Build Or Buy? HELP!!

[shodokan123]

Alright... here is my situation

I want to have a cabinet but i dont know if i should buy a pre made kit or if i should build it completley my self

What i have availble to me:
Table saw
miter saw
circular saw
jigsaw
power drill
router
27" TV with svideo
2x happ competition joysticks
Ps2
computer
dreamcast
2xplaystation pad a-series PCB
2x dreamcast converter
500-700$

I want to build this so it runs on a computer, dreamcast and ps2.

My main interest is what would be the most cost efficient way to do this?

I am looking to have custom artwork, black bezel, coin door, etc...

If i were to build one it would be a lucid style one... plainly put because it is the most fighter orientated looking i have seen.

What's your opinion? Buy a kit from www.mameroom.com / www.custom-arcade.com

or

build my own...

my friend and i might be starting a business with making cabinets... so i am leaning twords building it... i just really dont want to ---fudgesicle--- it up and lose 180$ in wood.

HELP


Btw, the option of buying a used one and refurbishing it is not an option.

[SteveJ34]

Well, if u are contemplating doing another for phun and/or profit then build. Its really not as difficult as some may make it seem.

Measure thrice, cut once.

A few 4x8 sheets of MDF will cost much less than $180....more like $50-60 though that will not produce furniture finish look.

[Timoe]

Build build build

You will be much happier

Plan on taking a long time and enjoying the design/build experience.

[pacmod]

I would have to agree.  I just recently finished my 1st Lusid style arcade and other than the time, it was not that big of deal.  I built a cocktail and bartop previously so building this was as easy as following instructions and cutting.  The one big problem is all the dust MDF creates when you cut it.  IT GOES EVERYWHERE!  There still isn't anything better than having something you built with your own hands and telling people that you scratch built it. Email me and I can send you things that you need to be careful of and some really helpful links to Lusid style websites I used.

[tommy]

Theres nothing like building your own cabinet and customizing it exactly the way you like.

Theres really no point in buying a cabinet if the orginal side art isn't perfect and something you can live with. IMO

[krick]

If you can find an existing arcade cabinet that fits your needs at a good price, buy it.

Then spend your time and money on modifying it to work with consoles and re-building the control panel.

Look for a generic fighter cabinet with a wide control panel.

[paigeoliver]

$250 for that machine is not overpaying, heck I might have paid $300 for it.

[Lilwolf]

500-700 bucks should be fine since you have the majority of what you want...  But remember the artwork can easily get up there in price.  You might consider doing a simple paint for now, and build the cabinet in a standard design so you can buy some original nos artwork on ebay at some point and use that.

You seem to only be missing the keyboard encoder and the tmolding/tmolding router bit.  You might consider buying the keyboard encoder sooner then later so you can set everything up right now before building the cabinet to make sure the TV will work for you ect.

As for making a buisness.  I woudln't recommend it (other then for your friends).  Not to many are making money on it, and its really pissing the mame team off right now (so no ebay auctions with MAME in it).  Very few of the companies are actaully making money on them.  And if you don't have access to a CNC machine the output might not be to par with some of the others out there.  That said.  Helping out a few friends is always nice.

good luck

[paigeoliver]

A sure fire way to make 14 cents an hour is to build bare wood cabinets in your basement.

Note, even when you are done you are going to end up with a product that is likely lower quality than any factory built original cabinets (cut up for the dumpster every day!!) or the CNC built cabinets and kits offered by TONS of vendors.

I have built my own cabinets. They looked fine, but they were lower quality than factory cabs. I own a cabinet built by someone else. It looks great, but the build quality is lower than factory cabinets. I have seen PLENTY of homemade cabinets, but I have yet to ever see one that (in person) matched the quality of a factory made cabinet. I have seen a couple that came close, but they tend to be missing all those little details often have questionable setups for things like marquee and glass retaining.

[shodokan123]

Well my father gave me this advice.

If you plan on only getting one, make sure you buy a kit/existing of some sort that is company made and CNC milled... that way you get the best quality you can get, but if you plan on having more then one then i suggest you buy plans and cutouts for the peices.


I think at this point i am leaning twords a kit of some sort. NOT a mameroom kit... it looks ugly with the screws in the side like that and such.+ i heard the peices dont go together that well.  So i am highly leaning twords spending the grand on the slikstik cabinet.  I have heard it is high quality and it comes with a coin door and t molding so that there is about 150$ as it is.

[divemaster127]

hows it going, i have the slikstik quad with a quad 4 controllers, i like the kit real well, kevins review at retroblast.com, is helpfull, but not all the pieces fit perfect i had to have two people plus you have to be careful not to break a cam, a couple of things i did extra to the cab, i glued my cams, on the unfinished pieces, i used a clearcoat to keep moisture out of them & on certain angles that hold lots of weight i added L brackets but overall its a good kit, just be prepared to sell out 1800.00 with shipping
thanks

[Wade]

Considering that there are plenty of real nice used and working games out there for just a few hundred dollars, buying something like a Slikstick cabinet for $1000+ seems like a real waste of money.  Good used cabs can be made to look new for minimal work and cost (laminate or paint, $10 for T-molding, etc.)  People give away or throw away very nice empty cabinets every day.

For those that require something brand new and computer cut accuracy, the ArcadeShopper.com cabs looked pretty nice and were a lot less expensive than most of the other kits (but still, $400-500 plus shipping.)

Wade

[pointdablame]

If you are looking for a fighting cab, I'd be looking for an empty Dynamo cab.  Or a Mortal Kombat style Midway cab.  You can find empty Dynamos pretty easily since they were almost always conversions, and a lot of fighters were in them.

I want to build my own cab one day... but the fact that I can get a working JAMMA cab for a few hundred bux seems so much more cost effective.  Even if you need to paint ot and fix it slightly, you still have a cab, possibly some controls, a coin door, a monitor, wiring, etc etc.  Add all that little stuff up like the marquee retainers and the glass/plexi and the marquee light et all... and I don't understand why ANYONE builds a cab if money is a big decision maker.

[Dagg]

Build!  All the way.

Nothing like telling folks you built the entire unit from the ground up when they ask where you bought it.

[pointdablame]

Build!  All the way.

Nothing like telling folks you built the entire unit from the ground up when they ask where you bought it.

When you think about it though, you are still "building" either way.  Wait until you explain to someone how you wired up controls and made this machine play this many different games.  That always amazes people more IMO than telling them I put some wood together.

[missioncontrol]

build it ..........

build it...........

build it............

[stellarola]

If you belive you have the skills to build, build. The first time I did anything, I built mine, didn't buy it. I didn't plan that much, but I gotta say, it's a blast  ! You should get a good friend to do it with you, tons of fun. Next, I bought a Dynamo cab, which was in better shape than the one I built, it only had a 19 inch monitor in it. Then finally, I got smart and bought a Japanese candy cab  . 27 inch monitor, made from steel and plastic...sexy beast  .

[danny_galaga]

you're a cabinet-maker, you have all the tools and you're not sure whether to BUILD it? most of us have gotten stuck into it with hardly any experience at all. go for it!!

[CJK]

Although I am certainly no authority on the subject, having just started my first cabinet, I can tell you that building a cabinet is a blast. I am having a lot of fun collecting the parts I need, and I've built a little temporary control panel to test out my wiring skills.

I definitely agree with the "build one with a friend" advice -- a buddy of mine and I are each building a cab, and it's great to have company in the workshop and to bounce ideas off of.

The drawbacks to building are that if you don't know some basic woodworking, progress may be slow, and you're likely to have to buy at least a couple of decent power tools in the $100+ range. I'm lucky because I was already a woodworker and have a full shop, but if you don't have a lot of tools, maybe your friend does.

[shodokan123]

Although I am certainly no authority on the subject, having just started my first cabinet, I can tell you that building a cabinet is a blast. I am having a lot of fun collecting the parts I need, and I've built a little temporary control panel to test out my wiring skills.

I definitely agree with the "build one with a friend" advice -- a buddy of mine and I are each building a cab, and it's great to have company in the workshop and to bounce ideas off of.

The drawbacks to building are that if you don't know some basic woodworking, progress may be slow, and you're likely to have to buy at least a couple of decent power tools in the $100+ range. I'm lucky because I was already a woodworker and have a full shop, but if you don't have a lot of tools, maybe your friend does. 

Either way, you're going to have a lot of fun!

-- Chris

Both my friend and i have every tool necessary including a drill press... <drools>