MortalKab 4 player DIY slim arcade cabinet/ Finished / Update?

[RxBrad]

I was pretty happy with my paint job using this on the irregular surfaces that are hard to hit with a roller:
http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=3878542

And this everywhere else (same stuff in a can):
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Stops-Rust-1-qt-Satin-Black-Protective-Enamel-Paint-7777502/100184504

[vwalbridge]

Every time I buy this paint I have to stare at the can for like 5 seconds to make sure I'm buying the black color. (I know..."just look at the cap dummy!")

...but the brown logo and park bench on the front always throws me off for a moment. 

[RxBrad]

Every time I buy this paint I have to stare at the can for like 5 seconds to make sure I'm buying the black color. (I know..."just look at the cap dummy!")

...but the brown logo and park bench on the front always throws me off for a moment. 

Same.  To me, even the cap looks brown next to all those other cues.

[Slippyblade]

Every time I buy this paint I have to stare at the can for like 5 seconds to make sure I'm buying the black color. (I know..."just look at the cap dummy!")

...but the brown logo and park bench on the front always throws me off for a moment. 

Same here man.  They obviously didn't do any market testing on that can design.

[ChanceKJ]

I seriously hate that too.  Its bad enough theres a million similar cans on the shelf. i wonder how many people buy it thinking its brown?

[deezdrama]

Chance ...you was right man 

I was too heavy fingered on the clear coats.

I tried for a 4th time  .... sanded front down to paint, laid 2 more coats of flat then this time.... i laid the clear right after the flat black... and just put 2 light spritzing coats of clear and turned out good.

The lights were making it look like i wasnt covering good but in reality was putting it on too heavy, i stood the cab upright this time so the lighting didnt trick me.

Still have overspray inside to clean up but time to order artwork.

[Slippyblade]

Glad to hear it went better this time!  Good job on the perseverance.

[deezdrama]

Do you guys think blue led strip lighting will look ok behind the marquee or should I order white (already have blue)

[yotsuya]

Do you guys think blue led strip lighting will look ok behind the marquee or should I order white (already have blue)

Order white if you have other colors in the artwork.

[vwalbridge]

Do you guys think blue led strip lighting will look ok behind the marquee or should I order white (already have blue)

I'd be more concerned about the LED strip putting out enough light. (unless you snake it back and forth along rows)

Why not a fluorescent tube?

[deezdrama]

Do you guys think blue led strip lighting will look ok behind the marquee or should I order white (already have blue)

Order white if you have other colors in the artwork.

Pic of my marquee up above (only pic i have of it on my phone and at work)

Ya I figured the blue part would look good but the red/yellow parts might look violet-ish with blue leds.

Hate to order another 15ft just for a 30" strip but its cheap so meh

[deezdrama]

Do you guys think blue led strip lighting will look ok behind the marquee or should I order white (already have blue)

I'd be more concerned that LED strip putting out enough light. (unless you snake it back and forth along rows)

Why not a fluorescent tube?

The led strips I ordered are the 5360's or whatever ones above the 5050's...they are pretty bright and figured a single horizontal strip would work since the marquee is being printed on a translucent material.

Nothing against a fluoro just figured id go with leds since they are cheap / low heat / no tube replacement/ low profile.

[ChanceKJ]

good to hear the respray worked out. 

[deezdrama]

good to hear the respray worked out. 

It doesnt look as good as the flynn but im happy with it.... Finally feel like Im making some progress now that im past the build phase and the paint nightmare. 

Took the cab and wheeled it outside and blew it off while I rubbed it with a rag.... luckily all the overspray was just dried dust sitting on top of the finish as it all came off 

I dont think I will win any awards for the paint job but im happy with it.

Installed the coin door, ordered my u-track, worked alot of hours this week so should be able to order my artwork and buttons/sticks next week.

[deezdrama]

Tried to email my artwork psd files to the guys who will print my vinyl.... Im wanting to leave them as psd files so he can check them over and adjust colors or anything needed but the side files are 600mb each.

Pretty sure file upload sites only offer up to 500mb files free 

We both use gmail so I uploaded the files to google drive and attached them in an email but he is not getting the attachments.


Whats the easiest free way to get the files to him?

Can I zip psd files?

[vwalbridge]

Whats the easiest free way to get the files to him?

Dropbox

[deezdrama]

Whats the easiest free way to get the files to him?

Dropbox

Will it handle over 500mb files free?

[vwalbridge]

Whats the easiest free way to get the files to him?

Dropbox

Will it handle over 500mb files free?

All new Dropbox accounts and downloads, including the desktop and mobile apps, are totally free. Dropbox Basic accounts start with 2 GB of free space.

1. Once you have Dropbox installed on your computer. Place the file in the "Dropbox>Public" folder.
2. Then right-click on the file and choose "Copy Public Link"
3. Paste that download link you copied into an email to the print guy.
4. Drink a beer and wait for your artwork

[deezdrama]

Whats the easiest free way to get the files to him?

Dropbox

Will it handle over 500mb files free?

All new Dropbox accounts and downloads, including the desktop and mobile apps, are totally free. Dropbox Basic accounts start with 2 GB of free space.

1. Once you have Dropbox installed on your computer. Place the file in the "Dropbox>Public" folder.
2. Then right-click on the file and choose "Copy Public Link"
3. Paste that download link you copied into an email to the print guy.
4. Drink a beer and wait for your artwork

Appreciate it!

[tunes0710]

Or you could use wetransfer, can send up to 2gb per transfer (or 20gb if you get wetransferplus)

[BGoulette]

Or you could use wetransfer

+1

I've used WeTransfer quite a bit. No signup required, just drag-n-drop your files onto your browser, type in the recipient's email, your email, a message, click send, and there you go!

[deezdrama]

The files are uploading to wetransfer now.


Just got my u-trak.....

Anyone know what size drillbit to use for these threaded wood inserts?

Im just going with the blue ball and a blue 3 led for now..... problem is I only have about 1/4" of clearance under the u-trak for lighting. Looks like this socket needs mounted vertically and wont have the room.

I wonder if I could snip the plastic off the bottom of the led itself and just solder wires to the legs and mount it on some thin pcb board or something? Or use led strip lighting 

Anyone have any ideas?

[Slippyblade]

I use Google Drive for most things.  15gb for free and no limit on file sizes.

[deezdrama]

I first tried google drive but he said he didnt get the attachments....


Got the U-track mounted and played around with lighting using the 3 led blue bulb and the blue strip lighting I have.
The strip lighting isnt lighting it up very well so will have to rig up a low profile disk holder for the 3 led bulb.


I dont know what I was thinking ....ordering with the transparent blue ball. I should of got the pearl... would of matched my cp overlay better and could upgrade to rgb down the road. Oh well.
For future reference.... does the u-trak just take a standard 3" ball?

[Slippyblade]

No, not as attachments.  You just upload the file and then send him a LINK to the file.

[deezdrama]

I tried that too.......sending links to each file while I was at work. Never heard from him so just came home and uploaded to wetransfer

I think I screwed my theme up at the last minute.... had to get my 3 little scamps in there so added them to the marque

[PL1]

For future reference.... does the u-trak just take a standard 3" ball?

Yes.


Scott

[deezdrama]

Ordered my artwork and t-molding.

Any tips for vinyl installation?
Would really suck to mess up these $250 stickers

[PL1]

Any tips for vinyl installation?

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,120041.0.html


Scott

[deezdrama]

Thanks for the link....

Looking into tinted glass and plan on using "onedayglass"

They have light grey and dark grey but have no idea about the light transmission, I want something in the 20-30% range.

I know alot of crt guys love the darker tinted glass but I dont want to have to crank everything up to 100% on my led panel.

The inside of my cab is painted black so I dont mind if you can see a little bit of the screen and inside of cab but if anyone knows if the light grey will be way too light of a tint ,please let me know.
Or, if you think I should go with dark grey over the light- please let me know and explain why.
Thanks

[Scotty_C]

IMO I would go for the light gray (that's what I'm going with). If you plan on adding any guns (Aimtrak for example) the light bar has much better transmission than using the dark tinted glass. Better transmission = better consistency and accuracy

Nice build! Keep up the good work.

[ChanceKJ]

I used OneDayGlass and went with the darker glass myself. With the intent to use guns.

First, it's expensive. I almost wish I just went with a chunk of plexi from a local supplier.

Second, don't freak out if there are a couple minor blemishes in the glass. This is not "optical quality" it's just designed for covering coffee tables and to be used as shelves. Not to sit 3" from a tv and be stared at all day. I had found I had one small blemish exactly at the spot where Mario runs to on SMB. So I had to flip and rotate it so it was out of view. Not ideal.

I'd use this guys again if I was building a tabletop arcade and needed glass for sure. But an upright like this, I'd go tinted plexi.  Go through your phone book or google any plastic supply companies in your area. They'd have large 4x8 sheets they could cut you to size and sell to you by the square inch for much cheaper.

[scoodidabop]

Cool art! Looks good.

I also recommend using a local company for the glass.  It'll be much cheaper.  I bought some really dark stuff for my last build that had Aimtraks and the guns didn't work at all since the dark glass blocked too much of the IR transmission.  You might be able to fix this issue by using some REALLY bright IR lights behind the glass but the lighter tinted glass works just fine with Aimtraks.  It's not quite as sleek looking as the dark glass but as long as your room lighting isn't too bright you'll still achieve the same seamless effect as the dark glass.

[deezdrama]

I didnt think $60-ish was too terribly bad for the quote I got on onedayglass.
Chance.... is the imperfection you have tong marks?
I read on there site that there could be tong marks on the glass from when they hang it in the oven but assumed this tong mark would be near an edge. They had an option for no tong marks but I didnt check it to see how much extra it would cost.

Ive thought about just getting a piece of 1/4" plate glass locally and applying a good quality- scratch resistant car window tint to the outside of the glass. I have installed window tint on dozens of vehicles in my life and never had a bubble or wrinkle so this could be an option.
I just figure... a piece of plate glass locally would be in the 20-40 dollar range and another $20 for a scratch resistant window tint film and then im at a price range at or exceeding the onedayglass option.

Not really wanting to go with plexi. I think it would collect scratches and haze over the years but i dont know. Probably would cost as much as the onedayglass option as well.

[deezdrama]

Had a bit of an issue... Even though the cp box and cab were dry for a week before putting the cp box on the cab- When I removed the Cp box last night it was basically glued to the cab and ripped up a few chunks of paint. Had to spot paint and reapply some clear with a brush in those areas. I laid down some velcro to give the CP box a non stick /scratch surface. The back strip is for the glass to rest on.

I then installed a sanwa jlf with shaft extender and a button , wish I wouldnt of. Something as simple as a single stick and button now has me really eager to order all my controls 
I need to take a breath- walk away and slow down....lol....patience.

I planned on just running blue jlf sticks on the left and yellow jlf's on the right with blue and yellow led single color buttons for cost/simplicity sake.
But now Im thinking of trying those paradise led sticks p3-white, p1-blue,p2-red,p4-yellow ... with same color led buttons for the players as the sticks.

Just trying to visualize what would work best with my cp overlay. Now that I added some colors other than blue/yellow into my marquee I think it would look alright to have each player a different color although I really like the jlf stick , it is a bit sensitive (I could get stiffer springs I know) but the led sticks are the same price and would get led tops and ive heard they are pretty good sticks.

Still debating the light/dark glass vs plexi options so if anyone has any other thoughts on that topic-please fire away.

 

[Slippyblade]

Installing that single stick and button transforms it from a pile of wood and paint into an ARCADE CAB!!!  Just resist the urge to "test" it - that will devour more time than you care to imagine.

[ChanceKJ]

No, the blemishes were not tong marks. I chose the no tong mark option.

My advice: Tinted plexi. Take it or leave it.

[deezdrama]

No, the blemishes were not tong marks. I chose the no tong mark option.

My advice: Tinted plexi. Take it or leave it.

You got the dark gray right?
How do you feel about the darkness of this tint? Would you go the same route or lighter?
Think the light gray would be too light?

[ChanceKJ]

i chose the dark grey, yes. but the plexi i just bought for my other cab is about halfway between what this dark grey is and what I'm guessing the light grey on One Day Glass is.   Its also more clear, lighter, and was cheaper.

[deezdrama]

Installed a million feet of velcro to the cp box edges, glass supports, and marquee edges.

When I cleaned the edges with 90% rubbing alcohol - it made the paint turn a foggy white, so I switched to 70% rubbing alcohol and didnt have the problem.
Also Installed a lock at each corner of the cp top. the lock catches a l-shaped bracket that has a nub protruding in the middle of them, the lock catches the nub and really locks the cp down good, no play at all....worked out better than I thought it would.
Going to swap the blue trackball for a pearl one.

My artwork should be here tomorrow, I will probably wait untill the weekend to install it and the t- molding because after I do that then I will bring it into the house and still need to re-arrange and figure a spot out for it.

Im really concerned about the vinyl sticking to the satin clear finish. Its pretty smooth but has a texture to it. Im debating on whether to sand the sides and cp top with 1500 grit fine sandpaper before applying the vinyl or not. Anyone have an opinion on this?  Also- should I just clean it with 70% alcohol instead of 90% since the 90% hazes the paint?