2014 Project - Starting Over.

[kuehnau]

Okay, so a year ago, maybe longer I made an announcement I was working on. I managed to get a Tetris cabinet for $150.00 and gutted it out and was in the process of fixing it up. Well a lot has happened since then while I was working on my project I realized when I moved I lost a bunch of parts. Add to the fact I ended up completely dissembling the cabinet for painting and repairs and I discovered the cabinet was in a lot worse shape then I first realized and I kind of just gave up on that cabinet. I don't even want to admit the money I originally spent on supplies and such 

Anyways, the other night while just browsing the internet I discovered a guide on instructables for a really simple arcade cabinet that uses a single sheet of plywood - the entire guide is pretty short and I imagine if someone was really dedicated you could finish it in a day.

http://www.instructables.com/id/A-Super-Easy-Arcade-Machine-from-1-Sheet-of-Plywoo/

I like the idea of working with brand new wood and I like the idea that it isn't overly complicated. Further I have a bunch of parts I can salvage from my old cabinet (nuts, bolts, Plexiglas) to use in the project.

So while I go about and gather all my supplies and tools and stuff and set up a little work shop in the garage for this, I had some questions - which I hoped someone would kindly help me with.

1. The guide mentions "Vinyl edge banding" for edging the cabinet. I have noticed they don't really have a lot of good colors or designs for this, it's a little expensive and I've read it can be a pain in the ass to work with. I will be working with a 3/4" 4X8 sheet of plywood. I am a total newbie to this, so excuse me, but is that thick enough to install t-molding and if so, is there guides on how to install it? Can someone direct me please?

2. The guide mentions using dowels for cross sections in the cabinet. They doesn't really go into a whole lot of depth with this,  but the photo that is displayed is pretty straight forward, but now I am asking myself, did they basically just drill from the outside of the cabinet into those dowels, or how did they do it? More importantly, would you think some L brackets be just as good and sturdy... or not?

3. He doesn't mention it, but judging from the pictures I assume the controls are exposed underneath. Would you recommend closing that off? I don't really like the idea of exposed, possibly delicate wires being open like that. Also looking at the control panel, I am thinking about simply extending the control panel into the cabinet, for a shelf for the monitor and speaker. Thoughts? EDIT: Now that I look at it again, he clearly already did this. duh..

4. He doesn't really cover this either, but you can kind of see it from his pictures later on, that he has a board or something across the bottom for support, which would be an obvious design. I don't know how he's anchoring it to the rest of the cabinet though. Recommendations?

6. It looks like he doesn't use any glue, staples or brads. Do you think it's necessary?

There's a few other little things I plan on doing. I got one of those light up, USB coin mechs with the door and everything that plugs into the keyboard interpreter. I'll be using the old coin box from the Tetris cabinet to catch the coins. On a side note, I do have some other stuff I do NOT plan on using from the Tetris cabinet, if someone is interested please get back to me, which includes the original coin door (two slots) and their coin mechs, they are taken apart when I removed the door,  but I don't believe they are damaged, I also do still have the Atari Tetris PCB and it's in really great condition (I actually can't believe how good it looks), I'd let it go for $50.00 or some sort of trade.

Anyways, thanks for taking the time in reading and any thoughts on what I plan on doing.

[Louis Tully]

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[kuehnau]

Tully,

Thanks, you helped me figure some things out, looking into other guides I see what people are doing, drilling from the outside and then driving the screws below the surface, filling in the holes before painting. I looked at the t-molding guide and looked at the tool, and it appears to have some sort of edge safety, so as long as you do it right, it doesn't look like it's too much of a hassle, I just have to buy more stuff - it seems like every time I turn around I need to buy more stuff 

Looks like glue and screws are a recurring theme here on the board after doing some browsing. I got a couple bottles of Gorilla wood glue I bought for another project that should work well. I actually just bought a brad nailer, but honestly, after taking apart the last cabinet and I saw how much damage staples and brads could cause, I think I am going to avoid using that.

I as well  believe the controls are exposed, I don't have any children around the house, but I got a cat and sometimes drunk friends around that I'd worry about.

BTW, I did some creeping and looked at some of your projects you finished. Man, you are like a machine! I wish my Dad had been like you.

[kuehnau]

So I was kinda pissed with what happened to the cabinet I bought, I was going to just try doing a whole new cabinet, but it seemed like such a waste scraping all that old stuff..


Long over due I finally got ---my bottom--- going on this. Painted sides and started to re-assemble. One side had some moisture on a side, kind of spongy, some wood hardner from Menards fixed it... For now. I used some old molding from a room a brace the inside. I'm liking the colors so far... You may see some dings, nicks or even gouges on the cabinet but I was ready to move on. Was going to paint the back.. Said screw it

I lost the piece that sits over the monitor with the speakers, I am going to try and rebuild it.

[leapinlew]

You may see some dings, nicks or even gouges on the cabinet but I was ready to move on. W

I hope I do see some dings, nicks and gouges. This cabinet has lived a life before you got it and all those character marks are scars from it's past. While I usually bring my cabinets up to or close to perfect when I get them, once they are in the arcade - I don't fret over normal wear and tear marks. Good for you.