javeryh's Salisbury Beach Twin Tullys

[javeryh]

It's a ---smurfing--- box with a tv in it.
Even a ---smurfy--- circular saw will make squared cuts as long as you set the base plate correctly to begin with.
We are building arcade cabs not Mars rovers...well except for Laythe. He kind of is building a NASA project. That metal working requires an extra level of precision, skills, and tools.

Yeah, I’m not worried about this at all.  I’m actually trying to be less anal with these cabs so I’m going to try cuts with the circular saw and some brads to assemble.  Should be doable in a weekend, right?  It’s just a ---smurfing--- box!

 

Ugh. I should have never stopped drinking. I was a lot more relaxed back then.

[PL1]

Ugh. I should have never stopped drinking. I was a lot more relaxed back then.

 


Scott

[601 Arcades]

I am going to spray both with the Wagner 3500 and if there is no noticeable difference I'll know that just knocking back the last coat is OK for the next one.

THIS! I know this is old and the time has passed but maybe this tidbit can help you in the future. That wagner will do better for you than the HF air HVLP. So much can come into the situation with air. Moisture, the gun is harder to setup 'just right', air flow to paint ratio, etc.

When I sprayed my first cabinet I shot it with a HF HVLP Air gun. Hated the result. Went and grabbed a Wagner  Flexio 590 (I think that's the model) and some Rustoleum satin black, thinned it down with the viscosity cup as per the direction, and the finish was gorgeous. I could see if we were all making cabinets on an assembly line, how the air would make more sense, but for 1-5 cabs a year, I'd stick with the wagner. It will do exactly what you want it to do, without all the extra variables of the air compressor and gun.

JUST MY OPINION, and what has worked for me!

[Mike A]

Personally I think the sobriety is the problem.

Everything was going great until then.

[javeryh]

I am going to spray both with the Wagner 3500 and if there is no noticeable difference I'll know that just knocking back the last coat is OK for the next one.

THIS! I know this is old and the time has passed but maybe this tidbit can help you in the future. That wagner will do better for you than the HF air HVLP. So much can come into the situation with air. Moisture, the gun is harder to setup 'just right', air flow to paint ratio, etc.

When I sprayed my first cabinet I shot it with a HF HVLP Air gun. Hated the result. Went and grabbed a Wagner  Flexio 590 (I think that's the model) and some Rustoleum satin black, thinned it down with the viscosity cup as per the direction, and the finish was gorgeous. I could see if we were all making cabinets on an assembly line, how the air would make more sense, but for 1-5 cabs a year, I'd stick with the wagner. It will do exactly what you want it to do, without all the extra variables of the air compressor and gun.

JUST MY OPINION, and what has worked for me!

I got excellent results from the Wagner once I figured out what I was doing.  Took me 4 coats plus using the right paint was critical.  I used Valspar Furniture Paint (the "oil-enriched" paint that's actually latex).  It goes on pretty OK but levels out as it dries.  It's really remarkable.  I had to wait 8-12 hours per the instructions to add another coat, so I did one coat a day for 4 days in a row.  It takes 3 days before you are supposed to be able to touch it and could take much longer to fully cure.  It smells like oil for sure - even now, over a week after spraying I can still smell a faint odor coming from the cabinets as the paint fully cures.  But the paint now looks like a hard shell and not an orange peel mess like I thought immediately after spraying.

The Wagner had decent reviews - professionals seem to hate it but DIY people seem to love it so it is definitely perfect for the couple of times a year I'll use it.

Personally I think the sobriety is the problem.

Everything was going great until then.

It's an issue for sure.  I actually stopped drinking regularly like 10 years ago.  I still have a few drinks around the holidays or when I meet up with friends but I've completely cut out everything else.  This year so far I've had a few drinks over 4th of July weekend and not a single drop otherwise.  I used to be waaaaaaaay more relaxed when I was drinking regularly but it makes me feel like ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- now and I get up early for the gym every morning and I just can't do both any more because I'm old.  I hate it.

[javeryh]

Got some more work done today.  All 4 sides are now covered with the wood grain vinyl and all of the t-molding has been installed.  I also put the coin doors in place - they are starting to take shape. 







Nice little row going on here.  Tomorrow I’m going to cut the blanks for the control panels.  I wanted to get that done today but I didn’t find the time.

Still have the monitor, controls, speakers, etc. to order this week.  Once i get the CP blanks I can measure for the glass and order that as well.  Doesn’t seem like a lot left but there a long list of little things that add up.  I think I’ll be able to hit my Christmas deadline though…

[vertexguy]

Those blend right in with everything else there!  Paint jobs look perfect to me, matching everything around it well in the photos.  Nice work man! 

[Zebidee]

Looks damn sweet to me! If  I got really close and saw something imperfect about the paint, I wouldn't care. Top marks!

[javeryh]

Thanks guys - the weird thing is that the more time that passes the better the paint job looks.  It’s curing slowly and smoothing out ever so slightly.  It does look pretty good right now.

I need to figure out what to do next.  I can install the speaker grills I guess but then I’m out of stuff until I start placing some orders.

Any recommendations on a good 4-way?

[vertexguy]

The Ms Pacman Anniversary HAPP stick was what was recommended to me and I'm intending on using in mine.   It has a little shorter shaft length than others if that matters with your mount.  Gosh though with all those other cabs of yours I'd think you'd have picked out your favorite 4 way by now?! 

[Zebidee]

Thanks guys - the weird thing is that the more time that passes the better the paint job looks.  It’s curing slowly and smoothing out ever so slightly.  It does look pretty good right now.

This usually happens for me too, once I've let a few scotches and scoobs settle

[bobbyb13]

They look sweet.

Off center coin door was a good call too.

[601 Arcades]

Personally I think the sobriety is the problem.

Everything was going great until then.

LOL THIS 100%

[601 Arcades]

I used Valspar Furniture Paint (the "oil-enriched" paint that's actually latex).

That's good to know! I used Rustoleum Satin Black (oil) thinned with acetone (gorgeous finish) because that's something I read about decals sticking best to. I think it was Szabo's site that said that. But I have been seeing alot more lately, about people painting their cabs with latex and having no issues. I appreciate that paint reference! I'll definitely be giving that a try since I'd rather clean up with water rather than mineral spirits.

Those are looking amazing! I read this entire post a month or so ago, but I can't remember now. Are you designing these or following plans/donor cab? They're turning out so awesome! Makes me wanna build one, or something simular for the livingroom and make it a multicade for the spousal unit. She likes frogger & q-bert etc things I wouldn't build a dedicated cab for, ever. LOL

[javeryh]

The Ms Pacman Anniversary HAPP stick was what was recommended to me and I'm intending on using in mine.   It has a little shorter shaft length than others if that matters with your mount.  Gosh though with all those other cabs of yours I'd think you'd have picked out your favorite 4 way by now?! 

Thanks.  I might check out that stick.  I usually use JLFs and I really like them.  Probably good enough for this project too but they are 4/8 ways with the restrictor plate.  A proper Ms. Pac-Man stick is something I've always wanted to try at home.

They look sweet.

Off center coin door was a good call too.

Thanks - yeah, I'm really glad I went with the off-center door.  It adds a little bit of interest to an otherwise bland front panel.  Hopefully the marquee helps too when I get that sorted.  I really need to get on with designing the CPO... but I hate Inkscape.

Those are looking amazing! I read this entire post a month or so ago, but I can't remember now. Are you designing these or following plans/donor cab? They're turning out so awesome! Makes me wanna build one, or something simular for the livingroom and make it a multicade for the spousal unit. She likes frogger & q-bert etc things I wouldn't build a dedicated cab for, ever. LOL

Thanks - I'm not following any plans really.  This is an evolution (or devolution?) of my Woodgrain Atari Cabaret, which itself was a variation on a profile that markc74 came up with for his Cube cabaret so that's kind of where it started.  I tweaked his design a little bit for the Woodgrain Atari Cabaret and then made a pattern out of 1/4" MDF in case I ever wanted to make another.  Then when I decided to make these, I wanted it to be simple so instead of the front bump I took it straight to the ground (and made another pattern in case I want to make another one of these, which I almost certainly will).  So to answer your question there are no plans with measurements.  After I figured out the profile, I measured in 3/8" all the way around and then took measurements for the interior panels that are posted in this thread but next time I think I'm going to do a 1/4" lip to make assembly easier with spacers.

There is also an old user by the name of Louis Tully who came up with the "tully" design which I guess is what this cabinet shape is based off of (hence the name of this thread)... but there are Nintendo cabarets and Atari cabarets that all have similar profiles.  The reason I like this one so much is because the top "peak" is a 90 degree angle.  This makes all of the joinery MUCH easier than if it was some random angle.  Also, you can fit one of these little cabs anywhere and they are super comfortable to play on.   

[javeryh]

Question: is 4" too shallow for a control panel?  I have an old 19: LCD that I could cram into these things but mounting it vertically really eats into the real estate for the control panel (which was previously going to be 6-3/4" deep).



I was always planning on getting a 17” LCD for these but if I don't have to spend the money...

Also, the 19" should easily fit if I use it horizontally... but this wasn't the original intent of this project... BUT if a 17” vertically mounted screen will provide roughly the same size play area as the horizontal 19" screen running vertical games then what's the difference?

Would love to hear thoughts on this.

[javeryh]

OK…working out the rest of the front panel.  Which one looks best?





I like the rectangle better since it matches the shape of the coin door and the marquee but I also have a bunch of the round grills laying around…

[BGoulette]

I agree: the rectangular grille works better than those two round grilles, but, imho, mostly because those round grilles are right on top of each other. If they had more breathing room between them, they might be a viable alternative, but based on your photos, yeah, I think the rectangular grille is the winner.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Top one, without a doubt.

[javeryh]

yeah... after staring at it for like 20 minutes I'm definitely going with the rectangular speaker cover.

Now I just need to sort out the monitor situation and it's off to the races ordering everything.  I'm probably going to just grab some 17" LCDs even though they are 5:4 aspect ratio.  They can be mounted vertically leaving me about 5" for the depth of the control panels.  Should be just enough room for such a simple setup. I think sticking to the rotated 17" monitor will be best considering almost all of the games on my image are vertical.  But I am curious as to whether you guys would throw a 19" in there horizontally since vertical games will still be roughly what they would be on a 17" monitor rotated.

As for horizontal games, I was only planning on including Tapper and Atari Tetris since they are great games.  Any other horizontal 4-way games I should think about?

[601 Arcades]

100000000000% the rectangle one. I am having trouble finding a speaker grill for my Centipede cabaret, and I'm thinking about giving up the search and just putting one of those same rectangle grills on it and being DONE with it. But I'm still in discussions with my OCD about it lmao

[vertexguy]

I'd go with rectangle for a few reasons.  It stays consistent with the other shapes on the cabinet, and if this is mainly playing only a handful of the really older games they were all mostly mono, so 2 round grills feels more out of theme to me.  As for CP depth it depends on your choice for buttons and sticks and how you plan to mount them but I would think 4 inches height is plenty.  Pretty sure mine is 4.5 inches and that leaves a lot of room to spare.  I think you can mount JLFs in about 2 inches of space.  Ms pacman is a little thicker of a base so may need a bit more.  I dont have em in front of me to measure though.

[PL1]

Question: is 4" too shallow for a control panel?  I have an old 19: LCD that I could cram into these things but mounting it vertically really eats into the real estate for the control panel (which was previously going to be 6-3/4" deep).

If you're talking 4" on the Y-axis between the silver monitor bezel and the back of the front panel as implied by the photo, that is a really tight fit.
- You might need to turn the stick so the long axis of the mounting plate is the X-axis, and maybe even use "flag" (right angle) QDs, solder on wire extensions with male QDs, and/or bend the tabs of the left/right microswitches.
- This is based on measurement checks on a Happ Super and a Zippyy.

If you're talking 4" on the Y-axis between the monitor and the front edge of the control panel, that is almost certainly not enough clearance for the stick and front panel.


Scott

[javeryh]

100000000000% the rectangle one. I am having trouble finding a speaker grill for my Centipede cabaret, and I'm thinking about giving up the search and just putting one of those same rectangle grills on it and being DONE with it. But I'm still in discussions with my OCD about it lmao

Definitely going with the rectangle.  It actually looks pretty good.  I had them leftover from a Midway cocktail cabinet that I gutted and got rid of.

I'd go with rectangle for a few reasons.  It stays consistent with the other shapes on the cabinet, and if this is mainly playing only a handful of the really older games they were all mostly mono, so 2 round grills feels more out of theme to me.  As for CP depth it depends on your choice for buttons and sticks and how you plan to mount them but I would think 4 inches height is plenty.  Pretty sure mine is 4.5 inches and that leaves a lot of room to spare.  I think you can mount JLFs in about 2 inches of space.  Ms pacman is a little thicker of a base so may need a bit more.  I dont have em in front of me to measure though.

I ended up buying J-Stiks from Ultimarc.  I really like the feel of the ServoStik and these are the same (I think) but without the servo.  THe mounting plates are 3.07" wide so I should be ale to cram them in a 4" panel... but I don't want to force it.  So I also ordered two 17" Dells (1280x1024, unfortunately) which should give me a little over 5" to play with.  Plenty of room... I think,

If you're talking 4" on the Y-axis between the monitor and the front edge of the control panel, that is almost certainly not enough clearance for the stick and front panel.

This is the measurement.  It was 4" from the bottom of the silver bezel to the FRONT of the front panel so yeah - 3.5" of actual usable space underneath.  Too tight, I think even with the 3.07" width of the mounting plate.  The 19" screen also looks kind of disproportionately large in the cabinet itself so I think scaling back to 17" is the right call.   

[10yard]

I love this thread.   I haven't chimed in at all because you seem to have everything under control mate.  Good decision to go with the mame appliance simplicity and stay clear of that retroarch convolutedness.   If you build it,  they will come  .  The tully's look ace and I can see me being inspired to make one of these.  Those Xmas recipient are very lucky souls.  Thanks for the regular updates.

[javeryh]

I love this thread.   I haven't chimed in at all because you seem to have everything under control mate.  Good decision to go with the mame appliance simplicity and stay clear of that retroarch convolutedness.   If you build it,  they will come  .  The tully's look ace and I can see me being inspired to make one of these.  Those Xmas recipient are very lucky souls.  Thanks for the regular updates.

Thanks man.   

You should definitely build one of these - they are so easy even though my ridiculous threads and stupid questions might lead you to believe otherwise.  Plus, you can really customize a lot staying within the basic design to make it your own thing.  I've actually thought about spraying the coin door and speaker cover white to match the buttons and balltop or picking a bright color for the side panels (like powder blue for a DK using your front end... hmmm....).  You can rearrange the front panel, use a dynamic marquee, make a spinner or trackball only control panel - the possibilities are endless!

[vertexguy]

I ended up buying J-Stiks from Ultimarc.  I really like the feel of the ServoStik and these are the same (I think) but without the servo.  THe mounting plates are 3.07" wide so I should be ale to cram them in a 4" panel... but I don't want to force it.  So I also ordered two 17" Dells (1280x1024, unfortunately) which should give me a little over 5" to play with.  Plenty of room... I think,

Whoops... my bad.  I thought you were talking about depth going down under the CP (under the joystick, I guess vertical space)    3.5" across the CP surface should allow for a JLF to mount sideways with enough room for the pin connector and support on all sides, so I can't imagine the JSticks being much different.

It's too bad you don't have enough room to mount 'em angled.  I hear that's an amazing experience. 

Are you undermounting or surface mounting?

[javeryh]

Whoops... my bad.  I thought you were talking about depth going down under the CP (under the joystick, I guess vertical space)    3.5" across the CP surface should allow for a JLF to mount sideways with enough room for the pin connector and support on all sides, so I can't imagine the JSticks being much different.

It's too bad you don't have enough room to mount 'em angled.  I hear that's an amazing experience. 

Are you undermounting or surface mounting?

I'm undermounting and not worried about hiding the bolt holes.  I'm going to go right through the top of the CP with them to make sure the stick is extra secure.  Traditionally I like mounting underneath and using blocks or whatever so I don't have to come through the top of the CP but I need this to stand up to some rough play.

On that note... anyone know where can I get some black carriage bolts?

[Zebidee]

On that note... anyone know where can I get some black carriage bolts?

If you can't find them in black finish, you can always use few quick sprays from a rattle-can to paint the heads

[pbj]

You’ve done a very nice job on these. 

 

[javeryh]

On that note... anyone know where can I get some black carriage bolts?

If you can't find them in black finish, you can always use few quick sprays from a rattle-can to paint the heads

Good idea.  I actually found some black carriage bolts from an old project - 8 of them, which is perfect for the joystick on both cabs, but they have that square at the top near the head.  Not sure how to cleanly run them through the CP top.  If I just mash them in, it will ruin the art.  Maybe I can use a chisel somehow?  These are meant for metal CPs with the square punch... but all of the carriage bolts I've seen at Home Depot also have the square near the head.  I will need to practice on some scrap or something.

You’ve done a very nice job on these. 

 

Thanks pbj - they are going to be tough to part with!   

[Zebidee]

Good idea.  I actually found some black carriage bolts from an old project - 8 of them, which is perfect for the joystick on both cabs, but they have that square at the top near the head.  Not sure how to cleanly run them through the CP top.  If I just mash them in, it will ruin the art.  Maybe I can use a chisel somehow?  These are meant for metal CPs with the square punch... but all of the carriage bolts I've seen at Home Depot also have the square near the head.  I will need to practice on some scrap or something.

I think carriage bolts all come with the square bit behind the head - otherwise you'll never be able to tighten the bolt properly as you can't stop it rotating with a screwdriver. Just square out your hole with a thin chisel or file or even an art knife. You only have to go in a few millimeters to accommodate the squared part.

[javeryh]

I think carriage bolts all come with the square bit behind the head - otherwise you'll never be able to tighten the bolt properly as you can't stop it rotating with a screwdriver. Just square out your hole with a thin chisel or file or even an art knife. You only have to go in a few millimeters to accommodate the squared part.

This is what I'm going to do for the joysticks.  As for the speaker grills, it looks like allen wrench bolts are what was used on the Midway cocktail cabinets that they came from:



I can get these in black pretty easy so I'm also going to use them.  Another trip to Home Depot...

[vertexguy]

You might check your Home Depot for black carriage bolts too.  Online it claimed 1 store near me should have them, I think for deck building, but I could never find them in stock locally.  I just grabbed the standard bolts they had and spray painted them to hold in my coin door.  Not sure that solution would hold up as well next to a joystick though.  Amazon has 'em but you have to order like 50 at a time and they are a bit pricey.

[Zebidee]

I think carriage bolts all come with the square bit behind the head - otherwise you'll never be able to tighten the bolt properly as you can't stop it rotating with a screwdriver. Just square out your hole with a thin chisel or file or even an art knife. You only have to go in a few millimeters to accommodate the squared part.

This is what I'm going to do for the joysticks.  As for the speaker grills, it looks like allen wrench bolts are what was used on the Midway cocktail cabinets that they came from:



I can get these in black pretty easy so I'm also going to use them.  Another trip to Home Depot...

Yeah, those hex head bolts in matt black finish are what I generally use for my joysticks and other stuff.  I almost mentioned them before, common in Australian cabs. THey also come with different security torx heads. I usually get them in M5 or M6 size, various lengths as appropriate

[DaOld Man]

I just dropped in after a break from here, and trying to catch up. So in short, I will have to read this entire thread before making an informed remark.
But it looks like you are doing an excellent job, just as you always have.

[javeryh]

I just dropped in after a break from here, and trying to catch up. So in short, I will have to read this entire thread before making an informed remark.
But it looks like you are doing an excellent job, just as you always have.

Thanks a lot - good to see you back!

I’ve got a lot of stuff in transit - monitors, joysticks, buttons, etc. - so I’m trying to get some little tasks done as I wait.  I can’t get an accurate measurement of the CP height until the monitors arrive and I install them…

Anyway, I got the rails installed this morning while on a conference call:



I used some scrap and a spacer to make sure that the angle was consistent for all 4 rails.



These are just 3/4” trim pieces from Home Depot that I hit with some black spray paint. I just glued them in place and used some pin nails for extra support.



The control panel (1/2”) will rest on the rails flush with the front panel and held on with some cocktail clips.  The remainder of the rail will support the bezel (1/16” black matte board) and the monitor glass (1/4” tempered gray glass) leaving a roughly 3/16” lip, which is perfect.

Next up is some electrical work with the power receptacle on the rear of the cabs but I’m hesitant to chop off the plug of my brand new smart strips!   

[javeryh]

I don't know why but installing the power receptacle and smart strip is always one of the most painful parts of an arcade build for me.  I just hate chopping off the plug of a brand new smart strip... which were $13 each by the way - super cheap if I'm remembering correctly.  Sometimes I wonder why I just don't notch out the back panel and just keep the smart strip in tact... OK, I know why but still.

Anyway, here's a shot of the back of the receptacle after wiring everything up so when I definitely forget when I'm working on my 2022 project I can refer back here.





Sanity check - anyone see any issues?  The LED on the switch is ON no matter what, which is how I think these things are supposed to behave.  Flipping the switch cuts the power to the smart strip.  I tested it out with my iPhone charger and it seems to work.

Final shot of installation:




Next up... speaker grill installation.  Yikes.

[PL1]

Sanity check - anyone see any issues?  The LED on the switch is ON no matter what, which is how I think these things are supposed to behave.  Flipping the switch cuts the power to the smart strip.

There are two ways to wire it that cause the lamp to behave differently.  Either way is OK.

If you wire it like the diagram below with the lamp after the switch, the lamp will turn on and off with the power switch.
- Open switch = no power to lamp or power strip.
- Visual confirmation that power to the cab is on or off makes this a popular choice but YMMV.

If you wire it with the lamp before the switch, the lamp will always be on.
- Open switch = power to lamp but no power to power strip.
- You've got it wired this way with power coming in on the B+D side and going out on the A+C side of the switch.

You can tell the lamp (B+D) side of the switch because those tabs are further apart than A+C and you can see the wire leads at the base of the B+D QD tabs.

 

If you want to reverse the orientation of the switch, press the tabs that hold the switch into the housing, push the switch out of the housing, turn the switch 180 degrees, and push it back in.
- That changes
C      D    _to    B      A    _{or vice-versa.}
A      B           D      C

http://wiki.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/Wiring#4-Tab_Switch


Scott

[javeryh]

Thanks Scott.  I've done this like 5 times now and seem to do it differently every time!  I think I'm going to leave it as is (LED always on) since the reality will be the switch being on 100% of the time.  The on/off button for the cabinet will be attached to the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi 4 and mounted just inside of the coin door.