The Web - VirtUal Pinball eXTreme

[Ond]

Looks really nice. I wish I had access to a 3D printer but if I bought one I know I'd only use it a couple of times a year, if that.  It looks like it provides options for things that would be too difficult to make by hand. Opens up a lot of possibilities.

Thanks, for a long time I did without a 3D printer in this hobby. I guess I have made a few things by hand which I could have 3D printed more easily. I regard them as a tool, not as a hobby in and of themselves with one caveat, you need to have 3D design skills to truly use them as as a tool. I’ve got a long list of projects (in other craft hobby areas) that include 3D printed elements. I may move into resin printing eventually, maybe.

So before looking at the latest build progress, I just wanted to check my design reference for work so far completed. My reference is always the original back-glass artwork from the PC game:

So far, I’ve reproduced the drawn speaker grill area in 3D and I'm using a cut-out window to reveal the DMD on screen. In theory I should be able to play other tables and adapt the back-glass art work to the physical layout. They all have similar speaker/DMD/back glass artwork configurations. I may need to tweak some back-glass files for games that don’t quite fit:

I painted the rest of the back box today, final primer coat and one coat only (in multiple passes) of black:

Second coat of primer on the main cabinet, one to go:

I’m using these 3D printed inserts in all the button holes on the cabinet:

The reason for these is my choice of buttons.  They are these cheap illuminated buttons sold in the shop I work in.  I have boxes full of unused quality Japanese (Seimitsu and Sanwa) as well as Happ buttons I could use, but I really wanted to use these illuminated buttons in this case. They have this raised edge which is meant to fit into a plastic ring which sits between the cabinet panel and the button. I hated the ring thingies, so threw I them away  :

The buttons fit into the inserts perfectly:

Next post will be of the completed back-box with monitor installed and lit!