CP attaching graphics then drilling - good idea?

[jpresto]

I'm going the NorthCoast and Mame Marquees route for my cabinet, with a tweaked 2-player CP layout.

Since I'll be adjusting the position of some items, i'm a bit worried about the alignment of the physical holes being off from my graphic. I was thinking of ordering a blank panel, attaching the CP graphic and then drilling the holes myself. Is this a practical approach?

Thanks in advance - Joe

[Dazz]

You could do that...  You'll have to be extra careful as the adhesive will stick to the drill bit and it will just tear the artwork.  I tried adding an additional button on my old control panel after the artwork was added.  Using a spade-bit through the top side of the artwork and it tore the artwork around the button hole.  Thankfully the tear wasn't wasn't too bad and I was able to fix it for the most part, but it was still noticeable after the button was put into place.

[Ginsu Victim]

Wrong forum.

[jpresto]

I noticed after submitting, sorry.. and first post to boot.

The plan would be to use another piece of wood with a hole predrilled, clamp on top of where i'd be drilling in the hopes of preventing tears. Of course if this doesn't work the fix would be a bit expensive.

Has anyone used this approach? If not, what was the trick to getting a template perfect against a custom mamerooms panel design?

[Veeb0rg]

If your using a standard holesaw blade, just drill a bit in reverse to cut the CP overlay and the flip to forward and cut the wood.

[Malenko]

Id photocopy the art tape and drill

[Ginsu Victim]

Clamp your artwork to the cp. Use an ice pick or similar item to tap the centers of every hole to make a guide showing where to drill. Remove the art and drill. Attach the cpo and use an exacto knife to cut your holes.