thinking of starting from scratch

[tony.silveira]

hey guys,

i've been modding my machine for years and i'm starting to get the itch to start from scratch, build a machine custome to what i want.  i have the woodworking skills but did i have a question on the material.

anytime that i have cut into my arcade machine, the laminate seems to chip.  not even sure if it's technically "laminate" but i think ou guys know what i mean.

now i would rather buy the sheets of wood already laminated instead of laminating myself but was curious on the best way to cut is without chipping.  also, exactly what kind of wood/laminate are machines made out of?

fyi, i would want to go with black.

thanks for any input you all might have

[compute]

In the wild I've seen games made of particleboard or plywood.  MDF seems to be the preferred material for builders, though.

WARNING:  I have not worked with laminate, so anything beyond here is what I've picked up from lurking.

 As far as cutting laminate, I've heard that if you "sandwich" it between two pieces of wood and cut slowly it will not chip.  Since you're talking about wood with laminate already applied, I guess that means you would clamp an other piece of wood on top to create the "sandwich."   I think you also need like a trim blade, something with a lot of small teeth.

[Unstupid]

I use stuff called duramine.  They sell it on what they call combicore, which is a layer of melamine-mdf-plywood-mdf-melamine.  Check with your specialty plywood store (not home depot).  To avoid chipping cut it with a router.

[alfonzotan]

Laminating is really easy.  All you need is contact cement and a router with a flush trim bit.  If you live anywhere near a WilsonArt distributor, you can get the actual laminate material for about half the price Lowes/Home Depot would charge you.  I'd definitely recommend laminating as a last step (and one that covers up a lot of prior mistakes) vs. having to baby melamine board all the way through a build.

Here's a great tutorial on laminating for arcade projects:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=101315.0

[Sparkolicious]

Down-stroke Jigsaw blade is what you need for cutting laminated surfaces.

[Sparkolicious]

http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware-Power-Tool-Accessories-Saw-Blades-Jigsaw-Blades/h_d1/N-5yc1vZc2je/R-202550687/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051

[Unstupid]

Down-stroke Jigsaw blade is what you need for cutting laminated surfaces.

Although it isn't going to do you any good is you have laminate/melamine on both sides! 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Router is what you need for cutting laminated surfaces.

FTFY   

[Sparkolicious]

Down-stroke Jigsaw blade is what you need for cutting laminated surfaces.

Although it isn't going to do you any good is you have laminate/melamine on both sides! 

true enough