Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: darktemp on November 02, 2004, 11:11:36 pm
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I know that questions about the advantages of glass over plexi and which level of tint should be used come up all too often, so I've been calling around hoping to get an answer on which tint of gray is best. I've found that some shops carry 1 type of smoked gray glass which they call "regular gray" (not real helpful), however some shops carry the regular gray along with "graylite". At first I would have assumed that the graylite was a lighter gray and wouldn't work, after doing some research however I found this:
"Graylite is unique among all tinted glass, offering a dark-gray, almost black appearance which provides excellent glare control, shading coefficient and ultraviolet screening. Available in two thicknesses:
Graylite #31 (31% light transmittance) is 1/8" thick
Graylite #14 (14% light transmittance) is 1/4" thick "
I had been calling around looking for a tint with a light transmittance around 20% as RandyT suggested but nobody had that information. So I ask, is 1/4" graylite at 14% VLT the best glass to use or is it too dark?
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Darktemp, It's been a long time since you posted about the glass for your cabinet. What did you finally do? I'm ready to get glass for mine, but there are no recent posts about this. Thanks!
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Looking at his profile, he hasn't been active since the 11th of January.
Personally, I went with #14, and I love it.
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Wow, I can't believe that I made this post in 2004 and it happened to be on the front page during a quick site visit. I haven't posted here since I finished my cab back in the summer of 2005 (turned out great) but I have been meaning to make a project page with before and after pictures as a thanks to all the great advice I received here.
To answer your question, without a doubt go with graylite #14. It's 1/4" thick and turned out perfect. I made a post somewhere recommending it but I'm sure it's buried in another glass topic. The greylite ups the color contrast and decreases the brightness of my 27" tv I squeezed into my cab enough to make it tolerable from 12" away and hides all the black cloth I used to mask the screen. To borrow someone elses description the screen just floats there in both horiz and vertical modes and looks amazing when it's running through various attract modes.
I called around and found it for around $30 for a ~25"x25" piece. HIGHLY recommended.
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OK, now I'm really stumped! Everyone here keeps throwing around "Graylite 14" as THE GLASS to get, but I've called over half a dozen glass stores in my area and none of them have ever heard of graylite 14!!! They all say that they can order tempered gray glass from a factory (apparently because tempered glass can't be cut once it's tempered!) But how do I know if their gray glass is worth it? Has anyone from NY ever purchased Graylite 14? Can someone give me the name of a store that they used so i can call them, get more info on Graylite 14, then inform my local glass stores as to what the heel i want?!? I'm a bit frustrated right now, sorry for the caps and exclamation points. Thanks!
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I would love to know this as well
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Ok, I have found 2 glass stores in my area that know what Graylite 14 glass is. Apparently, there are only 2 shades of gray glass: (NOTE: What follows is all MY OWN UNDERSTANDING of glass, don't take it as fact!)
1) "gray glass" has a slight gray tint to it, but you can basically see right through it.
2) Graylite 14 or Dark Gray glass is extremely dark. Dark like tinted windows on a tricked out honda civic. I believe the 14 indicates that only 14% of light passes through it.
If you want the glass covering your cabinet's TV/Monitor to be pitch black when the cabinet is off, then you want graylite 14. If you want to see the picture tube when the cabinet is off, or if you want to see graphics, text on the bezel behind the glass, then just get clear glass. the regular "gray glass' just imparts a slight gray tone to everything which looks bad.
IMPORTANT NOTE : No matter what glass you get, always get TEMPERED or SAFETY GLASS! Regular glass breaks into many RAZOR SHARP pieces, while tempered glass breaks into small dull square pieces.
I'm still hoping that Darktemp will come back and let me know if he had to make adjustments to his TV's contrast, hue, color, or brightness to account for the dark glass over the picture tube. Darktemp???
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I just used "smoked" glass to cover the monitor with a layer of clear tempered glass covering the entire tabletop (I built a cocktail). The "smoked" glass makes the games really pop and when it's off you can barely tell there is a monitor under there... I love it. There is a great comparison here: http://www.oscarcontrols.com/smoked/ that convinced me.
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Javeryh, I visited that oscar controls page nearly two years ago then forgot about it. Thanks for bringing it up! One question for you. Did you buy smoked glass, or smoked plexiglass (like oscar did)? At the place you bought it, were there darker or lighter smoked tints available? I'm curious because as i stated previously, i was toldthat there are only 2 gray tinted glass products. i want to be sure i have all of the info. thanks!
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I used smoked glass (Oscar used plexi for his comparison). There were only two choices for smoked glass according to my local glass shop - gray and bronze. The bronze was really yellow-looking so the choice was easy. I'm really pleased with how it came out. I never heard of graylite 14...
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One thing to add on tempered glass....
yes it breaks into small pieces....and is ALOT safer than regular glass
but the pieces are not necessarily dull...they will still cut you
just use the same caution you would with regular glass when cleaning up broken tempered glass.
:cheers:
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Great topic, as I was just trying to figure out how to do this. Thanks.
Anyone have a thought, or are maybe using, gray glass on an LCD monitor? I have a compact cabinet and use an lcd.
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Great topic, as I was just trying to figure out how to do this. Thanks.
Anyone have a thought, or are maybe using, gray glass on an LCD monitor? I have a compact cabinet and use an lcd.
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Great topic, as I was just trying to figure out how to do this. Thanks.
Anyone have a thought, or are maybe using, gray glass on an LCD monitor? I have a compact cabinet and use an lcd.
yeah, I have a compact cab with LCD, too. I'd be interested in hearing what advantages (in any) smoked plexi/glass has on an LCD screen. Seems like it would just make it darker.
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Okay, it's been a few weeks, but I finally got a sample 12" x 12" piece of Graylite 14 tempered glass and did some testing. It definetly cuts the brightness down, but a little fiddling with my ATI video card's control panel app, and my TV's settings seemed to remedy the situation. Since I could only cover 1 square foot of my TV screen (it's 27" screen) i had to cover the other parts with paper to avoid the striking contrast. I decided to buy the glass and ordered the 25 7/8" x 25" piece I need. The cost? $111 !!!!!!! That's almost twice what I thought it would be, but apparently, proces have gone up due to energy and fuel costs! Anyway, I'll followup with my impressions once it is delivered (1 - 2 weeks) and I install it.
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As a guy in the glass business you should go with regular 1/4 or 3/16 grey glass, no need to get all fancy when you "should" be paying around $40.00 for that size glass.
Just like anything else a company will charge you as much as they can get dealing with a costomer who has no idea how things should be.
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where exactly do you get Graylite #14 ??Does homedepot or Lowes carry it??
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I don't think HD or Lowes carries it. I got my graylite 14 for $30. I called around 15 glass places in the phonebook and the prices ranged from 30-100+, definately call around.
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I just ordered a 26"x26.5" piece of Graylite 14 for $65.12 (tempered and polished). I will post in a couple of days when it comes in to let you know how it looks.
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Just currious,
Anyone try polorized glass? Or a polorized glass laminate?
I would think that would have the same - if not better effect?
Reducing glow and reflections.
Im also wondering if thats what some of the classics actually used.
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Wow! The glass came in only 2 days after ordering it and it looks fantastic. It really brings out the colors in the games. It was totally worth the money, in fact it probably would have been worth twice as much! It simply looks great!
The picture doesn't do it justice, it was hard to get a good focus on the shiny material.
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Hey Dave how did you attach your Graylite Glass?
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Also do they sell this stuff online or would it be cheaper to try to find it locally?
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Also do they sell this stuff online or would it be cheaper to try to find it locally?
I would try to find a glass place locally. They should be pretty easy to find. Get multiple quotes. I found the prices varied quite a bit from place to place. The place I ended up with actually had the fastest delivery time as well as the best price.
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I'm actually using Graylite 14 on the CT project I'm just finishing up. Only 1 shop I went to in the ara actually ahd a sample of it, but I had a piece of tinted plexi from a Midway monitor bexel that I used as a sample. I haven't gotten my glass yet, but I know it's going to look fantastic.
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Hey guys I didn't see how you attached the glass to the cabniet. Did you guys just lean it up against the monitor bezel. That is what I am trying to figure out. if you used screws what do the screws screw into. Got any pics or info how to do it?
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rdowdy: one thing you can do is put glass hinges on it: http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=132 and drill a 1/4" hole in blocks of wood to mount it, swinging upwards. It would leave a small gap on the sides, but that can be covered with some trim or something.
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I just leaned it up against the monitor bezel and it is holding just fine. Just to be safe I just picked up a clear plastic corner protector (the kind used to project drywall walls). I plan to mount this on the bottom of the glass to hold it in place. It doesn't really seem to be needed, but it is just for a piece of mind.
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I'm sure this is a stupid question but if I already have tempered glass (I think it's tempered, it's the original glass in a Konami cabinet), how do I get it tinted? Just use the film at an auto parts store or take it to a glass shop, or can it be tinted well after it's already tempered?
--Chris
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I was tempted to do just that with my cocktail, but the original glass had a few too many chips in the edges. I can't see any reason why that wouldn't work though.
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I'm sure this is a stupid question but if I already have tempered glass (I think it's tempered, it's the original glass in a Konami cabinet), how do I get it tinted? Just use the film at an auto parts store or take it to a glass shop, or can it be tinted well after it's already tempered?
--Chris
Yes. Automotive tint works well. I did this because I wanted to use an original glass bezel that had clear glass. 35% for a medium tint, 20% for darker. I did mine at 35%, and I'm going to redo it at 20% so it completely hides the monitor surround.
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I USED 1/4" GRAYLITE #14 AND IT LOOKS GREAT. I HAVE USED MARQUEE RETAINERS AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM AND HAVE A NICE FIT ON EITHER SIDE FOR A CLEAN FINISHED LOOK. MY GLASS HAD A REFLECTIVE SIDE ON ONE SIDE, WHICH I FACED TOWARDS MY MONITOR.
JOHN