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"The Varsity Club" Dual Monitor Arcade *Reconstruction has begun* 12/29/09

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KenToad:
Wow, McCoy, I think you're actually carrying out what so many others are just dreaming about.  Amazing work.

 :cheers:
KenToad

mccoy178:
Thanks fellas!  Wait until tonight.  I couldn't just let Pixelhugger do all the fancy plexiglass work.  I'm gonna give him a tiny run for his money.  Why did I have to build mine in the same decade as him?  :banghead:

bb040:
would really love to see pics of you molding your plexiglass......would love to see how you did it

mccoy178:
Today is a tribute to both Pixelhugger and Knievel.  They have both provided blueprints for our hobby that are of the first degree.  This is the best quality I could produce.  The plexi work is a reflection of the lead Pixel has set and the cp wiring is in tribute to Knievel.  I saw the work he did on the cp he made and it was very impressive.  I know there are plenty of others out there who have set the ground work, but these two specifically inspire me everyday I work on this machine. :cheers:  Now, an explanation of what I did today:

The first thing I did today was form the plexiglass to the contour of the cabinet.  After getting the angles correct, I decided to cut out the areas for the speakers.  Here is a pictorial of how I did it:

First, here is the machine that was used to bend the plexi.  Very simple, yet very effective:



I measured where I needed to make the bend and marked it with a dry erase marker and pealed back the protective paper:



I ended up not using the template that I made  :banghead: and used the cabinet itself.  I don't want to talk about it:



I marked the line where the next bend was to happen:



I peeled off the protective paper and transfered the marking to the plexi directly.  I erased most of the mark before it got too hot on the bender:



When I went to bend the second section, it cooled too quickly.  When I reheated it, I tried to bend it too early and that caused an inch hairline crack on both sides.  Here is the finished piece and a closeup of one of the cracks.  They will be easily hidden:





All in all, I was very happy with the results.  The bends are a perfect fit!  Since I've not bent anything bigger than a letter holder, it was pretty cool.  It seemed like so many things could've went wrong.  I can handle the two little cracks.

mccoy178:
That went so well, I decided to cut out the area where the speakers will go.  On my last cabinet, I cut off the computer speakers and used Sony Explode speakers.  I didn't want to use car speakers this time, so I decided to use the original speakers.  The more I sat there and looked at them, the more my gears started to spin.  Here is what happened and the results.  I still need to use the 1/8" round over bit, but you get the idea:

First, I took my good ol' time and made a template out of mdf.  Here it is just before I routed it out:



Here is the template after routing.  Gosh I love routers!:



I used a piece of plywood underneath and sandwiched the plexi between the template and the plywood.  I had also drawn my measurements on the plexi so I could easily line them up:





Here are a couple pics after the initial routing was done.  I was uber nervous about cracking the plexi.  I believe having pressure on both sides is what helps avoid that issue:





Here are a few pics of the plexi sitting back on the cabinet:







I used the grommets that came on the speakers and drilled out holes for them.  Once mounted, the grills pushed right into place:












It's no dashboard like Pixels, but you gotta start somewhere right?

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