Shecky's Arcade

[Shecky]

I have been putting off creating a project thread for the fear of never completing it, but after all the money I just put into this project last weekend I better finish it. So the thread begins.

History:
I bought Saint's book back on Oct. 20th, 2008. I made my first cut April 10th, 2010. The reason for my delay was that I didn't want to keep my cabinet in the garage with the Florida heat. My house is too small and my tiny 1 golf cart garage is the only place it would fit. So I decided to put it off and wait. In the mean time we had a baby girl and a long list of house repairs. To subside my arcade/retro cravings I started playing Megaman 9 (Xbox 360) and to my surprise my daughter LOVED the game. Every day after work when I got home she would say over and over “Megaman”. Then she would sit in my lap and say what she saw. “Climb, up, down, jump, puppy, blue, hat, two spiders, water”…..etc.  We did this for weeks.  All the new games never held her interest, but the retro games she loved. So in the sake of developing my daughter’s vocabulary, mathematics, and eye-hand coordination (what I told the wife); I decided it was go time for the cabinet.  I also knew with the way the market was/is we wouldn’t be moving or adding on anytime soon. So it began, with a heavy sigh from the wife and a mumble “that thing is staying out in the garage”.

Current Status (5-31-10)
I have cut and assembled the shell of the cabinet. I just ordered my Arcade monitor, (2) joysticks, buttons, spinner, trackball….etc.  I will put up a more detail list when my stuff comes in. As of today my cabinet inspiration is Gamester’s fine quality work.  ( I have changed my mind about 325 times so far on the design) He has been a great sport and answering my nooby questions via private messages. I need to pace myself with the questions so he doesn’t get sick of me. 

That was a quick intro of me and project status. I am going to go pull my pictures and start posting them.  I can’t wait to get this cabinet finished!!!!

[TPA5]

Looking forward to seeing some pics!

[Shecky]

Here is a quick catch up on my build to date.


Saints book + good planning = Successes (Hopefully)


Safety First. I hope I used the correct mask while cutting/sanding MDF.


You can never have enough clamps.


It took me forever to plan out all my cuts and then double check them. I finally got up enough courage to make my first cut. Half way through it I felt confident that this cut was dead on straight. I had my mask on, my clamps down tight and I even made a little self to catch the piece I was cutting. I finished strong by cutting all the way through and I was happy with myself. Then I looked down and saw my cut was one inch off the line i made. I was pissed and confused. I just got my new hand saw and never used it before. There was (2) notches and I picked the wrong one to use to make my cut. A lesson to all noobs with tools. Always Practice on a piece of scrap wood first.

Ok, Got to go start lunch for the family. Will continue later.

[Shecky]

So I messed up my first cut which turned out to be the foundation to my cabinet; the cabinet base. So I had to go out to the store and buy another sheet of heavy Cuss MDF. Since I had so much scrap I decided to double up my cabinet base since it does carry all the weight and transfer it to the casters. I glued the cuss out of the (2) ply's with liquid nails and screwed them together. I think it is stronger but now realize I have to bevel the edge so the t-molding will look nice.


I went with (4) fixed casters. I thought if any of the casters could rotate that if someone leaned on the cab from the side it would move.


Wow, this MDF is some heavy cussing material.  I had to call a friend up to help at this point. I was originally planning on the wife to help, not a chance.


I love clamps.


Angles and curves  are my Nemesis.


Saint said it but I will say it again. Make sure that your floor is level. All garages are pitched to allow water to drain out. For example if your water heater breaks in the night it will drain out the front of your garage instead of pooling up and going inside. I had to rotate my cabinet every time I needed to take a measurement.


I will be honest with you on this shot. I was totally surprised that it was leveled and was mentally prepaired to start all over if it was way off.


Looking good so far.


my first delivery of many.


The coin door fits!......after a alot of sanding. Is it normal to cough up blood after everytime you sand???

[Shecky]

Now my next step is to cut my control panel. This is when Gamester came in to help out. I now have a layout which I took to work and printed 24x36. My plan is to tape it down to my sheet of MDF and use a jigsaw to cut out the perimeter and then to cut out the button holes with a 1 1/8" Forstner bit on a power hand drill. I plan on backing the wood with scrap wood to reduce splitting and tearing. (Is this the best method?) I am not sure how to cut out the joysticks or the track ball. I plan on doing some research before I do those cuts. I am using Ultimarc 360's and electric Ice-T track ball from GGG.

I also picked up a paint spray gun and oil based primer tinted gray. I hope to achieve a finish like what Gamester was able to make.

[BobA]

I hope you are wearing a dust mask when cutting and sanding your MDF.   The dust is really bad for your lungs as it is more chemical than wood.   Thanks for sharing your project with us.

 

[Gamester]

Coming along nicely Shecky!

And don't be afraid to ask a lot of questions.  I had tons of help from the great people on this board.  I'm more than happy to 'pay it forward', as are many others around here...

[TPA5]

Looking good so far 

[Shecky]

Boba: Your 100% correct, MDF is some nasty stuff. I am using a mask; I was just joking about the blood. Now I just need something to protect me against my wife.

I hit a snag this morning and I need some advice, but let me catch you up to speed first.

Yesterday I received my U360's! I changed out the springs to the hard ones and I cut out my control panel top. THANKS to Gamester! I printed a template 24x36 to scale. I then cut it out and taped it down to my MDF. I am using 3/4" for the C.P. and plan to chamfer the edge like Mountain on his C.P.. I used my jig saw with a new fine cut blade and went to town. I cut slow and steady and gave myself a 1/16" buffer around the curve so I could sand it down nice and smooth. To make the chamfer I did not have the bit nor wanted to go out to buy it. I decided to use my belt sander to achieve this edge because I figure that no one will be able to see it since it is underneath. Time will tell me if this was a good idea. See pics below.










SO this morning I woke up early (6:30am) to knock out some work. I started on the C.P. bottom panel. Then I marked and cut the side panels. I had no idea on how high I should start the sides. I decided to start them just above the monitor shelf. See pics below. Is this right? I also went with a 1" pitch just like gamester. I am hoping that when he said 1" pitch that he means a 1 " drop for every 12 inches, not a total of 1" drop. When I put the sides up against the arcade panel I noticed a big gap..... another not so perfect piece.











Now for my mistake. I then started to glue the sides down to the bottom of the C.P.. I wanted to apply some pressure to the sides so I put the top of the C.P. on. This is when I noticed it. For the bottom of the C.P. I used Saint's dimensions. Which is 30" wide by 14" deep. The C.P. is not going to be wide enough to house my controls. See Pics below. I could squeeze P1 and P2 closer to make it work or start over. What do you guys think?   

[drventure]

Just from looking at the template pics, it looks like you'd be safe squeezing p1 and p2 a little closer together. You've got plenty of space between them ,as far as I can see.

As for the not fitting, I made the same mistake with some buttons on the second level of my cp 

And I drilled the holes +through the formica+ before I realized it   

Ah well, That's what button plugs are for