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Author Topic: The Brax Arcade  (Read 4779 times)

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MrBrax

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The Brax Arcade
« on: July 28, 2013, 06:47:30 pm »
Hello!

Me and a friend got an impulse to just build an arcade cabinet, and that's what we're doing.
My dad helped me sketch some initial stuff, so we have the basics of the outline.
I've ordered some Sanwa parts that are arriving very soon so that's taken care of.
Trying to find a good CRT tv that's not too big.
Also trying to decide whether to buy a new pc for it or go secondhand.

Some questions though, with some looking around i've seen that the cabinet should be ~75cm wide (2 players), is this correct?
We've probably settled for MDF because of the ease of painting, is this a good choice?
What size would be preferred for the television used? For the brand i assume a Trinitron?
And lastly, the rotation of the TV, it should be pretty banked down, right?

I'll update this! :D

05SRT4

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #1 on: July 29, 2013, 01:00:53 am »
MRBrax, Welcome to the forum.

I use a 24" Sony Trinitron and I love it.

By Rotation do you mean angle? If so that depends on your cabinet plans.

What general shape of a cabinet do you plan on going?

For the PC what type of games do you plan on playing?

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #2 on: July 29, 2013, 01:10:29 am »
MRBrax, Welcome to the forum.

I use a 24" Sony Trinitron and I love it.

By Rotation do you mean angle? If so that depends on your cabinet plans.

What general shape of a cabinet do you plan on going?

For the PC what type of games do you plan on playing?

Thanks!

So a 24" would work for this size? 19" as we originally planned does seem kinda small.

Yeah, angle was the word.

Pretty much a full-size two-player cabinet, but slightly shorter because we want to fit it on two MDF sheets if possible (1200x2500x19).

Mostly "old" arcade games like Metal Slug / TMNT, and possibly some newer games that would be cool to try out with proper controls.

05SRT4

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #3 on: July 29, 2013, 03:04:42 am »
For a full 2 player cab a 19" is small. I was rocking a 20" and it worked but when I switched to the tv it really filled up the cab.

The angle really depends on the cab lay out. You can get a blank sheet of wood (place vertical like the tv screen) and play with the angle to see what feels best.

For the PC you may be able to get a second hand setup for cheap to play those types of games. A Pentium 4 will run the games you mentioned with no issues.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #4 on: July 29, 2013, 03:31:00 am »
For a full 2 player cab a 19" is small. I was rocking a 20" and it worked but when I switched to the tv it really filled up the cab.

The angle really depends on the cab lay out. You can get a blank sheet of wood (place vertical like the tv screen) and play with the angle to see what feels best.

For the PC you may be able to get a second hand setup for cheap to play those types of games. A Pentium 4 will run the games you mentioned with no issues.

Then i'll get a bigger one.

Well there is a plus to this too, that i can hook it up to the tv easier via s-video or similar.

Building the whole thing won't be that hard i imagine, it's the control panel that's worrying me, with the layout and all.
The only buttons that were available from the store i bought it from were those with prongs on it, how do you even install those?  ???

05SRT4

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #5 on: July 29, 2013, 03:42:01 am »
Do you have a web link to the store you bought them from.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #6 on: July 29, 2013, 04:18:54 am »
Do you have a web link to the store you bought them from.

http://excellentcom.net/

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #7 on: July 29, 2013, 09:31:25 am »
The only buttons that were available from the store i bought it from were those with prongs on it, how do you even install those?  ???

Those are designed for metal panels -- the side prongs compress into the body and pop out behind the panel once you've pushed the button in.

Never tried to install them in a wood panel.   :dunno

BTW that vendor you linked has threaded Sanwa and Seimitsu pushbuttons, but you might be happier dealing with arcadeshop.de, arcadeworlduk.com, or another vendor that's better known on the forums.  Not sure who has the best deals for shipping to Sweden.  :dunno


Scott

P.S. If you order from Paradise Arcade Shop, be sure to read and follow the directions in this post for better shipping rates for international customers who are BYOAC members.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #8 on: July 29, 2013, 11:13:55 am »
The only buttons that were available from the store i bought it from were those with prongs on it, how do you even install those?  ???

Those are designed for metal panels -- the side prongs compress into the body and pop out behind the panel once you've pushed the button in.

Never tried to install them in a wood panel.   :dunno

BTW that vendor you linked has threaded Sanwa and Seimitsu pushbuttons, but you might be happier dealing with arcadeshop.de, arcadeworlduk.com, or another vendor that's better known on the forums.  Not sure who has the best deals for shipping to Sweden.  :dunno


Scott

P.S. If you order from Paradise Arcade Shop, be sure to read and follow the directions in this post for better shipping rates for international customers who are BYOAC members.

Yeah i kinda figured, but does it have to be thick? Looks like they're just gonna slide around otherwise.
So how am i gonna do this then? It suddenly got a lot more complicated  :(

The parts have arrived in town already, gotta pick them up tomorrow.
Total costs for two joysticks, twelve buttons and 1p+2p start buttons were $90.

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #9 on: July 29, 2013, 11:55:27 am »
Yeah i kinda figured, but does it have to be thick? Looks like they're just gonna slide around otherwise.
So how am i gonna do this then? It suddenly got a lot more complicated  :(

You want your control panel to be thick enough to be sturdy.

1/2" - 3/4" (12-18mm) should be fine.

WARNING: Test this on scrap wood before you try it on your actual panel.

- Start by printing the layout you want from Slagcoin.

- Draw a line through the center of each button to determine where you want the tabs to be.

- Select a drill bit size that will provide the proper size recess for the tabs to pop out.

- Mark on the template where the center of the drill bit needs to be to provide the desired recess for each tab.

- Mark the centers of the button holes and tab holes on the underside of the panel.

- Drill the tab holes to the desired depth using a drill press, a drill stop, or a piece of tape (depth gauge) on the drill bit.

- Drill the button holes.

If you are using plexiglass on top of printed art on top of the wood panel, choose a plexiglass thickness that the tabs can lock into and drill the tab slots all the way through the wood panel.


Scott

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #10 on: July 29, 2013, 11:58:19 am »
Yeah i kinda figured, but does it have to be thick? Looks like they're just gonna slide around otherwise.
So how am i gonna do this then? It suddenly got a lot more complicated  :(

You want your control panel to be thick enough to be sturdy.

1/2" - 3/4" (12-18mm) should be fine.

WARNING: Test this on scrap wood before you try it on your actual panel.

- Start by printing the layout you want from Slagcoin.

- Draw a line through the center of each button to determine where you want the tabs to be.

- Select a drill bit size that will provide the proper size recess for the tabs to pop out.

- Mark on the template where the center of the drill bit needs to be to provide the desired recess for each tab.

- Mark the centers of the button holes and tab holes on the underside of the panel.

- Drill the tab holes to the desired depth using a drill press, a drill stop, or a piece of tape (depth gauge) on the drill bit.

- Drill the button holes.

If you are using plexiglass on top of printed art on top of the wood panel, choose a plexiglass thickness that the tabs can lock into and drill the tab slots all the way through the wood panel.


Scott

That site looks very useful, though i have a hard time making decisions  :-\

But do the prong buttons "work" on such thick wood then?

jmike

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #11 on: July 29, 2013, 12:14:18 pm »
Not sure this will work but what if you put thin piece of aluminum over the control panel? That should hold the buttons in place for you. (Might have to drill the wood holes slightly bigger) 

I've never used those buttons but it's worth a try  :dunno

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #12 on: July 29, 2013, 12:19:40 pm »
Not sure this will work but what if you put thin piece of aluminum over the control panel? That should hold the buttons in place for you. (Might have to drill the wood holes slightly bigger) 

I've never used those buttons but it's worth a try  :dunno

And then i could saw a hole in the wood underneath  :o
That's actually really clever. Metal is easier to clean too.

Made a quick mockup with a 28" TV.
Doesn't look that good...
Updated, better now!
« Last Edit: July 29, 2013, 12:53:59 pm by MrBrax »

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #13 on: July 29, 2013, 12:55:05 pm »
I was just going to advise you do that with the monitor area.  May be worth making an angled cut at the back too.

I see you have put an angle in from front to back anyway  :P

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #14 on: July 29, 2013, 12:56:52 pm »
I was just going to advise you do that with the monitor area.  May be worth making an angled cut at the back too.

I am not quite following you here...

Well i did notice now that the cabinet needs to be a lot deeper, which is a minus.
« Last Edit: July 29, 2013, 01:07:13 pm by MrBrax »

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #15 on: July 30, 2013, 01:21:33 pm »
Got some parts today!
Gonna go get some wood on friday ;)

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #16 on: August 08, 2013, 06:02:30 am »
Bought wood and woodworking supplies today, dad's a veteran so he's gonna have to do the sawing since i don't know anything about this.

It got a lot smaller since my last prototype too, but I'm still trying to decide on the tv, right now the projected size is 26", but it seems kinda big.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #17 on: August 20, 2013, 10:28:39 am »
huge post streak woo!

got a lot of work done though

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #18 on: August 20, 2013, 02:45:07 pm »
Got some parts today!
Gonna go get some wood on friday ;)
The start buttons are the type you need for a wooden control panel...

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #19 on: August 21, 2013, 01:52:11 am »
Got some parts today!
Gonna go get some wood on friday ;)
The start buttons are the type you need for a wooden control panel...

Yeah i noticed it, the store i bought it from didn't have any other ones.
We'll just have to customize the control panel.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #20 on: August 22, 2013, 02:57:34 pm »
Gotta find a larger tv, so we're making the tv frame removable. Just testing out how it's going to look :)

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #21 on: August 28, 2013, 09:41:50 pm »
We're almost at the stage of building the control panel now. Which method is the most preferred?
The fact that the buttons require a 4mm thick materials begs the question; do i have to use plexiglass only?
Gonna order some interchangeable joysticks too.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #22 on: September 19, 2013, 11:48:09 pm »
Almost done!

Need to order some speakers and more buttons.

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #23 on: September 20, 2013, 08:42:03 am »
Cool. How'd you end up handling the button holes?

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #24 on: September 20, 2013, 04:48:59 pm »
Cool. How'd you end up handling the button holes?

Drilled through both with a drill bit, went pretty smooth.
Had to cut the plexi some though, the buttons strangely didn't fit 4mm.

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #25 on: September 22, 2013, 12:10:53 pm »
boom

pretty much done now, just need to order some more buttons and speakers

MrBrax

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Re: The Brax Arcade
« Reply #26 on: September 23, 2013, 01:18:21 am »
It's sad though how i have to use a converter box for the s-video signal, it looks like ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---.

softkhz & winmodelines doesn't work.