people just spamming the coin button to coin-up and clear games, which ruins the challenge of it for games like TMNT, Simpsons, etc. etc.

I could have easily dropped four admin buttons in there, but I don't think I would have been as happy with it.  It all comes down to personal preference.  When it comes to quick-saving and quick-loading, basically what I did when I started out is I made a list of things I could do with the completed unit, and then another list of things that I wanted to do with the unit, drawing from the first list.  Emulator-based functions like quick-saving and quick-loading, pausing (in MAME), etc. were left off the list because it didn't seem like an enhancement to the fun-factor of it to be able to do those things.

Pics from instagram last week:

Real Bout Fatal Fury 2:


King Of The Dragons:


Goindol:


Over Top:


Ms. Pac-Man:


Penguin-Kun Wars:


Gunforce 2:


Metal Black:


NBA Jam: Tournament Edition:


The Main Event:

[Seith]

Some Non-Arcade games as well...

Cave Story (PC):


Jamestown (PC):


Mutant Mudds (PC):


Street Fighter X Megaman (PC):


Maximum Carnage (SNES):


Starfox (SNES):


Kirby's Avalanche (SNES):

[Seith]

Can I just say i'm so excited to be at this stage in the project?  I remember first discovering this forum back in 2009 and just pouring over threads like Martijn's SFII upright, just wishing I had a machine like that to call my own and share build pics with the community.

[sabreerbasAlpha]

I have to say I love how fresh that CP looks mate. Really nice.

Also I've read the entire 5 pages, its great to read about how things have gone well and then gone wrong and how you have overcome it. Love the Cab mate some really nice work. And that CP is one of the freshest I've seen for a while.   

[Seith]

I have to say I love how fresh that CP looks mate. Really nice.

Also I've read the entire 5 pages, its great to read about how things have gone well and then gone wrong and how you have overcome it. Love the Cab mate some really nice work. And that CP is one of the freshest I've seen for a while.   

Thanks!  I'm not the best when it comes to graphic design but I can bang out something simple that works.  I'm very happy with how it turned out 

[dandro]

Looking real good sir!! 

[Seith]

Trying to decide at this point how I want to do my bezel.

Option 1:  A black bezel made out of poster paper like the one that Tailgunner posted:



Option 2:  a flat black bezel that will be attached to the underside of the glass that just masks the surrounding area around my screen

Option 3:  same as option 2, but with the blue beams generating from the center, like the marquee and CP.  My fear in doing this option is that it will draw too much away from the game.  Also, not sure how Options 2 and 3 will look with how deep into the cab my monitor is as well as the width of it in conjunction with the cab.

Going to have to try option 2 later this week methinks (the cheapest option) and see if i'm happy with it/go from there.

[fablog]

Hey Seith,

Another Canadian here (Montréal). I'm wondering where thought your Formica sheets.

Thx

[Seith]

I got my Formica from a local countertop supplier in town - Sims Custom Countertops.  They were great to work with, gave me a decent price on the amount I needed.  Also was able to answer any questions I had about working with Formica, as it was my first time - I would definitely recommend shopping local, you can't beat the service and price.

[fablog]

My local Rona sells 4X8 Formica sheets at 35$+tax. How much did you pay?

[Dekieon]

My local Rona sells 4X8 Formica sheets at 35$+tax. How much did you pay?

I went to my local Rona, and they wanted $100/sheet and it wasn't formica brand it was Wilsonart. I am in Ontario.

[Seith]

My local Rona sells 4X8 Formica sheets at 35$+tax. How much did you pay?

I went to my local Rona, and they wanted $100/sheet and it wasn't formica brand it was Wilsonart. I am in Ontario.

If you can get the Formica at that price, i'd go for it.  I shopped around everywhere and ended up paying roughly $200 for two sheets of 4x8 and one sheet of 5x12.

[Seith]

 

So we got another 2-3 inches of snow this morning... in the meantime, I did a little more work to the cab.

Turns out, when I ordered my marquee, I specified the vertical dimension to be 7 1/2" in the order, and sent the file.  Turns out I needed 7 1/4".  Lesson learned:  always make sure to double- and triple-measure your stuff before placing an order.

More is better than less, however, so I took my marquee to a local print shop and had them cut it to size.  Will be reinstalling the marquee this weekend, pics to follow.

I also painted another piece of the plastic running that I modified for my marquee holder to act as a stop-gap between the control panel and the cross-piece under the monitor.  It serves as a dual-purpose too, as it has a little groove in it that will hold quarters nicely 

will followup with pics of that this weekend as well.

[fablog]

My local Rona sells 4X8 Formica sheets at 35$+tax. How much did you pay?

I went to my local Rona, and they wanted $100/sheet and it wasn't formica brand it was Wilsonart. I am in Ontario.

If you can get the Formica at that price, i'd go for it.  I shopped around everywhere and ended up paying roughly $200 for two sheets of 4x8 and one sheet of 5x12.

Formica 4X8 1/16 bought today to  my Rona = 35$+tax
When I read how much you paid I didn't wait!!

[Seith]

Took care of the little space between where the head of the control panel and the lower cross-bar meet (pic from earlier on in the build):



Glued and secured an additional piece of mirror-runner spraypainted matte black to the head of the control panel this weekend:



This is acting as a stop-gap between the two, as well as an added bonus: a quarter-catcher/holder.  Nice.

Shots of the CP opened, and then closed:





I couldn't be happier with how conveniently this piece fit in where I put it.  This wasn't planned at all; it was just a bit of great fortune that a) my dad had so much of this stuff lying around (it was also used for the marquee holder earlier on in the build), and that b) it was the right angles to fit where I put it without need for modification.  Now, if only I could have that kind of luck in Street Fighter II (which I am quickly learning I need to practice at) 

[Seith]

Got my marquee sized wrong when I put the order in at gameongrafix so I had it taken to a local printing shop to be cut - now when she is put in the marquee holder she tends to sag back some under her own weight.  I have some spare plexiglas that I am going to have cut when we have better weather - i tested to see if it would fit in the holder and it will, should provide proper backing to the marquee to keep her straight and steady.

[Seith]

Formica 4X8 1/16 bought today to  my Rona = 35$+tax
When I read how much you paid I didn't wait!!

That's a good price!  Rona in my town didn't have Formica.  I should have looked online.

[Seith]

Went by to work on the arcade machine some more yesterday, a couple things:

1.  Picked up a spraycan of silicone-based lubricant to fix a squeak and resistance on the P1 joystick, and did P2 while I was at it.  Is the spraycan the way to go, or is there a "tube" of silicon lube I need to get?

2.  Noticing problems with the television I installed in my cab.  It's a 27" TV, quite old, and after playing for a while, the picture will start to darken, then go completely black over the course of roughly 2 seconds or so.  Sometimes it will stay like that for 7-10 seconds, then come back on with the picture from the tower and the words "S-VIDEO" in the top right, as if it was just turned on.  Last night, it got even worse however; the picture faded out, and then all the television would do is click on for 2 seconds, click off for 1, ad infinitum, until I switch it off with the television controls and wait for a while with the television plugged into an "always-on" port on the smart switch.  Is this one of those scenarios where a cap kit would fix this, or is it further gone than is worth putting time and effort in on?

[PL1]

1.  Picked up a spraycan of silicone-based lubricant to fix a squeak and resistance on the P1 joystick, and did P2 while I was at it.  Is the spraycan the way to go, or is there a "tube" of silicon lube I need to get?

Here are a couple of joystick lube options from/based on other threads.

Lubricating pivots
Several manufacturers recommended Molykote44.

Super Lube is the generic version that RandyT recommends and uses.

Apply with a small brush to ensure a thin, even coat.


and

Lubricating springs
Silicone spray can help if the spring is creaking according to RandyT here.




Scott

[Seith]

Thanks Scott!  So for the pivot/shaft, if I used the spray silicone lube, will I experience issues down the road?  Also, is it something I can clean off and apply the paste to down the road without any trouble?

[PL1]

Thanks Scott!  So for the pivot/shaft, if I used the spray silicone lube, will I experience issues down the road?  Also, is it something I can clean off and apply the paste to down the road without any trouble?

Depending on the solvents used in the specific brand silicone spray you used, it shouldn't cause any problems on the pivot, other than it's runny and won't last as long.

If you're not certain, check the spray can to verify that it's safe to use on metal, plastic, etc.

When you do get around to re-lubing the stick, just wipe off the pivot and apply a thin coat of the tube-style lube (Molykote44 or Super Lube) with a small brush and it should be good for quite a while.


Scott

[Seith]

Just called my local TV repair center, they quoted me 35$ to look at it, and an estimated 60-150$ to repair the issue 

That's an awful lot to spend on a TV that was free... would I be better off just looking for another 27" CRT television to replace this one with?  Or would it be worth my while to look into a DIY fix?  Anybody know whether or not a cap kit would solve the issue i'm having?  It works fine for a while, then after a few days of it being on with no picture on it, once I fire up the cab and game for about 1/2 hour, the picture starts fading, then blinks off, and the power light goes "on-off-on-off-on-off" indefinitely until I press the power button and let it sit and "store up more charge".

[Seith]

bump for suggestions, direction, input on the above monitor issue?

[fablog]

2 years ago I found a TV reparator in kijiji. I paid 50$ for a Sony TV reparation.  All the soldering on the motherboard was done. So, my advice is to find someone with kijiji.

[Seith]

Hoping to find a new television for the project this week, wish me luck.

In other news, this past weekend I was hoping to have the cab moved to my house from my dad's.  A small setback may be pushing that date back.  Make that a series of small miracles.

The old truck in front of my father's garage was recently the scene of a local tabbycat's birthing four little ones.  We are monitoring the kittens without getting too involved, as we don't want the mother to abandon her young.  Already one of them didn't make it 

So, needless to say, we won't be scrapping the truck until the kittens can move on on their own.  Updates to follow in the next few weeks.

[Seith]

While i'm waiting for the kittens to grow up enough that they can stand up to the world on their own, I figured I would pass the time by getting my barstools ready.  Here they are as they were given to me.



Loosened the staples on the bottom with a flathead:



Then pulled them out with some pliers:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/255789_10201080058351884_1140058785_n.jpg

The top cover and foam removed:

[Seith]

More pics:

[Seith]

[Seith]

My "button" stools are done!  So happy with how they turned out!

[Seith]

Well, good news!

The proud momma cat moved on with her little ones and this week we are slated to tow the truckbody out of the front driveway to be able to open up the garage.  If all goes well we may be able to have the cab moved as early as next week.

  

[darkSSide]

I like what you did to the stools O0

Sent from my Atari 2600

[Seith]

Thanks!  Hopefully the next batch of pics will be of the unit completed and in the spot it's going to be staying.