Author Topic: New Cabinet, same old ideas (Update 12-03-11) (Read 15674 times)

Dudeman · « **on:** July 31, 2006, 12:32:52 pm »

I'm here to announce the pending birth of another MAME cabinet. I've stoleen lots of ideas from these forums, and I want to let everyone know what I have planned. Maybe you guys will have some ideas where I'm going wrong. I'll post pics along the way.

I've used Alibre Design Express to build the cab in 3D to get all dimensions and test out the control panel. I've decided to build a rotating control panel like Frosty's (actually almost EXACTLY like it). I like the Frankenpanels I've seen, but the complexity and wow factor of the rotating CP is just too hard to resist. Designing it was a real pain, because I couldn't find any specs, but I think I got it right. I cut out full size prints of the controls I want and laid them out on cardboard to see if they will work. I'm still trying to decide on whether to build 1 or 2 piece sides. I want to be able to get this thing upstairs, and my house has an angled staircase with a landing (best way I can describe it!). I'm thinking of using cam locks to put the whole thing together. That way I can take it apart to move it, and I won't have to worry about screws on the outside.

I'm also planning on using light up controls. I want the controls you need for the specific game to light up. Not sure how difficult that will be, but what the heck, right?

Right now I'm going to use a 21" monitor I've got laying around. Hopefully in the future I can replace it with a WG.

Any thoughts, ideas, complaints?

malelanct · « **Reply #1 on:** July 31, 2006, 04:23:54 pm »

curious has to what you plan your 3 cps to be? if you've thought about this yet.

Dudeman · « **Reply #2 on:** July 31, 2006, 05:03:29 pm »

Yes I have.

Take a look at http://arcade.tomvanhorn.com/

It'll be pretty much like that, except admin buttons will be on the backsplash and I hope to have a working coin door.

Also, in the future I'd like to add a removable yoke/steering wheel for flying/driving games. It would just hang off one of the panels and plug into jack.

n3rrd · « **Reply #3 on:** July 31, 2006, 08:12:03 pm »

Quote from: Dudeman on July 31, 2006, 05:03:29 pm

It would just hang off one of the panels and plug into jack.

You've discussed this issue with Jack already, I'm assuming? Otherwise, he's in for a surprise.

original_maxlamer · « **Reply #4 on:** July 31, 2006, 09:00:53 pm »

Avoid cam locks if you can, we lease out alot of furniture for short term at work, and anything that has cam locks ends up in the repairs department after very few leases

Dudeman · « **Reply #5 on:** July 31, 2006, 10:38:40 pm »

Quote from: n3rrd on July 31, 2006, 08:12:03 pm

Quote from: Dudeman on July 31, 2006, 05:03:29 pm
It would just hang off one of the panels and plug into jack.

You've discussed this issue with Jack already, I'm assuming? Otherwise, he's in for a surprise.

Jack knows nothing about it, but Star Wars was his favorite game... so I'm sure he'll take one for the team.

Nice catch. And now you all know I'm a lousy typer. That was a riot.

Dudeman · « **Reply #6 on:** July 31, 2006, 10:56:14 pm »

Quote from: original_maxlamer on July 31, 2006, 09:00:53 pm

Avoid cam locks if you can, we lease out alot of furniture for short term at work, and anything that has cam locks ends up in the repairs department after very few leases

Hmmm... cam locks out. A buddy suggested screw inserts, but I don't think they'd have much of a hold on the MDF. Maybe I'm wrong. Heck... I'm still trying to decide on plywood or MDF. I just found a cab that a guy built with plywood, and it turned out nice.

malelanct · « **Reply #7 on:** August 01, 2006, 08:51:58 am »

Quote from: Dudeman on July 31, 2006, 10:56:14 pm

Quote from: original_maxlamer on July 31, 2006, 09:00:53 pm
Avoid cam locks if you can, we lease out alot of furniture for short term at work, and anything that has cam locks ends up in the repairs department after very few leases

Hmmm... cam locks out. A buddy suggested screw inserts, but I don't think they'd have much of a hold on the MDF. Maybe I'm wrong. Heck... I'm still trying to decide on plywood or MDF. I just found a cab that a guy built with plywood, and it turned out nice.

there are alot of people on here that prefer plywood to mdf, some totally hate mdf. the big difference for me in choosing materials was that i planned to paint it. with plywood in order to get a good finish it would require a ton of priming/sanding.

note plywood is considerably lighter too

Dudeman · « **Reply #8 on:** August 01, 2006, 09:48:02 am »

I'm thinking of going with laminate on the outside and just painting the inside. Not sure how expensive the laminate is, but I like the look. I have read that plywood can be tough to cut a slot in for the t-molding.

Dudeman · « **Reply #9 on:** August 22, 2006, 02:09:26 pm »

Well, I've finally gotten off my duff and started buying stuff for this. I've gotten a few controls in, some of the tools I need (sawhorses, router and drill bits), and I bought the wood last night. That MDF is a little on the heavy side. I couldn't find any 5/8" MDF, but I did find some particale board in that size. I'm thinking of using that. It's just for the rotating CP (actually just the tops and backsplashes) and I don't plan on standing on that part.

Now I just need to print out full size templates of the CPs and start cutting!

markrvp · « **Reply #10 on:** August 22, 2006, 06:35:25 pm »

Is Jack still enjoying the daily plugging?

menace · « **Reply #11 on:** August 23, 2006, 08:06:26 am »

I too went the rotating 3 route--here's a quick rundown of mine...

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=12683.0

My experiences:

-I really only used panel 1 and 3--2 very rarely

-getting all the cords in there was a huge pain due to the twisting factor

-forget about the uninitiated or less tech savvy rotating--(namely kids--it was too complicated for them maybe...)

-i missed my keyboard--with the limited space for cords, my encoder was in the mechanism--no way to get 2 keyboard cords, usb cable (for optipac) as well as LED wiring all through there--I needed 2 wire chases--only allowed for one--make sure you have one on each side through rotational mech.

-I found it too tall--by its nature the rotational mech pushes the monitor up another 4-5" and with a marquee area and having the control panel at a comfortable height for adults pushed my cab to over 6'5" tall (course the flip down medals are non-negotiable

)

I ended up removing the rotating mech, shaved 5.5" off the top and went swappable instead (still in progress) so far much happier with the machine--not that rotating wasn't friggin sexy--just after all was said and done--it didn't actually get rotated much...

Dudeman · « **Reply #12 on:** August 23, 2006, 10:50:07 am »

How tall did your CP end up being? Mine will be about 34.5" from floor to center of CP.

menace · « **Reply #13 on:** August 23, 2006, 01:11:10 pm »

yeah about that height--hard to say now cause its been modified...another tip make sure you have beer holders on the side--

Also in hindsight the 2 piece cab would have made moving so much simpler but I've always liked nice smooth sides so you get what you pay for I guess...

Dudeman · « **Reply #14 on:** August 25, 2006, 05:47:11 pm »

I have a concern. Reading through some other builds, I've begun to wonder if my CP is placed correctly. It will be approx. 34" at the front, and has a 15 deg angle on it. Does anyone know (of course some one does, you guys know all) what is standard / most comfortable for many hours of play?

menace:
I thought about the 2 piece cab, but I too like the smooth sides. Classic look.

NightGod · « **Reply #15 on:** August 26, 2006, 05:30:21 am »

Mine is 33" at the front and 15 degrees and feels about perfect when using 24" stools in front of it. I'm pretty sure the design I used would have put it at 34", but I made a MASSIVE CP, so that lowered it a bit. I will say that I haven't actually started using it at that height, still finishing up wiring (which takes longer than you'd think LOL), but I have sat there for 10-15 minutes making sure things felt right (definately a thing to do when you're home alone-playing with arcade controls in front of a turned off screen feel weird, I can only imagine how it actually looks...)

cw · « **Reply #16 on:** August 26, 2006, 05:34:31 am »

pics of the cp would be great... you can make a mockup of your panel to be with cardboard or scrap wood...to check spacing and the general layout. I wish i would have on my first cp.. but hey thats why your asking right? Do what feels right to you and in mho the height of it really factors in but it sounds like you have that where you want it..

and stay away from frankenpanels....

friends dont let friends build frankenpanels

Dudeman · « **Reply #17 on:** September 05, 2006, 02:48:20 pm »

I've been trying to figure out how to avoid any binding issues on my rotating CP. I know some people have simple limited the amount it is allowed to spin in one direction to keep the twist to a minimum.

I was thinking there had to be some way to make a device like they make for telephone cords to keep them from kinking up. Then I thought someone probably already has made one, so I went looking.

So I found the below item at: http://www.mercotac.com/html/830.html

What do you think? Bad idea? Good idea?

Dervacumen · « **Reply #18 on:** September 05, 2006, 05:47:02 pm »

So you'd be able to have 16 controls hooked up, 8 from each side of the rotationg CP, right? If that's enough, these things are very cool. I think that may be too few for two player setups (2 joysticks and 6 buttons each). I may be missing something here though.

I was looking for something like that when I was designing my rig and since I couldn't come up with anything I went with swappable CP's.

miles2912 · « **Reply #19 on:** September 05, 2006, 11:13:06 pm »

The opti pac and ipac are going to mounted in the CP. So unless you are going to need powersomething, a rotating USB connection might work.

http://www.lindy.com/uk/productfolder/07/70339/index.php

D-

Dudeman · « **Reply #20 on:** September 06, 2006, 09:29:23 am »

miles2912

I do believe that's the ticket.

Dudeman · « **Reply #21 on:** October 21, 2006, 10:13:10 am »

Well, a little bit of progress on the cab.

I've bought all the wood and some hardboard to mock up the CP. I've got an order in with Ponyboy for a few more of the controls.

I bought a coin door of ebay for 5 bucks, and the darned thing works. I just need to repaint it. I started to try and remove the paint... but it isn't paint. It's powdercoat. Man is that stuff tough. Now I've got to try and smooth out the coating so I can slap some paint on it.

I'll post some pics for you guys when I get the CPs mocked up so you can help me point out any mistakes.

Thanks for all the support.

Dudeman · « **Reply #22 on:** October 30, 2006, 10:05:19 am »

Ok. I'm still trying to get all the controls for the CP. But I'm confused about which rotary joystick to use. the Happ optical seems the easiest, but it doesn't have the click of the Heavy Barrel games. Their mechanical rotary does, but from my understanding, each click is seen as a button press and turning the joystick slowly can produce the opposite results with the character?

Is this right? One post I was reading says that MAME sees it as one long button press, and therefore turns the character more than you want. True or not?

Dudeman · « **Reply #23 on:** November 28, 2006, 07:59:29 pm »

Well, I've finally started to make some saw dust.

I've been trying to get the pieces together to mock up my control panels and test them out. I've already figured out I placed the buttons too far apart.

Here are a few pics of my SLOW progress. I can only work on it on the weekend because it gets dark so darned early now. As you may be able to tell from the 3rd pic, I don't believe in measure twice, cut once. It's more like... measure 3 times, drink beer, measure again, scratch --I'm attempting to get by the auto-censor and should be beaten after I re-read the rules--, measure, drink beer.... cut.

So far, I've gotten the monitor shelf, kick panel, and part of one side cut.

Dudeman · « **Reply #24 on:** February 13, 2007, 02:21:02 pm »

Man, it sucks having to work for a living. The only time I have to work on this is late Saturday afternoon and Sundays. I think God doesn't want me to build this thing, because he saves up the rain for the week for Sunday. I finally got a good portion of the pieces cut out this weekend. The only cuts left are the miter cuts on the back and for the rotating CP.

And you guys were right, MDF sucks. I've sneezed up a couple of Lincoln Logs.

leapinlew · « **Reply #25 on:** February 13, 2007, 03:52:57 pm »

Quote from: Dudeman on February 13, 2007, 02:21:02 pm

And you guys were right, MDF sucks. I've sneezed up a couple of Lincoln Logs.

You need safety equipment when working with cancer causing MDF.

Dudeman · « **Reply #26 on:** February 27, 2007, 11:38:48 am »

More progress to report.

I've gotten all the pieces cut. I sure wish I'd thought more on how to make the miter cuts though. I used a circular saw and made a couple of sawboards just for the cuts. as you can guess, they didn't turn out perfect. AFTER I was done, I started wondering if they made chamfer bits for my router in the angles that I needed. They do.

I've gotten the top, angled back, top and bottom back pieces, and the kick panel camlocks installed. When I tried to put the base on, I found it was 1/2 inch short.

So, it was back to the hardware store last night for another sheet of MDF. I will be able to use the old base as the back door though.

I've decided to add some 2X4 supports into the mix. That way, when I pull it apart, I can have it in 4 or 5 pieces instead of 13.

Here are a few pics of my progress. You can kind of see the camlocks I'm using in the 2nd and 3rd pics.

The 1st pic is just of the side and my grandfather's drafting set. My mom gave it to me a few months ago, and I've been using it every chance I get.

csa3d · « **Reply #27 on:** February 27, 2007, 12:05:17 pm »

Quote from: leapinlew on February 13, 2007, 03:52:57 pm

Quote from: Dudeman on February 13, 2007, 02:21:02 pm
And you guys were right, MDF sucks. I've sneezed up a couple of Lincoln Logs.

You need safety equipment when working with cancer causing MDF.

Bondo, Paint Stripper, MDF, standing in front of a glowing monitor for hours.... what about his hobby DOESN'T give you cancer???

Dudeman · « **Reply #28 on:** February 27, 2007, 12:18:55 pm »

Getting nagged by your wife / girlfriend that you spend too much time on a stupid hobby.

That doesn't cause cancer.

csa3d · « **Reply #29 on:** February 27, 2007, 12:52:37 pm »

Quote from: Dudeman on February 27, 2007, 12:18:55 pm

Getting nagged by your wife / girlfriend that you spend too much time on a stupic hobby.

That doesn't cause cancer.

Yeah, that still equals death in my mind though.. and in someways, it's more painful

Dudeman · « **Reply #30 on:** March 19, 2007, 03:22:47 pm »

Another small step towards completion. I finally got the shell of the cab put together.

Here you can see the cam locks holding the base to the sides.

and here is a close up of the outline of the rotating CP.

Dudeman · « **Reply #31 on:** April 09, 2007, 12:36:28 pm »

Ok... small snag. I've attached the backsplashes the to CP tops. Now I'm trying to use hinges where the backsplash attaches to the front of the CP for one of the other sides. The problem is the angle. Because the pieces meet at greater than 90 degs., if I attach the hinges, the dang thing won't open. See the images below for a visual. Ignore the crude drawings. I don't have access to my CAD files at work.

Any ideas on what kind of hinges to use?

Edit: Just so you guys know... I want the hinges hidden.

Loki · « **Reply #32 on:** April 09, 2007, 02:24:37 pm »

Nice! I'll be following this one ^^

Dudeman · « **Reply #33 on:** April 16, 2007, 10:17:31 am »

Not much to update. I've hung the rear access door. I'm still looking for some hidden hinges for the CP.

I also got started on a new project. Not arcade related though. It's my first tattoo.

This is after 1 session. I've got 1 more session to go. He's got to finish some shading, and the fur is going to be red.

Dudeman · « **Reply #34 on:** May 03, 2007, 10:09:04 am »

A bit more work has been accomplished on the cab. I'm still working to find a fix for my hinge problem.

Here are the counter sinks I had to do for the lazy susan.

Which is here...

The CP side attached...

Another view...

Monitor shelf and supports

Rotating CP... rotating

And finally... my solution to stopping the CP from spinning 360 deg.

nexus6 · « **Reply #35 on:** May 03, 2007, 11:08:30 am »

it seems that this will be the first cab with a multi-panel, that i like.
good work!

Dudeman · « **Reply #36 on:** June 18, 2007, 11:05:24 am »

A little more progess on the cab. I've been spending a lot of time trying to find a cheap slip ring (AKA rotary electrical joint, or commutator) but haven't had any luck. I might try and build one myself. That way, I wouldn't have to worry about the wires going into the rotating CP. Here are a few pics. Let's see who can guess what that giant hole in the CP with 2 joystick and 12 button holes is for!

Spyridon · « **Reply #37 on:** June 18, 2007, 01:59:49 pm »

Looking good. I'm going to keep my eye on the progress. I was originally going to do a rotating control panel on mine, but decided to scale back since it was my first attempt. I plan on building something similar to yours for my second project (haven't told the wife about that one yet).

Dudeman · « **Reply #38 on:** June 18, 2007, 02:08:44 pm »

Thanks. Let me know when you get started on it. I've learned a lot on the way, maybe I can help.

Dudeman · « **Reply #39 on:** July 29, 2007, 10:22:48 pm »

A little more progress. Man, having a job sucks. I never seem to have time to work on this.

Here I got the fans installed. One at the top and one at the bottom. They are 12cm fans and I'll put a pot on them.

Here is the dual joystick panel sitting in it's spot just for giggles.

This is the metal plate I'm using to stop the panel from spinning. It's set up for 3 ball catches.

And this is the coin door I bought off eBay. It was in rough shape, but it was only $20. After working hard to get the powdercoating off, I painted it, put the mechs back on, and put in the new buttons.

That's all for now. At this rate, I'll have another update in about 2 months!


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