Author Topic: Dowdy's Mame Arcade!!! FINISHED (Read 25609 times)

rdowdy95 · « **on:** July 14, 2006, 04:22:37 pm »

Hey there everyone. I first got the idea of Mame from a guy who told me that he played Street Fighter 2 Hyper Fighting with it. I have an Xbox 360, and have been waiting for SF2 Hyper Fighting to come out for a long time. The guy was like, "Yeah I have been practicing on Mame with my Xbox 360 USB controller."

After he told me that I started to do some digging on the subject. At first I couldn't get the games I wanted to work. Then I found out some games needed a parent ROM to work. Ahh playing my first game of Puckman those were the days. Anyways I plugged in my Xbox 360 USB controller, and I was hooked. I also found a good frontend, MAMEWAH to easily select the games I wanted to play from a list.

So all of this was in the month of May 2006. Then in June I was on the net and I found out folks were building there very own arcade cabinets. I thought this would be so cool to have an arcade cabinet in my office room here at home. I ordered the Project Arcade book of Amazon, and started reading it. With the help of that book, and the help of friendly people on these message boards I have now got the courage to build my own arcade cabinet, known as Dowdy's Mame Arcade.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #1 on:** July 14, 2006, 04:41:23 pm »

The cabniet plans I am using is from LuSiD's Arcade Flashback, the same plans used in the Project Arcade book. This project is mainly going to be a weekend project due to my wife and little 2 year old son that keep me busy. I am using Birch Plywood for my whole project. Many people use MDF, but I wanted the nice wood look to my cabniet. I am going to also stain the cabniet when done with the cabniet building.

Some of my computer parts came in today also for this cabniet I am building. I will post the specs of those when I am done with the cabniet. I also have a 27" Sharp TV that will be my monitor for the cab. It is going to be a tight fit. I am kind of buying the supplies for the cabniet in spurts. Buying when I need them.

Yesterday me, my son, and my Dad went to get the wood. Last night I penciled some of the plans on one of the sheets of plywood. It is so hard to work on the project cause my garage is a mess. So during the project my wife and I are going to be cleaning the garage as well. All I have done so far is draw out one of the sides of the cabniet. Once I do that I am going to draw out all the square pieces on another sheet of plywood. Then I will start some cutting with my circular saw. That way I can take one of the side cabniet pieces and clamp it down on another sheet of plywood and trace the cabniet piece on there. Like a stencil. I tell you last night I made some little mistakes in my measuring. I read a 6" as a 9". Got to hate those numbers cause if you look at the plans upside down you are SOL! LOL! Anyways today is Friday. Tonight I will do more penciling and double checking of my measurements. I work on Saturday and Sunday, but I am hoping on Sunday that I can start some cutting with the circle saw.

I also forgot to mention that I have no expertise in woodwork. But I have made some cuts for practice to get to know my tools. I am hoping to get this full project done by the month of October. One more thing to add. Texas garage heat sucks!

javeryh · « **Reply #2 on:** July 14, 2006, 04:47:57 pm »

Good luck with the build. Take lots of pictures and post them here!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #3 on:** July 14, 2006, 05:00:50 pm »

I will post a bunch. All I have now to show for anything is just plywood on the garage floor. LOL! I will take some pics on Sunday though for sure. If I have no cutting done yet I will post pics of some of the computer hardware I got. I am still waiting for my motherboard to come in the mail.

leapinlew · « **Reply #4 on:** July 14, 2006, 05:46:00 pm »

take pics of the wood on the floor and the messy garage! We wanna see it all!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #5 on:** July 14, 2006, 05:47:03 pm »

LOL! Okay let me go get my camera!

gamecreature · « **Reply #6 on:** July 14, 2006, 05:57:58 pm »

Quote from: leapinlew on July 14, 2006, 05:46:00 pm

take pics of the wood on the floor and the messy garage! We wanna see it all!

I'm not sure, but that sounds just a little creepy to me.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #7 on:** July 14, 2006, 06:08:14 pm »

Here are some pics of the garage and some stuff I will be putting in the cabniet.

leapinlew · « **Reply #8 on:** July 14, 2006, 07:08:35 pm »

Ah yes! The beginning of yet another creation! Awesome.

suggestion!

Cut out your sides first. I'm assuming you bought 3 sheets of birch and if you really butcher up a side, you have another sheet of Birch available. If you had to buy another sheet of cheaper plywood, it could be for the base and internal shelves since people don't see those.

Oh, and that garage. Thats messy as hell. You'll need more room! Clean by fire.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #9 on:** July 14, 2006, 07:23:16 pm »

Quote from: leapinlew on July 14, 2006, 07:08:35 pm

Cut out your sides first. I'm assuming you bought 3 sheets of birch and if you really butcher up a side, you have another sheet of Birch available. If you had to buy another sheet of cheaper plywood, it could be for the base and internal shelves since people don't see those.

Great idea Leapinlew! I will do the sides first! Thanks for the good info!

theCoder · « **Reply #10 on:** July 14, 2006, 08:46:35 pm »

You've got tons of room in your garage. At least you have found enough floor room to lay down pieces of wood. I should be so lucky. I typically work on my back porch. This way the wind takes care of the dust. It also helps to have a friend with a shop.

Welcome to the hobby and good luck with the build.

leapinlew · « **Reply #11 on:** July 14, 2006, 11:34:35 pm »

Do you have a router? Specifically, what do you plan on doing about the t-molding?

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #12 on:** July 14, 2006, 11:39:49 pm »

I do have a router. It is a nice Ryobi one. I am going to order the T-molding from www.t-molding.com. They also have a router bit to make the cut into the wood. I am going to use just your normal black color T-molding. I am going to be using Minwax Polyshades the honey pine one. I think the black will look good with that since my two main joysticks are going to be Supers from Happ. I will probally use another Super for the 4-way joystick as well.

NightGod · « **Reply #13 on:** July 15, 2006, 12:14:48 am »

If you have a Lowe's near you, buy your slot cutting bit from them. 1/2 the price of t-molding.com

leapinlew · « **Reply #14 on:** July 15, 2006, 12:36:18 am »

Quote from: rdowdy95 on July 14, 2006, 11:39:49 pm

I do have a router. It is a nice Ryobi one. I am going to order the T-molding from www.t-molding.com. They also have a router bit to make the cut into the wood. I am going to use just your normal black color T-molding. I am going to be using Minwax Polyshades the honey pine one. I think the black will look good with that since my two main joysticks are going to be Supers from Happ. I will probally use another Super for the 4-way joystick as well.

Go to MLCS for a good price on router bits. The reason I ask was you may be interested in the Flush Trim router bit. You can use it to trace around one of your completed sides to get an exact match. Here is a picture of me using my flush trim bit to give you an idea of how it works.

Not only is it good for trimming out exact copys. it cuts through plexiglass like butta!

Go to http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/ for the bits. I've ordered from there and have had good luck. Both with price and quality.

Heres a link to the slot cutters - make sure you get the proper shank size (to match your router) and you'll probably want the Arbor & Bearing. The size slot you want is 1/16" and is the 3 wing slot cutter. The whole thing should cost you about $16. 1 last thing... make sure you don't install the slot cutter upside down in the router. I did that!
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/bt_slot.html#Anchor%20slotct3w

Here are the flush trim bits
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/bt_flush.html

You should be able to get both the router bit and flush trim bit for cheaper than the lowes bit.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #15 on:** July 15, 2006, 11:50:48 am »

Hey Leapin,

In your picture of the flush router...Is the side already cut on the bottom of the new sheet of plywood. Or is it on top. Like would I put the new sheet of the plywood on the bottom then the already cut piece on top? That sure would make cutting another side piece out very easy.

leapinlew · « **Reply #16 on:** July 15, 2006, 03:11:43 pm »

Quote from: rdowdy95 on July 15, 2006, 11:50:48 am

Hey Leapin,

In your picture of the flush router...Is the side already cut on the bottom of the new sheet of plywood. Or is it on top. Like would I put the new sheet of the plywood on the bottom then the already cut piece on top? That sure would make cutting another side piece out very easy.

In that picture, the cut peice is on the bottom. What your seeing is the guide on the bottom of the flush trim bit. What I did was screwed the 2 peices together, but since your concerned with the condition of the sides (seeing as how your staining, and I filled the holes and painted) you would probably want a flush trim bit with the guide on the top. I only have the 1 flush trim bit and the guide is on the bottom, so I do what I have to and make it work!

Here is a link to the flush trim router bits.

http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/bt_flush.html#top_and_bottom_anchor

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #17 on:** July 15, 2006, 03:24:28 pm »

Dude that is awesome. I will probally go with the top bearing one since my already cut side I will have clamped on the top.. Hey one more thing. How did the bit work around the front curved piece? One other thing what size diameter of bit did you go with? I was thinking of getting a smaller diameter, but I guess it wouldn't matter if I cut the other pieces out first. I just don't want a large diameter bit going into the other pieces. I will go 1" on the length since the wood is 3/4".

leapinlew · « **Reply #18 on:** July 15, 2006, 05:09:08 pm »

The bit goes around curves just fine. Just do 1 side exactly how you want, and the other side will be a perfect match.

I went with a 1/2" diameter and I wish I got a smaller one, but it works - I just lose more material than I would like.

As far as the length - 1" will work but you might as well get the 2" if the price is fine. That will allow you to put the guide exactly where you want. I use the 2" and although I haven't cut material thicker than 3/4", it's nice to know I can if I need to. I think they are the same price.

Anyhow - keep the pics coming!

P.S. when you route - dust goes everywhere. It's best to do it outside if you can.

leapinlew · « **Reply #19 on:** July 16, 2006, 02:06:33 pm »

Ok Mr Dowdy - It's sunday! lets see it or lets hear an excuse!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #20 on:** July 16, 2006, 03:01:01 pm »

Hey guys I have to work today from 1-5pm. I did finish measuring one sheet last night. It was the sheet. That has the monitor shelf, the base boards, control panel, and one of the cabinet sides. I have some pictures of this. Also when I got home yesterday about 65% of my garage was all clean. My wife and her brother were cleaning it yesterday. I will post pictures in a little bit.

Also this morning I used my circular saw to cut two of the base boards out. Only problem was my 48" straight edge ruler. The circular saw already has a rectangular shape around it, and then I put it up against my straight edge which is clamped down. It takes forever to get everything lined up. Then I was sawing, and I was like the saw was not moving correctly. Part of the top/plastic part was hanging on one of my clamps. Finally I just moved the straight edge and did it freestyle. Problem is I am going in the direction of the 8 ft. So I can clamp near the bottom of the ruler, but if I rely on the straight edge all the way it will accidentally move. So that is why I switched freehand. I am using a 48" straight edged metal ruler and a "L" Ruler that is about 26" in height it looks like a right angle. Can't remember the name. So what I did to get my measurements was use it on the very bottom to make sure my lines were level. Then I put the long 48" ruler up against it and clamp near the bottom of both of the rulers, but since there is no way to clamp them on the other side the straight edge moves during the sawing. Any ideas on a way to stop that? My pics above in the messy garage show the rulers I am using.

My saw ran out of juice though(18v Rechargeable Batteries), and it was getting close to time to get ready for work. So I stopped with the two 26" 2 3/8" front/back base pieces plates. Only problem was one of the boards came out to be about 2 4/8" give or take a few mm. Last night I know that one was thicker when I was measuring I just couldn't get it to match up even. The other base boards that I haven't cut out are measured fine. So what I will need to do is just sand it down to match the other one. I need to go ahead and also order that router bit tonight.

When I get off work I am going to try to get the other base boards/lower supports cut then the monitor shelf, arcade control panel, then try to get the first cabinet side cut out.

Then I can start tracing out the next sheet of wood that has cabinet back pieces and cabinet top and bottom. After that piece is cut and done hopefully the drill bit will come in the mail. Folks are right though. This project may take a while.

Like I said more pics will be coming tonight. Also what do you guys think about sanding. Should I sand the pieces now or wait till everything is cut. I know I am going to sand the cabinet side piece really nice so I can lay it on the other sheet to get an exact copy of it with my router bit that I am ordering.

Sorry for such a long post. I didn't have time to post last night. Coming out of a 106 degree garage I decided to get in the shower. LOL!

NightGod · « **Reply #21 on:** July 16, 2006, 04:55:04 pm »

Check the directions to make a sawboard at the top of this forum if you need help cutting straight lines.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #22 on:** July 16, 2006, 05:51:30 pm »

Thanks! I just checked on how to make those saw boards from the thread you told me about. I also did some better research on how to use the straight edge as well. I am going to try some other things with my straight edge, and if I don't get the results I like I will go to Home Depot and get some wood to make some saw boards. Thanks again!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #23 on:** July 16, 2006, 10:47:01 pm »

Okay I finally have some time for some updates! First let me show you how clean my garage is!!! My wood is up against the wall. My Dad may give me his workbench when he moves. If he does I will put it up against the wall where the wood is.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #24 on:** July 16, 2006, 10:51:31 pm »

Didn't tell you, but the above pics of the clean garage were taken last night. After those pics I finished taking measurements for the one sheet of birch plywood. Here are those pics from last night!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #25 on:** July 16, 2006, 10:59:43 pm »

Today, before work I sawed my front and back base plates. With my sucky sawing ability one of them is perfect and the other one is just a tad bit taller. So I will have to sand that one down or router it down with a flush trim bit. What do you guys recommend when I run into that problem on the opposite side pieces, like the base pieces? Here are some pics of both base plates together. As you can see one is like an 8th of an inch higher.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #26 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:14:40 pm »

When I got back to work I decided to get the monitor shelf cut out. I also wanted to saw the control panel out as well. What I did was I got the straight edge lined up how I wanted it and sawed all the way across the 4x8 sheet. I went from the left of the arcade control panel top across getting the side of the monitor shelf. What this did was shave off some of the 4x8. I didn't finish sawing the monitor shelf. I actually need to split that wood in the pic below in two at the line. That will leave me with a monitor shelf. For this I am going to clamp the monitor shelf side down to the wood and saw off that extra square. See the pic below for the unsawed monitor shelf.

Then after that I sawed out the control panel. Being extra careful on the angled parts. Now when I sawed this out it looks good as far as diameter around the whole control panel top. Only problem is on the edges there is some minor splints. I used light sand paper to sand down, but you can still barely see the grooves. Now how do I get rid of this little imperfection. Once I stain it will it be noticeable. Another thing I noticed was I sander a little on the top layer of the birch and it left some scratches on the finish. I think it was because I had sanded some white crown molding earlier with the same sandpaper for a different project. Now I wet it tad with water on the finger tip and it cleaned it up, but the light scratches are still there. I don't think it will be that noticeable after some prestain wood conditioner and then the actual stain itself. Thing is this. Is it bad to sand paper the top layer of birch plywood or should I just sand the sides. Cause I was just trying to get rid of the splints on the edges. I would use the bottom layer, but the wood has some minor scuffs on it. Like a couple of hair line splits on the first sheet of the plywood. That is why I am going to use the side you see in the picture below.

Here are the pics of the uncut monitor shelf and the control panel top.

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #27 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:20:34 pm »

That is about all I had any me tonight. My battery gave out on me just as I was about to get one of the lower support boards cut. It also looks like I am going to have to sand those down to match as well. I need to see about getting some extra wood to make some sawboards for this project. Would help me out when I cut out my first cabinet side. I will probally order the top flush trim router bit to get an exact copy of the other side. This week I would definitely like to get the two lower supports sawed off, and then the weekend coming up get the first cabinet side done. Also during the week make some of those saw boards to make things easier. Post some replies and give me some input. I respect all the comments and they are very helpful!

NightGod · « **Reply #28 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:25:55 pm »

For the little splints after sawing, make sure you are using a fine enough of a saw blade. The ones that come with circ saws are fine for rough cutting and construction, but you really want a high tooth count blade for fine work like you're doing on this project.

And if you've never done staining before, I would definately practice on some of your scrap wood before you get to the actual project, there's a bit of an art to it that can really only be learned through practice.s

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #29 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:33:47 pm »

How many teeth do you think would do the job. Will it tell me on the package if it is a high teeth count? Or will it say something like makes smoother cuts? Also when I cut slower it produces less splints. Do you think the control panel piece I have is okay? There are only maybe like 1 or 2 splints. How do you suppose I can get rid of them?

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #30 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:41:06 pm »

Just went to Home Depot's website. I have a 5 1/2" circular saw. I did see a 100 and 110 teeth saw blade. Man that's a lot of teeth. Is that the kind of blade you are talking about? Does it make sawing slower having all those teeth. Not that I care about speed. I really did some slow saw action today!

NightGod · « **Reply #31 on:** July 16, 2006, 11:51:15 pm »

Yeah, I used a 100 tooth blade when cutting my MDF and could really notice the difference compared to cutting with the 40 tooth my saw came with. Speed wise it's about the same (used the 40 tooth for some rough cutting of interior braces and the like at the start), just alot cleaner of a cut.

As for getting rid of the splints, I don't know enough about woodworking to give a definative answer, but my first instinct is to say to lightly sand them to smooth out the edges so they aren't as noticable and leave it at that, though I would wait for someone more experienced or maybe even hit up a woodworking forum to get a answer before you actually do anything.

Ghoward · « **Reply #32 on:** July 17, 2006, 12:00:51 pm »

I think you may be making the same mistake just about every birch cab I've seen has. Bad choice of wood......

When I build a birch cab I always go though the whole pile of wood in the home store to find the best wood and wood that matches. Your wood seems to have a really dark areas on it.

If you are staining it really dark you should be OK but if you varnish it and leave it light it will really stand out.

Gary

leapinlew · « **Reply #33 on:** July 17, 2006, 12:53:46 pm »

Quote from: Ghoward on July 17, 2006, 12:00:51 pm

I think you may be making the same mistake just about every birch cab I've seen has. Bad choice of wood......

When I build a birch cab I always go though the whole pile of wood in the home store to find the best wood and wood that matches. Your wood seems to have a really dark areas on it.

If you are staining it really dark you should be OK but if you varnish it and leave it light it will really stand out.

Gary

I agree...

It's an agressive project for someone just starting out. Paint is much more forgiving till you can get used to using your tools. Whatever you do - don't get frustrated and quit.

Ghoward · « **Reply #34 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:09:55 pm »

The only machines I've ever built are Birch, I got lucky on the first one and the wood I bought matched up.

But when I cut some parts out of another sheet it did not look right. On my next cab I matched all the wood in the store and cut whole panels out of the same sheet that way the grain runs though the whole cab. Two sheets of Birch plywood quite often don't look anything like each other!

Gary

javeryh · « **Reply #35 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:29:05 pm »

I stained birch plywood for my cab (blue stain!) and it came out a lot better than I thought it would - friends and family think it looks perfect but I can see a few flaws). I did practice on a small piece though to get the "feel" of it.

Also, I highly highly highly recommend you staining and finishing every single piece BEFORE assembly unless you are really skilled. I had a hard time getting in all of the corners and smoothing out the stain - it came out fine but the one panel that wasn't attached came out PERFECT because it was laying flat on my work table and it was easy to contorol/manipulate the stain. Good luck!

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #36 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:30:57 pm »

I don't mind having real dark areas on parts of the cab, and some lighter. I don't mind that the wood grain and color is not going to be perfect. I am going to be using Minwax Polyshades either the Honey Pine or the Classic Oak. Which one do you guys think will look better. Then I am going to have Black T-Molding around the edges. Also some of the pics the wood does look lighter because there is some dust on there. If I damp a sponge and wipe it looks nice and clean. That is why I am hoping the staining will atleast make it a nicer color than what it is right now. I will be using spare wood to test the staining. If all else fails I can always paint it black later on down the road. Thanks for the concern guys. The link below has the colors of the Honey Pine and the Classic Oak.

http://minwax.com/products/onestep/polyshades-color.cfm

rdowdy95 · « **Reply #37 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:34:44 pm »

Hey javeryh can you show me a pic of your cab. Also nice idea on staining all the individual pieces first then assemble.

Ghoward · « **Reply #38 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:41:16 pm »

I tried a lot of stains out on a scrap piece of wood myself and ended out just using gloss varnish.

I would try a number out if I were you and see what you like the best.

Gary

javeryh · « **Reply #39 on:** July 17, 2006, 01:54:15 pm »

Quote from: rdowdy95 on July 17, 2006, 01:34:44 pm

Hey javeryh can you show me a pic of your cab. Also nice idea on staining all the individual pieces first then assemble.

I'm always happy to post a pic or two (or 4) of my cabinet! Here it is (these aren't recent but you get the idea):

And here's what it looked like prior to staining:


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Author Topic: Dowdy's Mame Arcade!!! ***FINISHED*** (Read 25609 times)

Author Topic: Dowdy's Mame Arcade!!! FINISHED (Read 25609 times)