Cabinet support structure

[USSEnterprise]

I don't get something. How does a standard upright cabinet support itself? As I see it, Its 2 side panels, a front panel on the bottom, a base, a shelf for the monitor, and a bezel. What else holds the cabinet together? If anyone has any pics, can you post 'em?

[Apollo]

Screws?

[USSEnterprise]

Thanks, big help I'm serious.

[Q*Bert_OP]

Screws?

Wood strapping, and glue...

Really...That's all that holds my SFA3 cabinet together...

[USSEnterprise]

you dont need any frame or anything?

[Q*Bert_OP]

you dont need any frame or anything?

Nope

[USSEnterprise]

Then theres something I don't get. Do you need a back panel? I planned on using a piece of cheap, thin fiberboard and put it on a hinge, so it would act like a door.

[Q*Bert_OP]

you can use cheap fiberboard or even pegboard, but on real cabinets, the purpuse of the back door is to keep unauthorized people out.

[tivogre]

I used a frame...

www.ogredog.com

[Apollo]

I was serious, my cab is held together by screws, just like almost every other cab. The back panel is an integral part of the support structure and should be made of the same material as the rest of the cab.

[USSEnterprise]

Thats what I thought, but then how do you access the internals?

[cdbrown]

Mine doesn't have an internal frame, the large panels do that.  Ensuring that all the joints are strong, there's plenty of strength in the monitor support and your wood isn't too thin then it will stand up fine.  Link to my website is on the left.

[Havok]

The frame is not necessary - look at classic gutted cabs, but I personally think a framed cab is stronger...

[pointdablame]

The back is an important part of the structure, but you're not realizing one thing... not many cabs had teh ENTIRE back as a door.  Just simply leave yourself a frame on the bottom and something like the top one foot of the rear stationary, and make the rest of the rear panel a door.  That way, the structure is sound, and the door lets you get to the internals.

[paigeoliver]

Never seen a real cabinet that had a frame. Not even heavy old cockpits had frames, the walls of the cabinet were the load bearing parts.

Think of it as furniture, look at most of your furniture, do you see many frames?

[USSEnterprise]

Just simply leave yourself a frame on the bottom and something like the top one foot of the rear stationary, and make the rest of the rear panel a door.  That way, the structure is sound, and the door lets you get to the internals.

What do you mean by 'leave yourself a frame on the bottom'?

[paigeoliver]

He phrased it funny, the back door on an arcade game isn't the WHOLE back, it is an area from about a foot off the ground up until the top starts sloping forward. This varies game to game, and some games don't have "back" doors at all, instead having access somewhere else.

Some cabs are almost all doors (and even THOSE don't have frames).

[tivogre]

A frame sure is sturdy, though!

 

[conseit68]

My X-Men 6 player has a frame made of aluminum

[RTSDaddy2]

We didn't use a frame on this one of ours...given the fact it took me nearly a year to get it to where it is now, I can't imagine how long it would have taken me to figure out a frame.

[pointdablame]

He phrased it funny, the back door on an arcade game isn't the WHOLE back, it is an area from about a foot off the ground up until the top starts sloping forward. This varies game to game, and some games don't have "back" doors at all, instead having access somewhere else.

Some cabs are almost all doors (and even THOSE don't have frames).

yeah sorry about that, but Paige knows what i mean.  If you think of the back panel as a percentage, the door mignt be something like 80% of the back, with 10% on the bottom and top secured to the rest of the cab, which adds support.

[USSEnterprise]

I understand now. Thanks

[nickbuol]

My first cabinet was "frame free" and was VERY sturdy!  The one I am building now does not have a frame either, but I am using some home-made 1x2 (took a couple of 2x4s and ripped them in half) and I am using them to make quick and easy joints to screw in to) to make it easier to assemble by myself.  I was able to screw a piece of the cabinet to one of my cut pieces of 1x2, and then I used some clamps and held the next piece to it and screwed that in as well.

Hard to describe.  I am sure that my joints will be stronger, but I was never worried about them in the past either. 

So anyway, if you aren't sure, then put some wood pieces on the inside of all of the corners and you will have a nice area to screw in to, but beyond that, you will be fine.

[spystyle]

I build a cabinets that have a partial frame, that would be sturdy without a back panel.

[elvis]

My cab uses 18mm (3/4 inch for you US kids) MDF.  At each point where two pieces meet at 90 degrees, I use a 42mm square (roughly 1.5 inches square) piece of pine, which is screwed and glued.

To be honest, that's probably overkill.  The unit is tough as can be, and very heavy.

Check any other cabinets, shelves or kitchen cupboards in your house and see what they've used there.

The only really important support bit for me was the monitor shelf.  That needed to hold my 37KG (82 lbs) ancient lead-lined monitor.  Outside of that, everything else is happy enough.

Check out the "images" page on my site for a visual diary of the build process, including the pine supports:
http://benchmark.mameworld.net/cab1/

[nickbuol]

I pretty much did the same as elvis did for a "frame" but couldn't describe it well.



I used 2x4's at the bottom for bolting the caster wheels to.

[Steve Kaz]

I used spystyle's ideas and adapted them to my UAII plans.  Basically, i ran two 2X8s along the width of the bottom and attached them to the bottom piece of the MDF and the side panels.  Then i did the same with the monitor shelf and when i was bracing the television and speakers.