NES fullsize 4player Cabinet

[B0RGS]

In honor of the first console/videogame (Super Mario Bros.) I ever played (born 1991), I've constructed a full size NES inspired cabinet!

Full album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/MrTKTtuxEFey6ywv9

Some design choices of note:
1.The wheels - To keep the front and back wheels far enough apart while still having the NES inspired bottom, I angled the wheels by about 30 degrees. To ensure this did not put undue torque on the wooden angle braces, I used some thin wire and turnbuckles to connect the front and back axles.

2. The coin slots - I saw a ton of examples of people rigging an additional switch behind the coin slot buttons as an alternative to needing quarters, but that seemed needlessly complicated. Not sure if this has been demonstrated here already, but I found you can attach a string to the back of each button and loop it around to it’s standard switch. It’s a simple and cheap solution which works great! Here’s a youtube vid of it in action https://youtube.com/shorts/H_WMLkUSFeM?feature=share

3. The control panel - I've no doubt traditionalists are pulling their hair out due to my outer joysticks’ orientation. If you're among them, at least know my buddies and I gave the classic parallel w/ screen design an honest try on a mockup prior to building. However, none of us cared for it. While still awkward, it was serviceable on 2d games, but on 3d games, like GoldenEye 007 on N64, its awful! Unplayable even. Not sure if it's due to a lifetime of playing games via handheld controller, but having the joysticks parallel to the body rather than the screen was paramount for us. We even discovered playing games while craning our necks to look at a screen behind us was easy, so long as the controls were oriented with the torso. All 4 primary joysticks are Ultrastik 360’s to allow for N64, Dreamcast, and other console games. Players 1 and 2 also get an additional sanwa joystick for a more traditional feel or dual joystick arcade titles.

I’d be happy to address any questions, so ask away!

[javeryh]

Clever idea with the strings and the coin door.

[B0RGS]

Thanks! Not sure if a legit coin mech would ruin the strategy, but I hope someone else can benefit from it too.

[Hydrolisk1792]

This is the most amazing cab build I have seen in a very long time.  Well done!!  ou should rent it out for parties as well, maybe make back some of the investment on the build.  I think people would love this!!  Do you have plans available for the build?  I saw the build photo album as well.  Looks like you had the parts CNC milled?  Also, looks like you made it out of MDF, how is this for weight of the machine as a whole?

[B0RGS]

Thanks! Glad you like it. I do have plans for the build; I attached the pdf refs I sent the CNC service I used. All the parts were designed using SolidWorks and I can share those too if there's interest, or at least the dwg files I exported. Took me over 2 months for the design work alone.

I had to double up on mdf to get the sides like I wanted them, so this machine is probably a bit heavier than most. I estimate it weighs around 350lb with all the hardware included, but the wheels make movement easy; even on my carpeted basement floor.

One of my objectives was to make assembly as simple as possible, so mortise and tenon joints via CNC were the way to go. I still had to cut the edge angles and lumber cross beams via table saw though.

[Hydrolisk1792]

Thank you for that.  You did an amazing job on this!!  Much appreciated.  I'm going to see if I can get my business partner in on this with me so I can use company assets to make it LOL

[Hydrolisk1792]

Hey, one more thing.  I'm pretty good at wood working.  I have a guy that I can send off the files to who owns a CNC machine, however if I wanted to, could I print these at 100% and use them as templates to cut all the pieces with traditional wood working tools?  Thanks.

[B0RGS]

Mad props if you manage the manual approach. I can pm the actual dxfs needed if you want to go the cnc route though. Some details to note regardless:

1. MDF was 0.75" thick
2  Acrylic was 0.125" thick
3. The outer rectangle on each of the MDF pdfs is 49" x 96"
4. Outer rectangle on the Acrylic overlay pdf is 24" x 50".
5. I manually recessed the underside of the control panel for the joysticks and trackball by 0.125"
6. I manually recessed around the acrylic's trackball hole by 0.0625" to keep the plastic bezel insert that came with it flush
7. The inner cut on the monitor bezel has a 0.5" 45d chamfer
8. The outer sides of the cabinet have a 0.25" 45d chamfer
9. The acrylic panel has a shallow 45d chamfer to keep it blunt
10. The design was made for specific wheels and control panel hinges in mind, so I'll need to track them down.

The colors on the pdf mean the following
black     = Through cut
red        = 0.5"
orange  = 0.375"
green    = 0.25"
blue       = 0.125"
magenta = 0.0625"

[Hydrolisk1792]

Thank you for that.  I'll let you know if I decide to go the CNC route instead.  This information will really help, thank you.