Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: elfman12 on December 22, 2002, 10:41:14 pm
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Has anyone here used the Happ marquee retainer to hold the plexi/lexan/glass in front of their monitor? I am thinking of doing that, and was curious if people had problems with it, maybe rattling or not being as secure as it could be.
To expand on that, what methods have you all used? Any particularly easy ways? I would like to be able to remove it from time to time, to update the instruction graphics on either side of the monitor, etc.
Thanks for any suggestions!
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What I've done on the cabs I've built is to get a piece of 1" x 3/4" (I think) aluminum angle from a hardware store, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc. It normally comes in about a 3' length, so just cut it to the width of your marquee with a hacksaw or something. Drill a couple of screw holes and spray paint it whatever color you want.
It's cheaper than going the Happ route, and looks a bit more authentic IMO. Many of the old classics had metal retainers, and it just looks really sharp I think.
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Well, here's what I did.....please don't laugh as it's pretty "amatuerish": I just bought some quarter round baseboard wood from Home Depot. I painted it black and used 3 black screws on each side. The screws go thru the quarter round, thru the plexi into the 1/2 inch blocks used hold the glass in place. I'm happy with the results looks-wise, and it's only 6 screws to remove to get in and clean the dust off the tv screen(which I've done twice in the year since it's been completed).
Works for me...just my 2 cents....
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Has anyone here used the Happ marquee retainer to hold the plexi/lexan/glass in front of their monitor?
Yep, that's exactly what I did. I had enough material after taking care of the marquee so I figured 'what the heck' and gave it a shot. I was going to use it at the top and bottom of the monitor frame, but since I went with tempered glass over the bezel I decided to use two metal mirror supports at the bottom for strength (these are hidden by the CP anyway). At the top though, it finishes things off nicely (and securely). It's held in place by three small screws so it can be removed and replaced quickly.
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What I've done on the cabs I've built is to get a piece of 1" x 3/4" (I think) aluminum angle from a hardware store, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc. It normally comes in about a 3' length, so just cut it to the width of your marquee with a hacksaw or something. Drill a couple of screw holes and spray paint it whatever color you want.
It's cheaper than going the Happ route, and looks a bit more authentic IMO. Many of the old classics had metal retainers, and it just looks really sharp I think.
I guess if I had read more carefully, I would have saw that you were asking about the monitor glass... :)
Anyway, the Happ retainer should work just fine. It depends on your cab design, but a lot of jamma cabs had a metal retainer attached to the back of the CP that held the glass in place. On the top side, the glass extends to up beyond the marquee speaker board, so it was held tightly in place without using any additional retainers.
So the only thing you need to do to remove the monitor glass is to release the CP clamps through the coin door, flip the CP up, and then pull the glass out. Very simple design without removing any screws. My explanation may not be very clear if you aren't familar with this design, so if you would like a diagram, just let me know and I can sketch it up.
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I too used 1/4" quarter round and mitered the corners for a picture frame type look and just painted it flat black but I may just go with Oscars idea and get some small aluminum angle strips with some nice black hex head screws to finish it off.
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I guess if I had read more carefully, I would have saw that you were asking about the monitor glass... :)
...My explanation may not be very clear if you aren't familar with this design, so if you would like a diagram, just let me know and I can sketch it up.
Yeah, I was working on that part of the cab tonight, and needed ideas. It helped getting a clarification from you all.
Based on my setup, I decided to do the following: I attached a 1X2 onto the cab below the monitor area, but behind when the CP fits. I notched it on the table saw about 1/2", and the lexan will snug down into that. At the top, above the monitor in the top right and top left, I'm going to get a 1" dowel rod and cut two 1" pieces (for spacers/posts). I'll take those and glue them on, then put screw holes in the lexan and attach them that way. (Hey, it helps to type this out - it makes me think about it before I do it! :))
What would be a good type of screw to hold through that? Something with a big ole' head, but non-obtrusive... (the cab's black).
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I used a vanity mirror clip at the bottom of my monitor lexan. You see these at the bottom of most bathroom mirrors, the metal strip that runs across. It came in a 6 foot length, so I just cut it down. I still need to paint it, right now it's bare aluminum. So that holds the mirror from the bottom.
For the top, I got some window screen clips, and screwed 3 of them into a strip of 1x1 across the back edge of the speaker panel, where the top of the lexan meets. This way I just swing them down to secure the lexan, or flip them up to remove the glass for cleaning. Super easy!