Singularity - Modern Sit Down Modular Twin Stick Shooter Cabinet

[pbj]

Where is that?  Is the horse yours?

 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Where is that?  Is the horse yours?

 

It's in the UK - Cheshire. We moved away from London a few years ago for some extra space. Sadly the horse isn't mine 

[SpaceHedgehog]

I bought some car mesh for the speaker grill. The amount is overkill but the metal stuff is really expensive for the width I needed. I also bought some speaker cloth. The grill will provide some resistance to the cloth should someone poke it.



I re-used a piece of scrap wood to make the frame for it and cut the mesh to size. The wood needs to be painted black and the the grill hot-glued into place. This will sit behind the bottom opening on the middle section so it doesn't need to be particularly neat and tidy.



I spent some time during the evenings this week messing around with my wheel and looking at response curves and dead zones in the Joystick Gremlin software. The games seem to need adjusting according to their characteristics to get the best fit. I may end up making a panel for this:



Horizon Chase (a fun, updated Outrun clone) feels really good with it. I can configure the shifter pedals for the accelerator and brake pedals but if I do go down this route, I may end up buying a couple of USB foot pedals.

[Mike A]

That is quite a project.

Looks like it is coming along nicely.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Thank you Mike A 

Managed to get the MDF painted with blackboard paint and cover it with speaker cloth.



Loose fit under the monitor - I'll attach it properly once the cab is painted.



Pleased I managed to get this done today as I was up at 3am this morning.

[Ond]

Note SpaceHedgehog chooses to use MDF for most of his build?   

[Mike A]

Yeah. It is going to weigh 3 times more than it needs to.

[pbj]

Put this childish hobby behind you.  Buy a horse.  Learn to rope and ride.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Yes, definitely heavier than it needs to be. I've tried to find some decent plywood locally and failed miserably. The couple of smaller projects I tried required a crazy amount of preparation for the final finish and didn't play very nicely with my limited tools so I played it safe with MDF.

At least the cabinet is modular!

[bobbyb13]

I'm not a huge proponent of mdf for various things but to achieve the finish I would bet you are aiming for using plywood of any sort in this instance would be madness.

This I learned definitively in the first person on my last big project.

Man is this going to be a cool cabinet.

And pbj is right about what your next hobby needs to be.
 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Rope and ride does sound like a lot of fun tbh!

Yes. bobbyb13 - the key thing to this working out how I want it to will be the finishing. A good flat surface gives me a fighting chance of getting it right.


Started working on the CP layout. Buttons will be all white:



Will likely tweak this a little. I do want something understated though. The labelled buttons will move towards the edges slightly - there are restrictions with the button placement though due to the rails used to allow the detachable CPs to function.

[SpaceHedgehog]

I'd added a shelf for the monitor to allow some fine tuning and deliberately located it a couple of mm below its ideal position. This has allowed me to adjust the monitor position so it can exactly match with the cut-out. It also means I can used some protective pads to protect the monitor bezel as it's not a cheap one. I'd made the cut-out to be an exact match with the monitor bezel, leaving a few mm of black, empty panel space around the screen edges seen on most monitors these days. The depth of the MDF is 12 mm and given it's on a slight angle, I didn't want this interfering in any way with the visible screen / display.

The mount is just positioned with 2 screws at the moment as I like to limit the number of times I unscrew and screw in again.





The top of the monitor is around eye height which should be ideal for viewing.

NB The monitor size is 27 inches and the full cabinet width is approximately 73.6 cm

I'll almost certainly convert this HOTAS into a panel as there are a few modern, score base Afterburner style games and because ... well why not?



So I figure I'll end up with at least 5 panels at this rate.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Well the acrylic turned up but the artwork didn't unfortunately. I've made some more progress on the CP and added a shroud to cover the space in between the CP and the cab - I'll likely redo this to use thinner MDF to avoid any interference from the CP sides (which I'll hopefully get sorted today - weather permitting). This part of the process is very much trial and error at this point but I'm generally happy with how it's going.



Looking forwards to getting the back sorted and I can then start on filling and painting.

[SpaceHedgehog]

The weather's turned out pretty good after all so I managed to rebuild the shroud and got the side pieces cut for the CP. I'll wait for the artwork to arrive so I can drill the holes in the CP before permanently attaching the side pieces and routing the edges for a tight finish:

[javeryh]

Looks great.  I really like where you are headed with your CP.  The last cab I build I did a black panel with white buttons and red accents (some font and some volcano button lights) and I love the look.  I'm debating on doing something similar for the Tullys I'm working on now.

Also, your house is ridiculously clean... like how?  I am constantly cleaning up and putting stuff away and we have a "no clutter" philosophy when buying things but my kids (and dog) can trash the house in like 3 seconds as soon as I turn my back.  It's a struggle.   

[Mike A]

I am curious as to how that CP is anchored to the cab.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Looks great.  I really like where you are headed with your CP.  The last cab I build I did a black panel with white buttons and red accents (some font and some volcano button lights) and I love the look.  I'm debating on doing something similar for the Tullys I'm working on now.

Also, your house is ridiculously clean... like how?  I am constantly cleaning up and putting stuff away and we have a "no clutter" philosophy when buying things but my kids (and dog) can trash the house in like 3 seconds as soon as I turn my back.  It's a struggle.   

Thanks for the feedback jarveryh 

Re  re the tidiness, I just  clean up as I go. The kids are grown up now and one of them has left home so no need to tidy up after them anymore thankfully!

I am curious as to how that CP is anchored to the cab.

There's a cut out in one of the supports which juts out from the lower base section (it's double thickness to avoid flexing). I've used a clamping knob (with a threaded insert in the CP itself) to secure the CP into position.



The metal extensions on either side sit flush with the inside front of the CP so once attached, it doesn't wiggle at all. Hope that makes sense.

I do need to bevel  the edges of the cut out as the edges are a bit sharp at the moment when tightening the clamping knob.

[javeryh]

Re  re the tidiness, I just  clean up as I go. The kids are grown up now and one of them has left home so no need to tidy up after them anymore thankfully!

Ahhh... my teenage kids are freaking animals right now.  Plus my 9 year old is an artist and we are literally finding paint all over the house.  It's all she does.  She draws on the walls and she even painted a table in our TV room the other day because she didn't like the way it looked and I have to say she made it 1000x worse.  It's actually pretty hilarious.

That locking mechanism is pretty slick.  Looks real easy to swap out CPs.   

[emphatic]

I'm worried there's not enough room for your feet with that heavy base.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Cheers jarveryh. The CP is a bit fiddly to put together but worth it to make sure it’s easy to swap out.

@emphatic there’s as much, if not more leg / feet space compared to my Vewlix and that was totally fine from a usability standpoint 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Artwork turned up but there's some banding on it. I may go down the vinyl route...

[vertexguy]

Looking good!  How's the tip factor when you lean your weight on the edge of the CP?

[SpaceHedgehog]

Cheers vertexguy 

It's pretty stable - no chance of this tilting. It's damn heavy!

[SpaceHedgehog]

So now comes the laborious part - trimming, filling, painting, sanding etc. I've managed to get the first undercoat on which helps to identify all the inconsistencies. At this point, I'm really happy with how everything is lined up and flush which is half the battle. One noticeable thing is the 9mm MDF (used on the front part of the marquee) is significantly more fibrous - again, shouldn't be a problem, will just require a little more prep.

[javeryh]

Looks good - I don't envy having to paint that thing!

[SpaceHedgehog]

Cheers jarveryh    Yup, it's going to take a while!

[SpaceHedgehog]

So this is taking a while as expected. I'd estimate each of the sections will take about 10 days to complete, largely due to all the prep work required. Current state of the marquee section - I have a couple more layers to do but the filling is done.



The top of this is still drying so the finish looks to be a little inconsistent.

[javeryh]

I am not sure how you could possibly improve this with a few more layers of paint.  It looks amazing already!

[SpaceHedgehog]

I am not sure how you could possibly improve this with a few more layers of paint.  It looks amazing already!

Cheers javeryh  Like you and so many others here, these things are a labour of love - got to get it as good as possible 

The penultimate coat has gone on (it's still drying again ...)



The final coat (hopefully) goes on tomorrow. Not going to rush this as I put the first coat on too thick and drying time was a real problem.

[SpaceHedgehog]

I spent a good amount of time cutting some pieces for the back sections of the cabinet. I've attached a couple of those to the mid section. I also spent a few hours filling and sanding everything.



Also managed to get a couple of layers of undercoat on. I may find time to sand this back and get  the first thin layer of black on later.

[zeorangr]

The paint looks sharp on this.   Really nice work!

I'm both looking forward to and dreading trying to paint mine.  I'm going to have to pull all the electronics out to do that, and I've never really seriously painted anything before, so I'm kinda nervous.  If it looks half this good though, I'll consider it a win!

[javeryh]

I’m really impressed with how you get the MDF edge to disappear.  Seems no matter what I do you can still see it which is why I started doing a mitre on corners.

[vertexguy]

Looking great, but I'm starting to think you're building all of this in your kitchen.    Wheres your workshop where all this magic is happening?

[SpaceHedgehog]

The paint looks sharp on this.   Really nice work!

I'm both looking forward to and dreading trying to paint mine.  I'm going to have to pull all the electronics out to do that, and I've never really seriously painted anything before, so I'm kinda nervous.  If it looks half this good though, I'll consider it a win!

Thank you zeorangr! Painting definitely requires some getting used to and I'm still refining my approach tbh. I recently tried some primer / sealer which javeryh had recommended and has proved to be a really useful in getting the finish nice and flat. For what it's worth, I'm using Rust-Oleum Universal Paint - something I applied to some outdoor planters (holding up really well after a couple of years) and some vases in the house - it dries really hard but the curing time is quite long (I'd estimate about 2-4 weeks depending on the temperature). I'm using a small foam roller to apply the paint and making sure the initial coats aren't too thick. I'm allowing 24 hours between coats with a light sanding in between. Good luck with your painting!

For a truly professional finish, Ond is the man.

I’m really impressed with how you get the MDF edge to disappear.  Seems no matter what I do you can still see it which is why I started doing a mitre on corners.

Cheers javeryh  I have you to thank for recommending the Zinsser primer and sealer - it does a great job on the rough MDF edges and really helps in getting a nice flat surface to paint on. I'm also using a 2 part filler on the edges and seams to make sure everything disappears as much as possible. There's a lot of rounds of filling and sanding (seven, I think, for the mid-section - mainly to ensure that all the little blemishes were removed) before applying the primer. I'm using a mouse sander to help with getting the filler nice and smooth - I was worried that it would be too rough but it's turned out to be a real time saver. I am using a 320 grit sandpaper in between paint / primer coats though.

Looking great, but I'm starting to think you're building all of this in your kitchen.    Wheres your workshop where all this magic is happening?

Haha! Cheers vertexguy - I can understand why you think that! I'll share a picture of my workshop a little later on 

[SpaceHedgehog]

A picture of my workshop as promised:

[bobbyb13]

Love it

Lookin kinda frosty there!

[javeryh]

Wow that’s so much open space.  Looks really relaxing.  I’m not sure I could do it full time but it would be nice to get away once in a while to something like that.  It’s so crowded by me that we can walk everywhere.  Shops, restaurants, parks, schools, etc.  We have cars (and need them) but everything is so close by.  Downside is people everywhere - if my neighbors get into an argument I can hear it.   Makes you crazy after a while…

[SpaceHedgehog]

Love it

Lookin kinda frosty there!

Cheers and yes, it was a little frosty! It's great to see the mist coming off the river just beyond the first tree line.

Wow that’s so much open space.  Looks really relaxing.  I’m not sure I could do it full time but it would be nice to get away once in a while to something like that.  It’s so crowded by me that we can walk everywhere.  Shops, restaurants, parks, schools, etc.  We have cars (and need them) but everything is so close by.  Downside is people everywhere - if my neighbors get into an argument I can hear it.   Makes you crazy after a while…

Relaxing for sure! The downside of working outside is obviously the weather. I'd like to get all of this done before Xmas but we'll see.

I'm very jealous of the workshops people here have. I'd love a dedicated space.


I've painted the first black coat on and let it dry ...



... before sanding it back ...



... and applying another coat.



Currently waiting for it to dry.

2 or 3 more coats should see this part done.

[pbj]

Make sure you wear close toed shoes when you play that thing unless you don't like your toe nails.  Ask me how I know.

 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Haha! Yup, I'm used to managing my foot position whilst playing on my Vewlix