ran into a problem need some input

[clickhea]

iam following jeffs arcade cabinet plans.. which now i kinda regret because iam finding alot of things i dont like along the way.

iam trying to design my control panel, and i just realized the slope i cut into the frame for the control panel is 3 inches!

a 3 inch slope!!

heres a mock up when looking at my arcade from the side with exact measurements from the floor
(no control panel yet, just the angle)




so now my question is should i try and cut the angle down to make it flat? and then when building the control panel angle the panel an inch?   

or

should i cut 2 inches off the angle, leaving a 1 inch slope and just lay the control panel on that.

my concern is the height of the control panel from the floor in the end result

[clickhea]

i just want to add that, i really dont want much of an angle i think closer to flat is the most comfortable for your wrists.

[clickhea]

i just realized somthing after posting this


iam gonna want the panel to be around 38" off the floor

which means cutting the cabinet is the wrong option, i need to build the front up to be somewhat level

if i make the front of my control panel taller than the back so it comes level is this going to look weird?

[vertygo]

The best thing suggestion I've seen on here is to make cardboard (or similar) mock up. Take the time to build a cardboard one, break it, wreck it whatever, then cut the CP once and be done

[clickhea]

well this is a problem with the cabinet

[vertygo]

make it to scale then  ?

[Havok]

I think what clickhea is saying is that it's too late - the ole measure twice cut once opportunity is gone... No worries, however, how about something like this:



The red part being the control panel...

[clickhea]

yeah thats pretty much what iam talking about havoc.. i took a pic so you guys can get a better idea



at the time i thought the slope would be fine since its my first cab, but now that iam up to the point where its time to measure out for the control panel i can tell its going to be way too much.


i was thinking about going your way havoc, do you think that would look retarded?

it may be my only way to fix this.


btw the pieces are dead even, iam taking the pic on an angle sitting on the floor so it looks off in the picture.

[Spaz Monkey]

What's the distance between the two measurement points?

[clickhea]

What's the distance between the two measurement points?

14 inches

[Spaz Monkey]

That's about what my cab has.  Mine's a generic cab that looks like this http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=8813

[Havok]

i was thinking about going your way havoc, do you think that would look retarded?

Not at all - just make the control panel side the same color/finish as the cabinet, and most likely nobody will be the wiser. if you want to further disguise it, I would recommend doing a contrasting color for the top of the control panel, and especially the t-molding, as that will naturally draw the eye and attention away from the side. With the CP and side being the same color, they should blend to some degree. If that idea bugs you too much, you could always cut a piece to the correct angle, screw and glue it to the side, bondo it, then sand/paint, and then it will be like it never happened!

[clickhea]

i was also thinking of somthing like this

cut along dotted lines making the line somewhat straight, or leaving a 1 inch slope



then i could just make the control panel box sides 3 inches to bring it back up to 37

[Havok]

That could work too - just make sure it's not too low for you, and that when you build it up the control panel isn't too big looking. Here's a good place to do the cardboard mockup!

[clickhea]

yeah iam gonna mess with the cardboard tomororw

but i think iam gonna be better off going your way havoc

[Avrus]

I sloped the control panel box, not the cabinet.  It occured to me after so much work on the cabinet sides that if I screwed up the sloping I was going to seriously regret it.

Also, it's much easier to work with a small bit of wood on the control panel box, than the bigger side pieces.

 

[clickhea]

well its my first cabinet, i wasnt really thinking about that at the time although i shoulda

if i make another i'll know now ;[

[Avrus]

well its my first cabinet, i wasnt really thinking about that at the time although i shoulda

if i make another i'll know now ;[

My vote is to fix it with the control panel box, not continue to make adjustments to the cab sides.

[protokatie]

Drawing from a suggestion I made in another thread, you could always mount the whole thing (cabinet that is) on a wooden box to bring it up a few inches. Hell even make the wooden box a little wider to give a tiered look (like a baseboard).. As long as this doesnt lift the screen up too high that is...

[Neverending Project]

My first concern would be the complicated angles needed to make a sloped control panel. The bottom of the CP box would be sloped, but the top would be sloped also, if you want to keep a 1" slope on the panel. My second concern would be that if you want a panel with a height of about 38",  there will be no back to your box, since the panel surface itself will be 3/4". Put this on the 37 3/4", and you have 38 1/2".

Here is a little picture I drew up to show  you what I am talking about:


The horizontal dashed line shows the 1" slope you want to achieve, and the angled dashed line shows the CP box bottom, if it were 3/4". So I am not even sure you can fit a box in there with your desired height of 38".

[clickhea]

i see what your saying

so the only fix for that would be to cut the cabinet down a bit?

[Havok]

i see what your saying

so the only fix for that would be to cut the cabinet down a bit?

Just don't mount any controls near the edge of the control panel. Remember - your cabinet is hollow, all kinds of stuff should fit inside...

 

[clickhea]

alright well heres a question

normally how tall are the control box sides? 2 inches?  3 inches?  how much clearance are required for the parts once they are installed?

i'll see if i can go by this to make my decision

[Havok]

That depends on the controls. You could squeak by with 2" depending on what controls you have, but you may want to allow 3" just in case, especially if you plan on including a Tron like joystick...

[clickhea]

u360's
happ buttons
3 inch trackball
tornado 2 spinner


so normally the back would be 3 inches and the front 2?

[clickhea]

if i can cut the cab so that its 35 instead of 37 and leave the front 34 this may workout

iam thinking the router may be able to do this with a straight edge.. hmm

[clickhea]

let me see if i understand this correctly before i go routing my cabinet

if i were to even out the ledge making it an even 34 inches from the floor,  then i were to build a control panel with a 3/4 "bottom panel" 3 inch side panels and 3/4 top that would be about 4.5 inches high bringing me to   the needed 38-39 inches from the floor

is this correct? or am i not taking somthing into account

[clickhea]

yes?

sorry iam a little impatient i wanna get started on this control panel )

[clickhea]

alright well since no one wanted to respond, i went ahead and did it, i took a few pics with my camera phone along the way incase anyone in the future runs into a similiar problem, heres a fix for it.

1) first i drew a new angle. This new angle will be a 1" incline after it is cut. (going from 3" to 1")



2) I then cut as close to the line as possible without going over with my jigsaw



3)I then used a router with a 1/2 flush trim bit to clean up my edges



4)Final result: 1 inch incline.  from 34 inches on up to 35. i think this looks alot better.  After my control panel is mounted it will bring my joysticks around the 38-39 inches from the floor.

[Neverending Project]

Nicely done. See, ask enough questions without answers, and you find you can answer them yourself. 

So do you plan on building a level, rectangular CP box (with 90° corners) and then placing on the incline, resulting in your CP surface being slanted? Or are you going to keep the sides of the CP box vertical, resulting in angled cuts at the top and bottom edges?

Decisions, decisions...

[clickhea]

thanks

i think as of right now iam going to keep the control panel level, which will give me a 1 inch angle.

we shall see i guess

[Neverending Project]

alright well heres a question

normally how tall are the control box sides? 2 inches?  3 inches?  how much clearance are required for the parts once they are installed?

i'll see if i can go by this to make my decision

BTW, my CP box is 5", with a 3/4" panel on top. So the overall height is 5 3/4", and the inside of the box has 4 1/4", since the box bottom takes 3/4". This is the same size as the original CP box on the cabinet I am converting (pics here).

Before you commit to building a box that may be too small, check out the dimensions of the parts you are installing. And remember, if your box has a bottom, this must be accounted for in the amount of space available. Here are some links:
Ultimarc U360 (at the bottom)
Happ Trackball

A 3" tall box with a 3/4" bottom won't fit a Happ trackball.

[clickhea]

appreciate your input, yeah i have not started building my panel yet, iam waiting to get my parts from dm still so i can lay everything out before i start making cuts.

diddnt realize the trackblal required that much under room