the loner(dedicated fightercab)! more pics

[squire]

well starting my new cab...here what i got to work with.
the cab is in excellent shape compared to my pac man cab i did..












ill keep you posted..

[theCoder]

So what kind of gaming do you have in mind for this thing?

[Xam]

Nice score on the tools. Bosch makes some pretty good stuff.

Xam

[leapinlew]

So what kind of gaming do you have in mind for this thing?

Yes! Details! trackball, joysticks, spinners? Whats the plan man?

[AlanS17]

So what kind of gaming do you have in mind for this thing?

That control panel could easily support 2 SF layouts and a trackball.

[leapinlew]

So what kind of gaming do you have in mind for this thing?

That control panel could easily support 2 SF layouts and a trackball.

Think so? I don't. It looks way too tight. Whats the overall dimensions?

[leapinlew]

Call me crazy...

But, is that a bomb in your garage or are you happy to see me?

[squire]

i was diffently going to put two joys and 6 buttons each..for a trackball i would really like to have it in there we have to see on the size first i get some measurement of it when i get home...for the bomb im going to paint it and cut it out and put a light in it to hang over me station at work...
i would like to incorperate every possiable game i can think of like nes, mame, gens, saturn...etc

thanks so much for the views....

[AlanS17]

Oh it'll probably be pretty tight, but I don't think it'll be TOO tight. I guess it's really hard to say for sure without knowing the width. There's certainly enough depth.

Some people like to have all kinds of space around the trackball. I've found that I never need much (unless I'm playing Marble Madness). It all becomes a matter of preference.

While we're on the subject, there's no reason why the SF layouts can't be pushed out to the extreme ends of the control panel. It can be nice to have  space below the buttons where your palm rests, but you really don't need much room to the left and right. On the contrary, this makes it easier for two people to stand in front of the machine at the same time, and makes more room for a trackball (assumign it'll fit at all).

[theCoder]

i would like to incorperate every possiable game i can think of like nes, mame, gens, saturn...etc

Beware of the temptation to build a one-size-fits-all control panel.  If it works for everything, it will do nothing particularly well.

[AlanS17]

i would like to incorperate every possiable game i can think of like nes, mame, gens, saturn...etc

Beware of the temptation to build a one-size-fits-all control panel.  If it works for everything, it will do nothing particularly well.

AMEN! Thankfully most earlier emulated consoles can use a standard 2-player layout. (Though you'd need to figure out what to do with start and select buttons on an SNES)

[leapinlew]

Oh it'll probably be pretty tight, but I don't think it'll be TOO tight. I guess it's really hard to say for sure without knowing the width. There's certainly enough depth.

Some people like to have all kinds of space around the trackball. I've found that I never need much (unless I'm playing Marble Madness). It all becomes a matter of preference.

While we're on the subject, there's no reason why the SF layouts can't be pushed out to the extreme ends of the control panel. It can be nice to have  space below the buttons where your palm rests, but you really don't need much room to the left and right. On the contrary, this makes it easier for two people to stand in front of the machine at the same time, and makes more room for a trackball (assumign it'll fit at all).

Physically speaking... if the control panel is around 22-23" - it's too tight for two grown men to play a game of street fighter in front of. Fitting a trackball a joystick with 6 buttons each on a control panel this small almost always results in a control panel that can't be used very well. I've tried to do it... it doesn't work.

You'll want some room around the trackball. Sure, you may not use a lot of room, but other people will take some wild swings in bowling or Golden Tee. Since he said he wants to play as many games as possible, this is an important point to consider.

The reason they may not be pushed out to the edge is there may be clamps on the edge used to hold the control panel in place. That control panel has to be secured to the game somehow. It makes sense to push the controls out as far as they can go to the edge, but often times, the method used to secure the CP can get in the way (depending on the width).

I still say, and many of the veterans who have built before will agree, if the controls are too tight, they might as well have not fit at all. This looks like it'll be too small, but if the CP turns out to be 25inches+ he'll be ok.

[AlanS17]

It's hard to tell if it clamps from the top or from the sides. We'd need a closer picture.

[leapinlew]

It's hard to tell if it clamps from the top or from the sides. We'd need a closer picture.

Yeah, even if there is clamps - he should be able to move the clamps up or down to above or below the joystick. Not sure if that would give him enough holding power - but you would definetly need to do it if you wanted to get as much space out of the CP as possible.

[AlanS17]

It's hard to tell if it clamps from the top or from the sides. We'd need a closer picture.

Yeah, even if there is clamps - he should be able to move the clamps up or down to above or below the joystick. Not sure if that would give him enough holding power - but you would definetly need to do it if you wanted to get as much space out of the CP as possible.

That depends on the control panel. Metal panels with built-in latches can't be moved.

[squire]

ok well a trackball is out of the picture..
the cp is 23 and a half but...see where the joystick is..and that blushish square that is removeable..and thats only 20 inches...so im probaly even pushing the six button two person cp also..
im gooing to mock it up and see what it becomes..


thanks for the help

[AlanS17]

Yeah it sounds like the trackball is out of the question. However, you can still do two SF layouts. The cabinets that CPS2 games came in were 23 1/4" wide, and they invented the SF layout.

[leapinlew]

ahh, I thought it looked too small.

No worries. Now you need to figure out what games you want to play on it and the monitor orientation you want.

[squire]

hmmm. i think i want to stick to a streetfighter type setup..2 joys 12 button..i guess because im a dedacated fan of capcom..for godsake i have the capcom logo tattooed on my wrist...but im just wonder wha i should used for moniter...for the last two cabs i used the W&G U3100 VGA moniter i was very pleased with it...but just two expensive ..trying to save some money this time around i already  have everthing i need just a moniter and a few small things...i was looking into the Tv side but not to sure about it..the moniter i had in there already had some BAD screen burn..im not tosing it just not going to use it..for this build..any suggesting would be greatly appreciated..

[leapinlew]

Computer CRT monitors are inexpensive and plentiful right now.

[AlanS17]

Here's an option you might now have considered... try rack-mount, kiosk monitors, or touchscreen monitors. You can usually find them on Ebay for $150 or less depending on the size. Just avoid the word "arcade" because that makes everything more expensive.

For example, a brand new 19" LCD Elo touchscreen auction is going to end in about an hour. I would totally buy that if I had a purpose for it.

A brand new 15" rockmount Elo touchscreen CRT just went up with a starting bid of $25. I'm almost tempted to bid since it's local and I could pick it up for free. I just know I don't have a use for it (espescially since it's on the small end).

Unfortunately, the rack mount monitors are not as easy to find as they used to be.

[squire]

well got some more progress done..
repainted the inside and had to bondo the edges...ther where totally missing!
dropping the control panel off at the powder coating shop tommorow
and most likley start the laminate tommorow also...












i had to repair the back end of this cab due to some nasty water damage...



but it still continues

[bratwurst]

OK Seriously... whats with the bomb?

[kizer]

OK Seriously... whats with the bomb?

Maybe its a fancy Cigerette Lighter. 

[Kaytrim]

OK Seriously... whats with the bomb?

He says in a post above that he will be turning it into an overhead light for his workstation.

[squire]

well got the hole drilled out of the control panel......
went very smoothly when using a press....








and added a little rol out shelf for the pc parts....




ok im tired.....ahhhh

[javeryh]

Damn that roll out shelf for the PC is wicked cool!  Hmmm.... I might steal that one - I've been trying to think about how to place the PC inside the base of my cab... Ack! It never ends!!!!   

[squire]

well finaaly happy with the way its coming,finshed laminated the sides and front..and
after being fustrated and repainting the inside like a million times finally got some high quality spray enamel and repainted the trim on the inside and it came out great! also got the monitor mounted(decased a nice 21" pc monitor) and wired up the receiptacle on the inside threw in a little on and off toogle on the the top and here we are











thanks for the views...

[Kaytrim]

and added a little rol out shelf for the pc parts....

I like the roll out shelf.  Hope you don't mind if I steel the idea.  Only I will have my modules for my CP on a rack there instead of my PC. 

TTFN
Kaytrim

[SithMaster]

somebody set us up the bomb?  do you know plane it came from?  ive been looking for war mem for awhile (need a decent german helmet for a wolf brigade thing i working on).

[squire]

well got some better pics of the progress here. i redesined the roll out shelf to fit a pc case!







im very pleased the way it turned out...
also finshed the t molding and litle details here and there, its still not nowhere near wired up..but im getting there





and here some of the decased monitor





and here a shot of the side art that im going to use still need to make a marquee
ill keep them coming!

[Knievel]

Very nice conversion. Love the roll-out shelf idea. *yoink* 

Was doing a little bondo work/monitor decasing myself today..lots of laughs.

Are those straps on the front of your monitor mount? Good idea if so.

[squire]

thanks!

the monitor has 3/4 mdf attached to the ears, then thats a  steel reinforcment plate that goes to the mounting bracket on the cab..

ahhh almost done

[Loki]

Very nice cab!

[dweebs0r]

I have a question that may be obvious to answer but it's confusing me.

How did you use the existing t-molding slots after applying laminate?  Didn't that throw everything off by like 1/8" or so?

I painted my cab but really considered (and am still considering) applying laminate but I thought that would throw off the t-molding.

-D

[squire]

its a tad bit off nothing to really complain about though..it still looks fine( way better then it did before ).!!