Ammount of work involved in cutting and routing MDF for a cabinet...

[classicgamer]

Hello,

I have been looking into building an arcade cabinet pretty much since I first played MAME, but I have all but given up because I don't have the tools to cut the MDF or a router for the T-Molding.

So what I am now looking into is how difficult it is to cut out the side panels and do the routing for the T-Molding, so that I can make an offer to someone to cut the pieces out so that I can paint and put them together. I am talking about a basic arcade design with 2 side pieces, probably 3/4 or 5/8 MDF, maybe like this:

http://www.dreamauthentics.com/product_page_2_ex.html

(I also think the Pacman and Galaga minis I have seen on these boards are awesome)

Basically, I am looking for the level of difficulty in this and how long it takes to do the work.

I am also looking for the weight of the side pieces, to see if it's cost effective to ship via fedex.


Any information about this would be greatly appreciated

[emerica]

took me a weekend to cut and route my cabinet. I also never used a circular saw or router before I built my cabinet. I built the cab in Project Arcade. Not sure what a full-size cab side would weigh but my guess would be between 50-60 pounds.

[Apollo]

lol try 100-120 pounds or more depending on the plan, you can't just get side pieces cut, you have base, front, back, top and monitor shelf etc to consider.

[unclet]

I built both of my cabinets with just the following "main" tools:

- Handheld scrollsaw (blade bounces up and down and you move it around to cut)
- Handheld drill (making holes and putting in screws)
- Wood clamps (to hold everything in place while cutting)


Check my out cabinets to get confident, then go get yourself some MDF, draw the lines you want in pencil and cut them out on the line.   You will love looking at the cabinet when it is done so much more (my opinion of course) if you cut everything out and assemble it yourself.

http://unclet.arcadecontrols.com/


Oh yeah, I paid a cabinet company (many places like this around every town) to route out the grooves for the T-molding.  The cutting was free, but I gave the guy a $20 tip for helping me out.  I believe if you mark out where you want them to cut the grooves, then it takes a professional about 20 minutes to route out everything.   They do it rather quick.

[emerica]

lol try 100-120 pounds or more depending on the plan, you can't just get side pieces cut, you have base, front, back, top and monitor shelf etc to consider.

I can see a cut side weighing 100-120 pounds when a full sheet weighs about 100 lbs. I remember needing a friend to carry the 4x8 sheet into the house but didn't need anyone to move a side around.

Basically, I am looking for the level of difficulty in this and how long it takes to do the work.

One of the things about this hobby is that even when you think your work is done your really not. Everyone is always tweaking and changing their cabinets. As for difficulty, I didn't think it was too hard. I did the work without experience and figured that I would enjoy something more if I constructed it myself. 

[javeryh]

It would take a profesional carpenter an afternoon to bang one of these out if you gave him the dimensaions and everything.  Still, at $65 an hour or whatever they go for it would be quite expensive plus the cost of materials and shipping it would be completely insane - I'm guessing it costs more to ship than the cost of materials plus the carpenter.

As for the t-molding, I'm no carpenter but the first time I routed slots for t-molding it took me literally 15 minutes from start to finish.  I set up the router, cut a test piece, centered the t-molding, tweaked the router, cut a second test piece, was happy the t-molding was centered and then cut the sides of my cabinet.  Seriously it's 15 minutes from start to finish - so easy.

If you have the money to spend on a carpenter and shipping the materials around I think you'd be better off buying a router, a slot cutting bit, a flush cutting bit, a jigsaw and some clamps.  That's all I used to build my current cabinet and I'm doing just fine.  For the record, it took me about 2 full weekends worth of work to put my cabinet together (roughly 6-8 hours per day for 4 days).

[amadama]

Go for building one! It's a lot of fun and you will learn a lot.
MDF is incredibly heavy. My first cabinet (which I am working on right now) is a mini and is based on a single sheet of 3/4" MDF. I bought the wood at Home Depot and they cut it down into smaller pieces for me. This was great since it save a bit of time but more importantly I could fit them in my car and saved the aggravation of lugging around an 80lb sheet of wood!
I bought a Ryobi kit (circular saw, jigsaw, drill, sander, vacuum and light, all cordless) and a Ryobi router (a cheapo one). I got the t-molding bit and lots of big clamps (you need many clamps!). The work to cut the cabinet and assemble it was a few hours. I learned so much by doing this.
There are so many good resources on this site and most folks are very helpful too.
You will have an initial investment of several hundred dollars and if you are only going to build one cabinet it may not be worth it. But as many have discovered, cabinet building is like eating potato chips, you can never have just one!
Good luck!
Alex

[shardian]

If you took the time to lay everything out on the wood, then you could get it all cut out pretty cheap. It would take a pro an hour, 2 hours max to cut everything.

[Kaytrim]

You will get more enjoyment out of answering your friends by saying, "Yes I built that."  The look of awe in their faces is priceless.  Take your time lay out the cuts and always remember, "Measure twice and cut once."  Also getting the tools and knowledge will translate to other DIY projects around the house.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[Green Giant]

If you want to save money, you can pick up a really cheap router on ebay.  Sure they are noname and make a weird burning smell when you first use it, but since you are only gonna be cutting MDF, it will last.  The stuck is like a hot knife through butter for evern the cheapest routers.  I probably spent more buying the slot but than on the router. 

A jigsaw or circular saw should be better quality though.

[knave]

I have to say I've had good luck with used tools.  The local flea market is a good place.  I usually plug it in to see if it works and prices are usually good.  Craigslist is another place to look I try to find stuf realy close. Pictures of the tool are a bonus.  I'll then look up the brand and if I like it I'll get it.  I got my router for $20 this way. It works great.

That said there is no substitute for quality.  If you are going to be using the tool a lot buy a good one. (used or new)

[RecklessAbandon]

It would take a profesional carpenter an afternoon to bang one of these out if you gave him the dimensaions and everything.  Still, at $65 an hour or whatever they go for it would be quite expensive plus the cost of materials and shipping it would be completely insane - I'm guessing it costs more to ship than the cost of materials plus the carpenter.

i dont know about that. im a carpenter and over all it would probably take a bit longer. i couldnt say as ive only done work on mine for a couple of hours at a time
as for money id be looking for £120 at least for the day, whats that is $ for you..? around 250ish i guess
so yeh, deffo not worth getting someone in to do it imo

[ChadTower]

I can see a cut side weighing 100-120 pounds when a full sheet weighs about 100 lbs. I remember needing a friend to carry the 4x8 sheet into the house but didn't need anyone to move a side around.

Do they really weigh 100lb for a full sheet?  I pick them up over my head and walk off.

[shardian]

I never felt the stuff was that heavy - the hard part was getting a grip since the face of it is so smooth/slippery. Can anyone verify the weight of mdf sheets?

[ChadTower]

You have to be able to grab the edges, right?  It's only 4' wide.

[BobA]

Specs for MDF
•     Standard Size:     4'x8'
•    Maximum Size:    5'x12'
•    Weight/Square Foot (3/16"):    1.00lbs
•    Weight/Square Foot (7/16"):    1.75lbs
•    Weight/Square Foot (1/2"):    2.50lbs
•    Weight/Square Foot (11/16"):    2.80lbs

A 11/16 sheet would weight 4x8x2.8 =90 lbs

[CheffoJeffo]

Ever since I turned to the dark side of working with original cabinets and equipment, I have come to prefer converting existing (NON-CLASSIC) cabs over building new . It could be because once I started looking, there are just too many generic cabs going to landfills or it could be that time spent doing planning and construction may be used to work on other projects.

I know that I'll never win over all of the "from scratch" people and I am a huge fan of unique designs that can come from a scratch build, but converting an existing cabinet is an option that shouldn't be overlooked for those who don't want to build from scratch.

Hey, even the grand master builder Knievel has done this (with his usual spectacular results).

Cheers.

[More Cowbell]

I've built a full size cab and a mini cab and I swear they took almost the same amount of time to build. The smaller cab is just easier to work with but all of the effort in the detail is the same.

[abrownbear]

Wow uncleT your projects are very impressive, I like the range of games.