"1943: Tiny Pilot" Inspired by Woodshop Flunkys 'American Ace' [Art & Templates]

[Maximus]

"1943: Tiny Pilot" - A 2/3 Scale Upright Jamma Cabinet
Keep the 30" - 48" high people in your home happy

Woodshop Flunky's 'American Ace' was one of the main projects that inspired me enough to actually pick up a jigsaw and start to build my first ever cabinet. The theme, form factor and detail of documentation that went into the project was everything I needed to say 'Hey, I think I can actually do this!!!'. So a huge thanks to Woodshop Flunky for sharing such a great project with us all, I hope you like this one buddy!!!

The 2/3 scale cabinets are such a fun build, and something that pretty much anyone can pull off as they are less cramped than trying to work with a bar top but not so big that they get difficult to to deal with. For this build I wanted to create a simple kit that anyone could just download and bang out themselves in a weekend or two.

I've attached a full-size PDF cut file to the end of this post with all the measurements and templates for the cabinet. You can either use it as a basic measurements guide, or take it to your local FedEx/Kinkos/Staples and have it printed out full size for actual templates. I've also included an art pack of the marquee, bezel, control panel, front kick panel and sides that I'm going to be using in this particular build which will be based around a single stick, two button control panel and a vertical 17" 4:3 LCD monitor.

So if you've got some spare time, parts and a few pieces of wood hanging around, have a bash at this one.

- MDF Construction
- Custom designed artwork for Sides, CP and Kick
- Gun Metal Gray Anodized Aluminum Dust Washer & yellow bubbletop
- X-Arcade Cyclops coin door
- Audio amp with controls inside coin door
- 17" LCD with in-line Craftymech SLG
- Jamma wiring
- Raised base with Nintendo style rear rollers





















Concept Art


Artwork Thumbnails (Not the actual files, they are at the end of this post)

Marquee


Bezel


Control Panel


Kick Plate


Sides


Zoomed detail of side art


Serial Plate


Wood Cut Templates





Downloadable Bits

For the wood cut templates in PDF format click Here
For the high resolution, actual size artwork pack click Here

Materials
The build is based around 5 sheets of 24"x49" wood of your choice.

Just a tip -- it's quite a bit cheaper to buy a single 49x97 inch panel and have them make the 3 cuts to cut it into 4 24x49 inch panels (usually 2 free cuts and 1 @ less than 25 cents) -- ie. 3\4 inch 24x49 MDF @ home depot is $13.97 while 3\4 inch 49x97 inch MDF is $34.12 saving over $21.00 -- Or just buy 2 panels for the same cost as the 5 smaller panels ($68.24 (2x$34.12) vs. $69.85 (5x$13.97))  and get 3 extra panels for mistakes or the next project !!

[Maximus]

Off we go then.

Everything is based around the standard size 24"x49" MDF panels you can get from Home Depot or Lowes for about $10 a piece. You need 5 in total.

I'm making my sides out of 3/4"
My kickplate/base/etc board 3/4"
Everything else out of 1/2"


I didn't bother printing the templates, I just used the measurements and penciled it out onto the wood. I clamped the two pieces of 3/4" MDF together and cut both sides in one go with my jigsaw.


Fired round them both with the slot cutter. On scratch builds I like to put t-molding around the whole perimeter.


After 1 hour of pencil and cutting I had about 80% of the boards done


Next day, another 45 mins to cut the remaining panels, pencil in and cut all the holes for speakers. power plugs, monitor etc.


Start to dry fit the various hardware


4" long 3/4" square blocking, just mash out about 34 or so of these on the table saw. I then penciled in the guidelines for the blocking on both sides of the wood


Another 45 mins to screw and glue all the blocking in place and we are almost ready for a dry-fit assembly

[Rick]

I'd like to ask where you got that 6" x 9" speaker cover from...  I've been toying with creating my own 'original' ones for the Doom cab, but these actually fit the design really, really well. I looked them up, but couldn't find anyone who's selling them into my area for a fair price.

[Maximus]

That's actually a vent I had knocking around from some random cab, it's going on the top rear angled panel.

[jdbailey1206]

I swear to the gods you have one of these.

[Rick]

That's actually a vent I had knocking around from some random cab, it's going on the top rear angled panel.

You got two more kicking around?


 

[Maximus]

I swear to the gods you have one of these.

Man I wish I did.  I only work about 1 hour at a time though on my projects, it's amazing what you can do in an hour if you stay focused and stick to your plan.

Rick: Sorry I don't even remember where that one came from, I think I got it from a moldy old Heavy Barrel conversion cab which was originally a Ms. Pac-Man, so I guess if you try and find vents from one of those cabs that would be the right one.

[rablack97]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_deficit_hyperactivity_disorder_predominantly_inattentive

[Maximus]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_deficit_hyperactivity_disorder_predominantly_inattentive

[tkeahi]

Rick --> http://www.mikesarcade.com/cgi-bin/store.pl?sku=SPKRCVRMID

[Maximus]

Rick --> http://www.mikesarcade.com/cgi-bin/store.pl?sku=SPKRCVRMID

Well bugger me, it is a speaker cover!!! Lol, well I guess they make nice vents too. (Told you I couldn't remember where it came from).

[rablack97]

Rick --> http://www.mikesarcade.com/cgi-bin/store.pl?sku=SPKRCVRMID

Well bugger me, it is a speaker cover!!! Lol, well I guess they make nice vents too. (Told you I couldn't remember where it came from).

nice source favorited......

You are now in the CoryBee family of cranking cabs like farts.....

[Rick]

Rick --> http://www.mikesarcade.com/cgi-bin/store.pl?sku=SPKRCVRMID

Thanks! I actually just checked, and I DO have that site bookmarked. The challenge is, for two of them costing a very nice $18, the shipping is actually $23 to Canada. So, I CAN order them, but I'll be sure to have a bigger order ready to go, before I do!

Thanks though! I completely forgot I should have already knew that.

 

[yotsuya]

You are now in the CoryBee family of cranking cabs like farts.....

If I were Griff, I'd be demanding pistols at dawn...

[Maximus]

If I were Griff, I'd be demanding pistols at dawn...

Oh I don't know Cory is funding his world travels on his farts, a pretty decent way to do it.

[rablack97]

 

The man has like 5 projects going on right now.....

It's a conspiracy.....

[rablack97]

If I were Griff, I'd be demanding pistols at dawn...

Oh I don't know Cory is funding his world travels on his farts, a pretty decent way to do it.

- figured i'd have a bit of a laugh on that one....

[Maximus]

The man has like 5 projects going on right now.....

The Ikari cab is all but done, just got a bit of soldering to do on the rotary board and I'm good to go, got a Time Soldiers board inbound from Vigo for that which will take it to 3 games. Not sure what I'll pop in for #4, I think maybe SAR.

Star Wars & the Amplifone build are based on an inifinite timeline right now.

Alchemy VPin continues to haunt my brain with various creative challenges, so until I solve them in my head there's not much point in standing and staring at it in the garage.

I'm hoping to finish this cabinet in under 10 total build hours, that's my personal challenge on this one.

[rablack97]

Sweetness man, you know i'm always down for another Maximus Special.....

I have going on right now.....so I can't really talk   

Looking forward to the updates...

[JDFan]

Off we go then.

Everything is based around the standard size 24"x49" MDF panels you can get from Home Depot or Lowes for about $10 a piece. You need 5 in total.

Just a tip -- it's quite a bit cheaper to buy a single 49x97 inch panel and have them make the 3 cuts to cut it into 4 24x49 inch panels (usually 2 free cuts and 1 @ less than 25 cents) -- ie. 3\4 inch 24x49 MDF @ home depot is $13.97 while 3\4 inch 49x97 inch MDF is $34.12 saving over $21.00 -- Or just buy 2 panels for the same cost as the 5 smaller panels ($68.24 (2x$34.12) vs. $69.85 (5x$13.97))  and get 3 extra panels for mistakes or the next project !!

[Maximus]

Just a tip -- it's quite a bit cheaper to buy a single 49x97 inch panel and have them make the 3 cuts to cut it into 4 24x49 inch panels (usually 2 free cuts and 1 @ less than 25 cents) -- ie. 3\4 inch 24x49 MDF @ home depot is $13.97 while 3\4 inch 49x97 inch MDF is $34.12 saving over $21.00 -- Or just buy 2 panels for the same cost as the 5 smaller panels ($68.24 (2x$34.12) vs. $69.85 (5x$13.97))  and get 3 extra panels for mistakes or the next project !!

Thanks for this tip, I'll include it in the OP for people.

[JDFan]

Thanks for this tip, I'll include it in the OP for people.

No problem -- I just noticed the price difference while building my bartop with 1\2 inch MDF needed 2 of the 24x48 inch panels for the build and they wanted $10.95 per piece, was about to buy them when I noticed the 49x97 inch panel was only $26.42 so for only $4.50 extra I got enough MDF for 2 builds just by spending a few minutes getting someone to make 3 cuts on their saw. 

[CraftyMech]

Sweet mother of mini cabs!

I love me some 1943, and have thought about building a full-size replica before, so I'm going to be keeping an eye on this project!

[Maximus]

I love me some 1943, and have thought about building a full-size replica before, so I'm going to be keeping an eye on this project!

Right on Aaron, one of those SLGs is going in this 

[CraftyMech]

I forgot to ask, will this be a dedicated cab for 1943?

Thanks for providing the plans, I might have to put this can on my project short list. I'm looking for an alternative to a Candy Cab for a Shmups project, and a replica 1943 in a smaller form factor that I could play seated would be all kinds of awesome!

[Maximus]

Build a base with some wheels


Time to put it all together, crack out the glue and screws

[Maximus]

I forgot to ask, will this be a dedicated cab for 1943?

Thanks for providing the plans, I might have to put this can on my project short list. I'm looking for an alternative to a Candy Cab for a Shmups project, and a replica 1943 in a smaller form factor that I could play seated would be all kinds of awesome!

I doubt ill make it dedicated as its aimed at the kids so i will put some sort of variety in there

[CoryBee]

Someone say my name?

Oh I don't know Cory is funding his world travels on his farts, a pretty decent way to do it.

Heading off to sneaky London at the end of September actually. Will be posting some build pictures of the cabs that helped to make it possible.

On your mini cabinet;

I freaking love it, if I didn't already know its size I would think it was a large cabinet. The mini ones are very gratifying in a way that full sizes aren't....."they are just so damned cute"......as my lady would say.

[Maximus]

Next to the workmate for scale

[Rick]

Geez, even your burn marks are synchronized! Sweet work.

[CoryBee]

I looked through your text once again but couldn't find the overall height of the cabinet. Care to share?

[Louis Tully]

.

[Maximus]

I looked through your text once again but couldn't find the overall height of the cabinet. Care to share?

Total with base 51"

[Maximus]

Spent 45 mins on the CP this morning. Also routed out the seating for the monitor mount and started to populate the mounting board for the internals.

[emphatic]

Very clean looking. 

[Maximus]

Paint on and marquee light in



Keeping everything tight and clean on the power/cpu mounting board


All mounted in the cab and powered up. Still needs cable clean up



Volume controls just inside the coin door. Easy access but also good to keep little fingers off the volume dial

 
So far I'm at 7 hrs total work on the project

[CraftyMech]

I better hurry up and send you your SLGs, you are just about done!

[Le Chuck]

Looking foward to art being applied, this will be a sharp little cab!

[Maximus]

I'm still waiting on other parts too Aaron including the artwork so this will grind to a halt soon until they arrive.

 Figured I'd post this


Before I did this


I had enough left to do this cab but the vinyl is too cheap to use on a seller cab. It looks great and I don't mind it on the Ikari cab as I know i will be careful with it. But the tack and durability of this stuff is awful so rather than produce something low grade I trashed it.

Thinking I may go for a flat army green or dusty naval blue/grey.

[jdbailey1206]

Since you are going for a 1943 (plane) theme I would use the dirty blue/naval color.  If you could pull it off also I would try to emulate the artwork that W. Flunky had on the side of his weecade.  Otherwise looks good as usual.