Author Topic: "Bubble Gum Betty" Projects End!! (Updated 10/03/08) (Read 53518 times)

waveryder · « **on:** May 21, 2007, 09:46:19 am »

Just bought this little beauty for £65 off ebay and cant wait to mame it up

Its made of ABS plastic and has a touchscreen ELO VGA monitor. Whilst looking around inside it I found a bill validator and a PRINTER!!! Not too sure what I could do with that? Looking for a few suggestions here as so far all Ive planned to do is respray the front of the cab and bezel white. Gonna bust the locks and start gutting it out to see what i can find. I think this is gonna be a long project!

mountain · « **Reply #1 on:** May 21, 2007, 09:53:43 am »

Wow, that sounds like a steal. I would sell the bill validator and printer to help cover the costs.

Good luck!

waveryder · « **Reply #2 on:** May 21, 2007, 02:17:25 pm »

Also found a serial credit card reader attached to the bezel. Anyone know where I could go about selling these? Are they worth anything to anyone? Would be good to raise some money for another ipac.

shardian · « **Reply #3 on:** May 21, 2007, 02:22:38 pm »

Quote from: waveryder on May 21, 2007, 02:17:25 pm

Also found a serial credit card reader attached to the bezel. Anyone know where I could go about selling these? Are they worth anything to anyone? Would be good to raise some money for another ipac.

Ebay, here you come!

You are going to get your money back just on the bill validator.

Silhouette · « **Reply #4 on:** May 22, 2007, 09:14:49 pm »

It'd be pretty awesome if you could figure out how to make the printer hook up to the PC, so that it prints a screenshot when you hit a certain button/ button combination.

And that is an awesome cabinet. If you decide to repaint it, go for Krylon Fusion brand spraypaint. It's made with acetone in the mixture, so that it bonds to the plastic.

waveryder · « **Reply #5 on:** May 23, 2007, 05:38:08 am »

Intervaceing the printer is actually really easy. Problem is its a black and white, not sure if it could handle graphics output, Ill start expeimenting and give it a go. I am planning to spray the facia and bezel with a product called plasticote. Little worried about it actually (Spraycan Virgin!) My biggest problem at the moment is the metal control panel. I need to get a new one made but cant seem to find anywhere yet that will make me just one. I dont want to go the MDF route as the sanwa pushin buttons I want wont fit

paigeoliver · « **Reply #6 on:** May 23, 2007, 07:29:22 am »

Looks like a gambling machine. I imagine the printer prints gambling tickets with barcodes on them. It should be able to handle graphics, since I have seen those tickets print up with casino logos on them.

I wouldn't paint a thing on it myself. It looks to be in pretty nice shape and a poor paint job could make it worse.

Kaytrim · « **Reply #7 on:** May 23, 2007, 10:04:20 am »

Quote from: paigeoliver on May 23, 2007, 07:29:22 am

I wouldn't paint a thing on it myself. It looks to be in pretty nice shape and a poor paint job could make it worse.

I agree, clean it up first, you are going to have to anyway to get a good adhesion of the new paint.

TTFN

Kaytrim

hbm*rais · « **Reply #8 on:** May 23, 2007, 11:16:22 am »

If you could hack mame to print hi-score proofs, like a receipt, with your machine logo in it and everything, that would be the coolest gimmick ever

!

Nice cab, BTW.

Great find for 65 quid!

waveryder · « **Reply #9 on:** May 24, 2007, 06:55:00 am »

Started gutting the cabinet out. The machine started out life as an FOBT, but the unit is a clone of a candy cab. The unit is completely bolted together and probably could of come flat packed!! Lots of screws are missing but the unit is in good condition.

The monitor is in ok condition (bit of screen burn) but the touchscreen works well. Plenty of space to house a PC frame.

I took of all the artwork and removed the control deck to prime it ready for spraying. Came out very well. Put on the first coat of satin white and so far its starting to look pretty good. The Plasticote turned out to be a great product. Very easy to apply and dries lightning quick. I think I might give it a coat of clear acrylic after I've done the topcoat to seal it. I think the cabs starting to come along nicely.

CountZero · « **Reply #10 on:** May 24, 2007, 12:55:13 pm »

Quote from: waveryder on May 23, 2007, 05:38:08 am

My biggest problem at the moment is the metal control panel. I need to get a new one made but cant seem to find anywhere yet that will make me just one. I dont want to go the MDF route as the sanwa pushin buttons I want wont fit

i have the same cab as you, and have a similar cp dilemma, i contacted a guy on eBay who seems to convert a lot of these and goes by the name of candy-cabs, his reply was;

Hi, I've got no problem selling you a control panel set - I'm always happy to help fellow converters
Many people ask why my machines are so expensive, and I'm afraid it's because of the high quality components I use to make them. I buy my control panels in bulk (qty x50) but even with that bulk discount they still cost £47.50 each. The smaller panels to cover the hole left by the note acceptor and provide for a power switch and a credit button is £22.00. Both are made of lazer cut steel and come complete with fixing studs. Not sure what postage and packing would be - I'll have to weigh them first. If you're interested let me know.
Cheers,
Mike.

probably a bit rich for my blood as i'm getting grief from the wife already about spending on thsi when theres decorating to be done

perhaps an option for you?
search his nick on ebay and check out his completed listings if you want to see what the cp looks like.

shardian · « **Reply #11 on:** May 24, 2007, 12:59:35 pm »

You just need some sheet aluminum stock, and a dremel tool to make a new cp for that. Once you cut out the basic cp shape, you can add button holes as needed with a spade bit. Go for it!

waveryder · « **Reply #12 on:** May 24, 2007, 01:11:22 pm »

CountZero £47.50 each LOL
The large metal CP for my last cabinet cost me £10 and that was with 2 extras without the holes punched! Ive been quoted £15 if I get a run of 50! Think i'll go the alluminum route. You know where I can get this shardian? Hopefully local DIY store! The smaller panels are already cut out of the left overs of the computer case im putting in.

CountZero · « **Reply #13 on:** May 24, 2007, 01:21:20 pm »

i dunno, you could have been a secret millionaire for all i know

i reckon i'll just swipe some old printing plates from work for mine, but i think 0.4mm is perhaps too thin

waveryder · « **Reply #14 on:** May 25, 2007, 10:06:27 am »

Just a quick update for those doubters who thought a paint job was a bad idea. The plasticote is a fantastic product (not meaning to advertise) It went on very even and smooth (just read the can!) Now that the facia and panel are painted Im thinking that I might paint the whole cabinet white and really go for that Japanese candy cab look.

Just the painted control panel so you can really see the colour difference

Both now painted. Look at that brightness, the marquee is just temporary, trying to get a feel for the artwork!

shardian · « **Reply #15 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:18:22 am »

With you being overseas, I have no idea where to tell you to look. If you have a large home improvement store, you can probably find some stock there. I have found sheetmetal at Lowes here in the states. You can also look up some local metal fabrication shops, or automobile body work shops. They might have some scrap they will just give you. Better yet, you could probably talk a body shop into cutting you out a hand traced pattern with either a plasma cutter or metal shears once you told them the cool project you are working on.

polaris · « **Reply #16 on:** May 25, 2007, 07:48:27 pm »

b+q do some sheet metals, bastard expensive tho.
where are you,FYI i know for a place in cardiff, cost me £25 for a 2mm thick 1metre by 2 metre sheet , checker plate was about £55 a sheet.

CountZero · « **Reply #17 on:** May 28, 2007, 08:14:54 am »

done a rough fit on mine with thick cardboard (about 1.2mm) and once in place its surprisingly rigid, so i'm thinking if i get one of the 0.4mm plates from work and double it up it might not be too bad. not overly fussed about hiding the bolts to hold it in place at this stage, perhaps at a later date once i have it mostly configured and working just so.

currently trying to hack apart the Logitech S200 speakers i have on my shelf to add to the cabinet, can hopefully be wired into the redundant power supply sat behind the monitor, definately give a better sound than the crackly original ones

waveryder · « **Reply #18 on:** May 29, 2007, 07:46:50 am »

Still banging my head against a brick wall with the control panel!! Just started spraying the monitor bezel and the clips for the facia.
Countzero as far as the sound is concerned I purchased a cheap 2.1 soundsystem (£20) and just used the subwoofer to interface the original speakers. the sound is pretty good nice and bassy no hiss or crackle. I will have to put down so vibration pads on the coin door though. Givin BAD VIBRATIONS!!! Countzero does your cab have the coin mech? Mine wasnt in there just the bill validator. Was hopeing to buy one but I need model numbers. You got em?

Just seen that you have exactly the same cab as me. Even bought from the same dodgy people! Would love to see some pics of what youve done to yours so far.

CountZero · « **Reply #19 on:** May 29, 2007, 03:55:59 pm »

yup, mine had the coin mech, but all stripped out now. most bits got junked as we had a skip at the weekend but still got mech itself (all the coin chute metalwork is gone tho) if you want it y'can have it for the postage cost, it'll just gather dust otherwise.

after stripping speakers apart, i decided to stop trying to re-invent the wheel and just wired them into what was feeding that odd little PSU (now removed). so 2 main speakers now up behind the grills (one grill lifts out so you can tweak volume/bass etc.) and the subwoofer is sat where the cash box used to be.

i'm now in the middle of placing 2xUSB sockets in the blanked coin return door so i don't have to open her up every time i need a keyboard and mouse, and i've added a switch where the coin reject was which i'll wire to the PC's power button.

i'll try and sort some pics if i remember, very much liking the look of yours painted, might consider that myself once its working how i want it to.
made the mistake of getting the PC set almost how i want it, so now i keep getting distracted with a bit of gameplay instead of working on it

waveryder · « **Reply #20 on:** May 30, 2007, 03:40:50 am »

Countzero check your pm re: coinmech.

Finished spraying the cabinet front came out pretty well I think.

NO DADA MINE!!

I hooked up the speakers and connected the touchscreen to have a play, put the jukebox on and now my wife & two year old have taken over the cabinet! The touchscreen has turned out to be such a bonus. I didnt really think it would turn out to be as much fun as it did. Anyway, now the paintings done im gonna start some serious work on the control panel, had an idea to replace the metal CP with MDF and plexi. It could work if I route out maybe 2mm around each button to allow for the clip I could still use the sanwa snapins. After playing with the jukebox the wife is already talking about translucent and led buttons, they are easy to mount in mdf, so maybe that would be the way to go. Suggestions?

shardian · « **Reply #21 on:** May 30, 2007, 08:29:24 am »

I think the red and white on that machine looks pretty sweet. Are you going to leave it like that now, or go ahead and do the whole thing white?

Kaytrim · « **Reply #22 on:** May 30, 2007, 09:33:49 am »

If the wife says so go with the full bling effect man. Translucent buttons all the way.

The more you can get her buy in the better off you will be.

TTFN

Kaytrim

CountZero · « **Reply #23 on:** May 30, 2007, 11:56:24 am »

seems we run similar jukes, here's a coupla pics to show you my cp so far, got to site at least 3 more buttons, and i think the 1 & 2 player buttons will move to the panel above the cp

Crowquill · « **Reply #24 on:** May 30, 2007, 01:39:12 pm »

Very nice. It looked a bit cheap in the first picture as the color's a bit off. Red and silver definitely looks better than red-orange and bronze. The white turned out really nice. Looks very clean against the red.
I'd say the touchscreen is definitely a bonus.

waveryder · « **Reply #25 on:** June 07, 2007, 02:04:03 pm »

Im waiting for the materials to be delivered to make my control panel. So in the mean time i'd thought id take KAYTRIM's advice and start "blinging" Betty up for the missus. I bought a cheap LCD off ebay (£12 what a steal!!!!) to cover the whole left by the bill validator. I mounted it on PCB feet behind the fascia to hold it secure and remade the cover plate out of 2mm perspex.

It came out quite nice although already im thinking about getting some flat carrage bolts for it! The LCD is running LCD smartie, which is a great piece of kit and a simple to use. Set the LCD to show the visualization of my jukebox in realtime, Chews the cpu a bit but totally worth it. Going to change to NORDBEATS JUKEBOX at some point as it is so much better than the buggy jukebox prog ive been using. Gonna have to wait a month or too though as its $40. Added the neons to the inside of the cab to give you a clue as to where im going with the CP. Just waiting on my sound reactive unit to show up and then party time!!!! The missus is well pleased. At this rate she might let me buy cab number 3

The LCD is a bugger to photograph! did the best I could

A couple of darker shots for you.

Kaytrim · « **Reply #26 on:** June 07, 2007, 02:18:57 pm »

There you go.

Nice way to convert the bill acceptor hole. The way you are going it is going to be one cool JB it that is all you are going to use it for.

TTFN

Kaytrim

waveryder · « **Reply #27 on:** June 11, 2007, 04:02:41 am »

Still waiting for parts to be delivered

In the meantime ive started messing with LCD smartie a bit more to see if I can find anyway of getting mame or mamewah to interface with it. As my LCD is parrallel port and not serial Frontend LCD support is rubbish in frontends!!! (so Buyers beware) Gonna order the pushbuttons soon by need to find a good UK supplier. Anyone know a supplier of translucent buttons and balltops?

1cal · « **Reply #28 on:** June 11, 2007, 05:18:25 am »

Quote from: waveryder on June 11, 2007, 04:02:41 am

Anyone know a supplier of translucent buttons and balltops?

Gremlin Solutions in the UK have balltops and translucent buttons and have always given me very good service http://www.gremlinsolutions.co.uk/arcadebuttons.php

Otherwise Groovy Game Gear in the US have a nice selection http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/

However you will get stuffed for 17.5% VAT and a GBP 8.00 administration fee by HM Revenue and Customs. Ouch!

Kaytrim · « **Reply #29 on:** June 11, 2007, 10:09:27 am »

Quote from: 1cal on June 11, 2007, 05:18:25 am

Otherwise Groovy Game Gear in the US have a nice selection http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/

GGG has the best for bling. Look over their Electric Ice buttons and trackball. These have RGB LEDs when combined with their LEDWiz controller gives you the full rainbow of color options.

TTFN

Kaytrim

waveryder · « **Reply #30 on:** June 15, 2007, 01:38:11 pm »

Got my control panel materials today and got straight to work! I used 2mm and 12mm perspex sheeting to construct the control panel. The 12mm panel slots below into the groove that is built into the chasis and the 2mm lays over the top. It is a hell of a lot stronger than the metal panel that was originally in there. I used the snap trick to cut the plexi and shaped it with the old dremel. Result: A PERFECT FLUSH FIT! Sprayed the 12mm layer vith clear laquer so it would reflect the neon light a little better combined with a bit of opaque control panel art it should glow quite well. Added a sound reactive circuit to the neons below the panel and marquee so it bumps along with the music. I would have included a picture but each shot of the plexi I took comes out invisible.

waveryder · « **Reply #31 on:** June 26, 2007, 06:48:48 am »

Got my buttons and joysticks today from gremlin solutions. They were out of stock of translucent blue buttons so I changed my order to clear buttons. They were very apologetic about the buttons. When the delivery arrived this morning they had included 2 CLEAR BALLTOPS and a Button wrench for FREE as way of an apology. Fantastic!! Great company gremlin solutions. Very good for those of us in the UK that have problems getting parts without hassle from HM Revenue and Customs. Thanks for the advice "1cal"

Gonna start drilling and routing the panel to get the controls in this weekend. Just gotta find a supplier for LEDwiz in the UK. Also dont wanna start a massive debate but has anyone noticed any difference usind a Keywiz over an ipac2? Used an ipac v1 in my neverland cab and thought maybe I should try something new. What do ya think?

stuckpixel · « **Reply #32 on:** June 26, 2007, 03:34:21 pm »

biggest difference is that the ipac emulates a keyboard, where as the keywiz emulates gamepads.

That being said I haven't really witnessed much a difference, because I've only used an IPAC before. I will be using one of each in both projects that I have underway here so I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks.. =P

I'd probably say just go IPAC though, easier to get in the UK, and the one I've used I had no problems with.

shardian · « **Reply #33 on:** June 26, 2007, 03:41:28 pm »

Quote from: stuckpixel on June 26, 2007, 03:34:21 pm

biggest difference is that the ipac emulates a keyboard, where as the keywiz emulates gamepads.

That being said I haven't really witnessed much a difference, because I've only used an IPAC before. I will be using one of each in both projects that I have underway here so I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks.. =P

I'd probably say just go IPAC though, easier to get in the UK, and the one I've used I had no problems with.

A keywiz is also a keyboard emulator. It is the gpwiz that emulates gamepads.

waveryder · « **Reply #34 on:** June 29, 2007, 08:04:20 am »

Still cant decide on what encoder to use so in the mean time I thought I'd post some pics my translucent CP.

I cut and shaped the plexi using a dremel on low speed to not damage the plexi. The CP is in two halves a 12mm base and a 2mm top. One shaped I marked and cut the button and joystick holes, again with the dremel. Once the holes were in I cut a 6.5 cm square for the joysticks to fit in and route a 2mm lip for them to fit flush with the 12mm section. This allows the top section to site completely flat as if the CP is one continuous piece of plastic. Despite the plexi sandwich I am not going to put any artwork on the CP to retain the whole "Bling Jukebox for the missus theme" (Actually I was ordered not too) Instead I covered it in some white vinyl "Fablon". This makes the CP have a solid look in bright light.

I used four carriage bolts (out of sight) to hold the panel in place. But left the Joystick bolts visible, I think it looks more authentic that way. The translucent buttons look great, as do the balltops

I have ordered some wide angle LED's to go into each button as a secondary light source but have a long delivery wait for those. The panel looks good and quite striking in bright light. But with a little less light and a bit of sound........

The whole CP glows. This is tied into my sound reactive circuit so the whole thing bumps along to music and sound effects. Sorry about the wobbley picture, the cameraman was drinking on the job

Hildy_42 · « **Reply #35 on:** June 29, 2007, 08:44:48 am »

That is awesome.

javeryh · « **Reply #36 on:** June 29, 2007, 09:35:47 am »

Are you kidding me? Holy bananas that is one of the coolest CPs I've ever seen. Super clean lines and totally elegant. "Strangely Attractive Betty" is slowly turning into "I love Betty so much I want to take it behind the middle school and get it pregnant." AWESOME job!!!

Kaytrim · « **Reply #37 on:** June 29, 2007, 09:50:58 am »

I am just amazed at the things you are doing to what was once an eyesore. Not is this going to be a conversation piece but is turning into a work of art.

Green Giant · « **Reply #38 on:** June 29, 2007, 10:07:00 am »

How are you bleeding the light through the plexi. Does it come through the "Fablon" stuff? Looks sweet

Kaytrim · « **Reply #39 on:** June 29, 2007, 10:46:58 am »

Quote from: Green Giant on June 29, 2007, 10:07:00 am

How are you bleeding the light through the plexi. Does it come through the "Fablon" stuff? Looks sweet

I did a quick google on Fablon and what I found out is that the stuff is basically a window treatment used for privacy. It gives the plexi a frosted look but it allows the light from below to pass through. I am sure you can find something similar here in the states.


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Author Topic: "Bubble Gum Betty" Projects End!! (Updated 10/03/08) (Read 53518 times)