Update 06-29-05: Monster Arcade (Guts are in!)

[NinjaEpisode]

Guess it's time to officially announce my rendition of Monster Arcade.   Building officially began about 4 weeks ago and, as time has allowed, I've done a little here, and a little there.  Up until this point, I haven't taken too many pictures since I think we've all seen how the UA II is built one time or another.

I started the artwork for this project back in September of last year after seeing another member's marquee of Monster Arcade.  I took his image and vectorized it and moved forward with creating all the artwork prior to even starting building or ordering supplies.

ALL of the artwork that you'll see on this project has been printed by Scott over at Mame Marquees.  The one exception is the marquee itself, for which I have work from both EMDKay and Scott, and haven't decided which one will ultimately win the prize of being placed on the cab.  Either way, one will ultimately make it into a lightbox and the other will end up in the cab.

I won't say I finished the CP just yet as I already know that I want to change some things, but decided it's good "for now," and I'll continue on with the cabinet.  The base is about 60% done and I should have it completed this weekend.

But for now, thought I'd show off the CP.  The one thing I know I already intend to change is the base.  I built the damn thing too big, i.e. it's as wide, etc. as the top panel which I'm not too keen on since I like the look of the overhang of a CP:



Also, I'm not keen on the Top Fire and the way it's mounted.  Eventually, I'll change it out for a black Tron stick somewhere down the line.



CP On the Cab Base:



Dimensions are 18" x 42".

The spinner is based on a Nasty Spinner using a SlikStik Knob.  Trackball is supposed to be a Translucent Red, but it's actually orangish in color.  But, now that it's in the CP, I think it'll work out good once it's lit up.

The UA II Cab to follow will have the flame motif contiued around the base of the cab, including around the coin door.  Side art on the top half will be minimal, but it'll be enough for the cab to shine.  If you want to see what the rest of the artwork will look like, check out Scott's site over at www.mamemarquees.com.

Previous posts regarding the artwork:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,24130.msg196835.html
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,24012.msg195858.html

Ultimately, the cab will also have connections for GunCon2's as well as two DDR Pads for the wife   She agreed to let me build it, if I gave her the ability to run DDR, so, easy enough, Stepmania gets introduced!

I'm taking my time, but having a blast doing this!  It's almost like therapy for me.

Comments and criticism both welcome.

[crashwg]

WOW!  I like it.  The button colors especially are cool and go with the theme quite nicely!

[Knievel]

Very, very nice.
Think I'll order up a set of the artwork and race you.

[Redseven80]

Looks like a good set up for D&D, very nice!

[NinjaEpisode]

Very, very nice.
Think I'll order up a set of the artwork and race you.

Go fer it! 

Thanks for the comments gang.  I should have pictures of the base sometime tomorrow evening.

[NinjaEpisode]

Base is, eh, 90% done.  I need to route out a hole in the back for the detachable power cord ala power supply for a PC.  I'm also not 100% satisfied with the face for the keyboard drawer so I might end up redoing it if I have enough materials left once completed.

First some pics, then some things I've observed and learned during this process:

Musta been quite a few dust particles, excuse the slight blur:


Coin door seems a little crooked to me, but meh, for very little carpentry skills I'm not gonna complain:


The little white line you see along the side is actually the edge of the decal.  Even trimming the art, like I had to do on the other side across the top due to uneven printing, doesn't get rid of it, but it still kicks --I'm attempting to get by the auto-censor and should be beaten after I re-read the rules--:


So the wife walked out into the garage tonight to talk to me about something else and looked at the base and said "WOW that looks really cool!"  Now fellas, unless your wife is a big game junky, which is like a 1 in 100 chance, you know as well as I do that kind of compliment means more than anything said by anybody else:


Some things I've learned and observed thus far:

• Laminate is extremely sharp on the edges.  Even the thickest callus on your thumb cannot withstand the sharpness of the Laminate.  Use extra caution when checking the edges of your cuts
• The spray on adhesive works just fine for adhering laminate to the MDF.  In fact, your time is probably cut in half when it comes to attaching the laminate.
• Parts Express textured vinyl is absolutely perfect for covering the base of your control panel.  Just be sure that you go slowly, else you risk not aligning properly, and once it's stuck, it's stuck
• 50 ft. of T-Molding will not completely finish a UAII if you intend to do your CP as well.  As such, I need to order some more T-Molding so I can finish the top half
• 2 inch castors will make your base sit way too high off the ground and push your CP up too high, unless you decide to recess the castors appropriately
• Maybe I'm paranoid, but I just can't see how mdf is going to support an 80 lb. TV on just the front and back of the top shelf.  Thus 3 2x4s have been added to support the TV shelf.
• The faster I try to go, the more mistakes I make thus causing more time to try and fix the mistake

Another week or so and I'll have everything put together and should be able to start utilizing this beast!

As usual, comments and criticism welcome.

[SNAAKE]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

[paigeoliver]

Take an extra dust washer, and slice through it on one side, and then you can put it on that top fire, which will look a lot better. I have done that on a few machines with that particular joystick.

[NinjaEpisode]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

Hmmm...too late to go without the kickplate, I'd have nasty screw holes showing then. 

[NinjaEpisode]

Take an extra dust washer, and slice through it on one side, and then you can put it on that top fire, which will look a lot better. I have done that on a few machines with that particular joystick.

I thought of that, but don't have any extras.  Do they sell them by themselves?  I'd hate to buy a joy just for that purpose.

[Bones]

I think your project looks outstanding. I don't mind the kick-plate myself. I don't feel it looks out of place at all.

[armax]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

of course it does.  It's the older hot rod look.  Chrome definitely goes with that plate scheme.  In fact, it would look out of place without it.

[NinjaEpisode]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

of course it does.

[flampoo]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

Dude you're crazy. That kickplate is a perfect match.

[jcroach]

I think it looks fantastic.  The colors pull everything together.  The paint job is phenominal.  I like how the joystick colors compliment the flames.  Stainless steel would have looked good too. 

So, are the side panels printed laminate or vinyl?  Only thinng I would have done differently is probably brought the flames up higher on the sides.  Are you going to have any additional art on the sides?  Maybe on the top section of the cabinet?

Keep it up!  Can't wait to see the marque and front-end design. 

[NinjaEpisode]

Thanks for the comments and critiques fellas!

@jcroach:  The sides are actual laminate, i.e. counter top laminate purchased from Home Depot and then adhered to the mdf.  Scott over at Mame Marquees printed up the flames.  He and I talked about bringing the flames up higher, but two factors ultimately shot the idea down, first, the limitations of the size that Scott could laminate, and second the cost involved for that size.

On the top sides will be the Monster Arcade logo:



Front end of course will carry over the flames,logo, etc....

[jcroach]

The sides are actual laminate, i.e. counter top laminate purchased from Home Depot and then adhered to the mdf.

[NinjaEpisode]

No No, the flames are printed on adhesive backed vinyl, which is then laminated to protect them from being damaged.

[SNAAKE]

looks great but get rid of the crappy silver plate thingy...that just dont look right

Hmmm...too late to go without the kickplate, I'd have nasty screw holes showing then.

[NinjaEpisode]

Nope, as indicated above, the side art on the top half will be minimal, but enough to carry the right effect.  The marquee will also have flames in it.

[AceTKK]

I like it very much!  The flame arwork looks great.  I disagree with Snaake, the diamond plate goes perfectly with the "streetrod" theme. 

Oh, and people use 2-part contact cement to apply laminate because it allows you line up the placement using dowel rods before securing it.  This would not work with spray adhesive.

-Ace-

[NinjaEpisode]

Actually....

I used the spray adhesive with the dowel technique without issue.  The dowels serve the function that you mentioned.  Placing the dowels between to two pieces that have already had the adhesive applied, allow you to line up the pieces properly, and then remove them gradually as you adhere the two pieces together.  Thus far I've had no issues doing the base this way and intend to do the top this way as well.

[markrvp]

I REALLY like your artwork.  Your cabinet is going to rock (and the kickplate has to stay - it's great).

Thanks for pointing me to the FAQ at Mamemarquees.  Your description of the laminate turned a lightbulb on in my head and that's how I looked up my buddy with the laminating machine.  I would guess the process I used is the same as what they are doing.

What is the dowel technique to line up the art?

[NinjaEpisode]

The dowel technique actually refers to lining up the laminate a.k.a. Formica.  Basically, you take your laminate, cut it about 1/2 inch bigger on all sides for the piece of mdf you are going to apply it to.

If the piece is large, such as it is with the UA II cabs, you can get wood dowels from most hardware stores to help with manipulating the piece into place.  Apply the adhesive to both the mdf and the back side of the laminate.  Allow a few minutes drying time for the adhesive to become tacky to the touch.  Lay the dowels out across the mdf.  Next place the laminate, adhesive side down, on top of the dowels and adjust the piece so that it overlaps on all sides of the mdf.

The reason for doing this is so that you can get the mdf covered properly.  The adhesive is a contact cement that bonds nearly immediately.  Starting at one end, remove the first dowel and apply pressure to the laminate working from the center of that end outwards to remove as many air pockets as possible.  Work your way up the piece of mdf, removing one dowel at a time and applying pressure to the laminate.

I use what's known as a J-Roller, basically looks like a paint roller, only the rolling piece is rubber.  Anyhow, I use this to roll out the laminate and make sure I get a good bond all the way across the laminate.

Once everything is in place, and all dowels are removed, if you've gotten a good bond, you can immediately take a router with a laminate trim bit and remove the excess from the edges.  If you don't have a good bond, it's usually because you applied too little adhesive, or you let it dry too long, or you've applied too much adhesive and haven't given it time to setup.

Regarding the spray adhesive, you can find one specifally labeled for laminate, however if you check the can of a 3M 90 spray adhesive, you'll see the picture on the can actually shows a guy using it to apply laminate to a counter top.  Your pieces don't need to be soaked with adhesive since you're doing both pieces.  Instead, you want a nice even, light coat on both pieces.  Let them get a little tacky and put them together.

I'm a lousy painter, so for me, laminate is hands down a better finish than paint.  I'd have a difficult time getting the finish that others on here have been able to do.

I intend to do a couple bartop machines next and will be using laminate on the exterior sides of those as well.

[AceTKK]

that's good to know.  I assumed the 3M spray adhesive would dry too fast and either bond the dowels in place (bad) or fail to make a good bond between the laminate and wood (also bad). 

[markrvp]

Thank you very much for the explanation.  Keep up the good work!

[AlanS17]

My painting skills suck, too. I'd much rather go the laminate route.

Is cutting it tricky business? I have a router, but I don't have a proper bit yet.

[NinjaEpisode]

[insert sarcasm] Cutting laminate, ah the joy.  [/sarcasm off]

The bit will set you back about $20 or so shipped.  The dust from the laminate is worse than the dust from the mdf in my opinion, but the results are perfect.

Just as you would with the slot cutter, cut in a clockwise motion around the piece.  The bit has a bearing on it just like the slot cutter so as long as your depth on the router isn't too deep, the bearing will run along the edge of the mdf and the laminate will be trimmed flush with the mdf.

You can buy a scoring tool at Home Depot or the likes that will allow you to cut the laminate close to size ahead of time.  I highly recommend this tool.  I tried my first few pieces without the tool, and the results were not fantastic.  Fortunately, in the case of those pieces, I had cut my pieces big enough that the flaws were trimmed right off.

I'll be finishing the top half in the morning.  Everything is together, I just need to fill the screw holes with wood filler, sand, and I'll be good to go to attach the laminate.

@ AceTKK:

Make no mistake, it does dry fast, but, for the best bond, you want it to dry fairly quickly anyhow.  For example, on my base sides, I sprayed both pieces, laminate and mdf, stepped back for no more than 4-5 minutes, checked the adhesive, and it was good to go. 

When you start, you have to be ready to attach it and not go off and do something else.  Last night, I did the top, speaker mount, and back pieces for the cabinet and had all the laminate rough cut and adhered within 1 hour.  I let them sit until tonight and trimmed them.  The sit time isn't necessary, just ran out of time last night.

[AlanS17]

I like the flames around the base. It's pretty much what I've had in mind for mine, except mine would be less stylized and look more like real flames.

However, I haven't found any good high-res images of flames and I wouldn't know how to go about doing it myself.

[NinjaEpisode]

1 step closer to gaming bliss. 

I need a brace for the back of the TV so it don't slide off the shelf and I need to do a little routing with the rotozip for the plug, wire up the electrical outlet inside the box, and it can be moved inside so that I can complete the wiring.

Let's call this a "not quite" money shot:



I realized I had the logo for the marquee printed a little too large once I got the retainers on.  No big, I'll eventually have it redone:



I'll post some better high-res pics once I've got it done.  I realize the smaller pics tend to distort everything, sorry, I'll work on that. 

[NinjaEpisode]

Someone asked to see the Front End:

[Dire Radiant]

Nice! I don't know that the stone/metal bits  are really working with the other parts though. I'd have gone for a cleaner look myself.

[NinjaEpisode]

Yep, the more I look at that raw metal background, the more I'm not too keen on it myself.  I'll probably revert back to just a black background behind the boxes.

[NinjaEpisode]

WOW!  1 Month since my last posting on this! Jeez time flies!  I blame the fact that I wired the CP prior to completing ALL the work! 

Anwho, I'm 95% done.  I still need the smoked glass for the bezel, and then of course theres the mounting of the lightguns, configuring of other emulators, etc, but that's all child's play.  Today the cabinet is destined to have it's first real test of stability and playability since we're having a BBQ tonight and all the fellas from work are coming over to get a game or 2 or 3 in.

Anyways, on to the pics!

Here it is pretty much complete:


Token dark room shot, showing the coindoor, trackball and marquee lit up:


Kinda blurry shot looking from the right, looks good for a first timer!:


Up close trackball lighting:


Mounted Speakers (They're just a tad crooked but hey, it's all good to me).  Also, you can see the mounted Happ Bezel over a regular TV with the case still on.  For those that say it can't be done that way, well there you have it:


Gotta have the matching barstools:

Note: For some reason, that picture makes the entire top half look crooked.  I assure you that is not the case.

Closer shot of the Front End in action:


One last one for good measure.  I really gotta move that light down there in the basement.  It's just causing too much glare on the whole thing:


I'll get an actual website here in the next few weeks with all the details, but if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

[nipsmg]

I hate people whose UAII's look better than mine.


Great job! 

[NinjaEpisode]

nipsmg, you sell yourself short.  I think we're all critical of our own work, we are our own worst critics at times.  Arcadia has been an inspiration to many, including myself. 

[Bones]

Great work and the stools add a nice touch!

[NinjaEpisode]

Great work and the stools add a nice touch!

Found those purely by accident.  I'm hoping to convince the wife that we need a couple more of them. 

[Veinman]

That looks really great! Congratulations.

[babydickonboard]

congrats on the great looking cab! i like the matching barstools