New Paper Arcade that I made, Get it here First

[The 80s Man]

This is my first time at making a paper arcade. I made a Crystal Castles machine simply because Crystal Castles is the only real arcade cab that I own.

Enjoy

[RayB]

Awesome!

[Witchboard]

That is pretty cool.

[ojelela]

Nice, can you give us little How-to?

[The 80s Man]

Sorry, I don't mean to seem like a jerk, but I just don't have time to make  instructions for it right now. I do admit the speakers are a bit tricky to install (which is the part that has the Atari Logo on it)

Here's the original site that inspired me to make my design.
http://wayoftherodent.com/pa/pa_staff.htm
They have allot more paper arcades and they might have tips for building them.

[SONIC]

Haha, that's pretty cool

[quarterback]

Awesome!

[The 80s Man]

This new image might help explain the placement of the speakers. Match up the tabs marked ABC and 123 from the speaker panel with the ones on the arcade cab.

[The 80s Man]

To make your paper arcade look more real cut a thin sheet of clear plastic the same size of the screen so it looks like your arcade has a real glass window.
 


In this photo you can see the the Tempest machine has the clear plastic sheet over the screen and the Crystal Castles does not.

[JONTHEBOMB]

To make your paper arcade look more real cut a thin sheet of clear plastic the same size of the screen so it looks like your arcade has a real glass window.

That is a neat idea.  I will have to put some plastic on the paper arcades when I make some more.

I'm curious how long does it take you to make one about?
For me it takes an average of 20 minutes per cabinet and some times I end up redoing it because they don't always come out looking right.

[Crowquill]

Has anyone tried lighting any of the paper models?

My plans that I haven't done yet:

1. Create paper models and glue together in a row (as they'd sit against a wall in an arcade)
2. Print screens and marquees (and maybe coin lights and now trackball) on transparencies or some type of material that won't completely wash out the color when lit.
3. Run LEDs or small bulbs under the block of cabinets.
4. Plug in and flip the switch.


POSSIBLE ISSUES:
The trickiest part is going to be keeping the light from "leaking" and lighting up the whole side/front panels. I was thinking of doing the upright sides on thin black foamboard with the graphics glued on. For the front I'm thinking the best & cheapest way would be to use black construction paper or possibly just print black on the backside of each page.

80s Man, thanks for putting together the model of CC -- the game with the best cabinet art ever!

[GGKoul]

THATS AWESOME!!

[The 80s Man]

Has anyone tried lighting any of the paper models?

That would be nice to have them light up.
It might also work  to print them out smaller and try to make Christmas ornaments that light up while hanging from the Christmas tree. (too bad it's out of season right now.)

[Mario]

Has anyone tried lighting any of the paper models?

This is an awesome idea. Lit up, they would make cool nightlights.

I don't think printing on transparencies would work. The ink from inkjets is too thin and the whole thing would look washed out. But color laser printing on transparencies may work better. Either way, the plastic would probably be a pain to fold and assemble.

With inkjet printing, regular paper would probably work, else try using a lighter stock paper.

Due to the heat of bulbs, I'd feel safest using LEDs. If I can find one or two spares, I'm going to try this.

Mario

[Crowquill]

I was thinking of just printing the screens and marquees on transparency and then attaching them to the model made of cardstock. This would also leave them shiny like real plexi/glass. when the lights were off (like 80s man suggested).

When I go back to work on thursday I'll gather some materials and put it together.

[RayB]

Yes. When I was 12 or 13 I made a paper Pacman (exactly the same way that these modern ones are made.... By measuring/drawing a layout that can just be folded into shape).

The pac was about 8 inches tall. I lined the interior with aluminum foil to bounce the light, but left the marquee area clear of foil so it would show light through.

For light, I used a small bulb I ripped out of a toy or flash light, wired to a battery (I forget what voltage) and had a sliding switch to turn it on and off.

~RB

[Flinkly]

ray was obviously cool before all you guys...

[M3talhead]

ray was obviously cool before all you guys...

....damnit

[RayB]

ray was obviously cool before all you guys...

Sorry, did it sound like I was bragging?
Because if it did... it's because I was.   Har har har...

After I made that Pacman I made a "Centipede converted into a Sinistar" out of balsa wood:

[patrickl]

Lol, obviously my PocketGalaga is way more cool 

[The 80s Man]

   Holy Crap!! that Galaga is nice,...........and that Sinistar is cool too.