Project Complete - 4 player Global VR style showcase gun cab - TopJimmyCooks

[TopJimmyCooks]

[SEE FINAL PICS IN POST 56-http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,134166.msg1410968.html#msg1410968]

/begin thread:
I have been working on and restoring pinball machines for the last year and haven't posted any Mame project stuff.  I picked up a commission from a pinball pal to build a nice 4 player + guns cab.  (no, I'm not accepting commissions, this is a special case, so calm down.)

I want to check on a few things with the board before I drop all the orders:

Display.  is there any reason not to use an inexpensive 37" big box 1080P LCD TV for the display?  60hz refresh, ?ms.  this is a casual gaming rig- nobody's going for high score comps here.   We'll probably be running HLSL.  Any murderous lag times or other issues to avoid?

PC:  I was going to set up a core I3 or pentium II with 2 or 4 gb ram, and Mobo with intel onboard graphics, XP.  Will I be ok with ALL the CHD gun games available in Mame?  Area 51, etc?  will HLSL work without a video card, or if not what's a good baseline card?  Are there any gun games that work better with an emulator besides mame? 

Guns: is the aimtrak recoil solenoid worth it at ~30$ each?  at that size and at low voltage it doesn't seem like it would do a whole lot. 

Is there a decent pre-made plastic holster that goes nicely with the aimtrak pistols? 

What's the current thinking on the best 8 way trigger stick for Mach 3, GLoc, etc. type games?  I'm not good with the small one from ultimarc or a big tron-ish deal. 

Thanks for your info and opinions.  I don't think the client will have any problem with a few build pics going up here. 

[BadMouth]

Display.  is there any reason not to use an inexpensive 37" big box 1080P LCD TV for the display?  60hz refresh, ?ms.  this is a casual gaming rig- nobody's going for high score comps here.   We'll probably be running HLSL.  Any murderous lag times or other issues to avoid?

Might as well steer clear of the worst ones:
http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/input-lag
(I think there was a better chart linked somewhere, but I can't find it now)

37" is big.  I hope this is a showcase cab where you have some distance from it. 

PC:  I was going to set up a core I3 or pentium II with 2 or 4 gb ram, and Mobo with intel onboard graphics, XP.  Will I be ok with ALL the CHD gun games available in Mame?  Area 51, etc?  will HLSL work without a video card, or if not what's a good baseline card?  Are there any gun games that work better with an emulator besides mame? 

Pentium 2?!  CarnEvil is probably the most demanding one in MAME that will run on a reasonable system.  I've run it on a 2.8Ghz Athlon X2 with some sound skips.  3Ghz+ is more like it.  There are some positional gun games like Invasion that are more demanding, but they would require a pretty big jump in expense.  Throw in a reasonable video card and you could play the NAOMI ones using Demul 5.6 (one player anyway)

Guns: is the aimtrak recoil solenoid worth it at ~30$ each?  at that size and at low voltage it doesn't seem like it would do a whole lot. 

Haven't used them, but they take 24v, same as regular arcade guns.

[TopJimmyCooks]

37" is big.  I hope this is a showcase cab where you have some distance from it. 

We are leaning towards a showcase.  the original idea was something like dream home arcades but the difficulties with viewing distance have been conveyed.  Especially once the guns became part of the scope. 

PC:  I was going to set up a core I3 or pentium II with 2 or 4 gb ram, and Mobo with intel onboard graphics, XP.  Will I be ok with ALL the CHD gun games available in Mame?  Area 51, etc?  will HLSL work without a video card, or if not what's a good baseline card?  Are there any gun games that work better with an emulator besides mame? 

Pentium 2?!  CarnEvil is probably the most demanding one in MAME that will run on a reasonable system.  I've run it on a 2.8Ghz Athlon X2 with some sound skips.  3Ghz+ is more like it.  There are some positional gun games like Invasion that are more demanding, but they would require a pretty big jump in expense.  Throw in a reasonable video card and you could play the NAOMI ones using Demul 5.6 (one player anyway)

We are really trying to keep the thing easy to use/minimal tweaking and really want to stay in MAME rather than other emulators.  also, 2 player on the gun games that had 2 player is critical. 

what do we lose by not using Demul, gun game wise?  I'll do some looking at Demul - never have run it before. 

So would something like a core I3 3.1ghz turn the trick for carneval?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078

Still ok with no vid card if we stay with Mame?

Thanks for the input.

Aimtraks- should have read the fine print - I thought they were 12V powered. 

[kahlid74]

Display: As Badmouth said, don't skimp too much but yes, you can go cheaper LCD tv

Computer: i3 or i5 if you want the most bang for your buck with the least compatibility/performance issues

Video Card: You need a video card - http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,112257.0.html - so yeah, get a cheap GeForce GTX 260 or something.

Same as Badmouth, it's got to be a showcase otherwise it will be way to big and you'll be too close and it'll feel weird.  Trust me, I've seen that before.

[BadMouth]

So would something like a core I3 3.1ghz turn the trick for carneval?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078

I don't have any experience with the I3, but I would think it would outperform the Athlon X2's of equal or slower speeds that I've used.
MAME is optimized for Intel by default.  That one should be fine.

Demul Light gun games:

Ranger Mission
Confidential Mission
Extreme Hunting
Extreme Hunting 2
House of the Dead 2
Lupin the Third
Maze of the Kings
Sport Shooting USA (crashes after calibration for me)
Death Crimson OX

For XP, you'd have to stick with Demul 5.6
I forgot it had issues with going fullscreen.
Here's my workaround: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,108239.msg1148537.html#msg1148537
I'd understand if you just wanted to skip it rather than mess with this stuff and explain to them that only P1 works on certain games.
HOTD2 is pretty tempting despite the worst voice acting ever.

[TopJimmyCooks]

Compelling reason to go win 7 for a newer version of Demul?  I want to work with something that's well documented and well understood and that Badmouth has already written all the scripts for.   I tried to read the Demul faq but it's in russian. 

[Maximus]

You can't really get much better bang for your buck than a Sandybridge Celeron at 2.6ghz, $49 with free shipping, don't be fooled by the Celeron name, this ain't yer Grandma's Celeron. It's a 22nm processor with 2mb of L3 Cache. I use this in the Revolution cab.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116889

[BadMouth]

You can't really get much better bang for your buck than a Sandybridge Celeron at 2.6ghz, $49 with free shipping, don't be fooled by the Celeron name, this ain't yer Grandma's Celeron. It's a 22nm processor with 2mb of L3 Cache. I use this in the Revolution cab.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116889

Does it run CarnEvil without sound skips?

[Maximus]

no idea, I can give it a test and report back this evening.

[TopJimmyCooks]

Thanks for that Max, carnevil is definitely on the menu.   I put $120 in the budget for processor but I could sure use some back if it's not needed.  Nothing's been bought or fabbed and we're already well over budget.   

[thrasherx]

If you're still in the market for an inexpensive monitor, might I recommend a "TCL" brand LED LCD from Amazon.com?  I picked up a 39" for my cabinet.  Supposedly, they're using Samsung panels.  I paid around $329 for it. 

[BadMouth]

If you're still in the market for an inexpensive monitor, might I recommend a "TCL" brand LED LCD from Amazon.com?  I picked up a 39" for my cabinet.  Supposedly, they're using Samsung panels.  I paid around $329 for it.

Danger Will Robinson!!
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33199_7-57587317-221/game-mode-on-cnet-tests-tvs-for-input-lag/

Not sure if one model TCL is different from the next, but I'd check into the lag time before buying.

[TopJimmyCooks]

We're going to try an inexpensive panel - westinghouse.  I'll set it up and if it stinks I'll take it back to best buy and find something where the input lag has been tested.  I think it may be ok.  it has a game mode and does not do a lot of video processing onboard. 

Heres a poser:

any preference for XP64 or win 7 home 64?  I dont' really care, just want max compatibility with Demul/supermodel.

[BadMouth]

Compelling reason to go win 7 for a newer version of Demul?

Eh, depends on whether you're going to drop the money on a faster processor & video card.
Any version of Demul will be useless without at least a mid-grade video card.
You also mentioned wanting to run HLSL.  That requires a video card that supports it.
Supermodel requires a decent card.  Bart recommended a 460.  It's running on my driving cab with an old 8600GT.
I wouldn't go any lower.
 

It would be a shame to spend the money on Win7, but then find out that the processor & video card aren't up to the task anyway.
The only game I was excited about which was added after 5.6 was Metal Slug 6, but in all honesty it's just more of the same.

If I were doing this build and trying to keep costs down, I'd use an old copy of XP (if I had it) and spend the OS money on a faster processor and mid-grade NVidia video card so it could run the Taito Type X fighting games.(NVidia because some Radeon cards have issues that can't be fixed when it comes to the Taito Type X games)  The primary reason I'd focus on those is that most of them are widescreen and would utilize the whole screen.  Since they aren't being emulated, the required specs aren't that demanding.

If I weren't so worried about keeping costs down, I'd use Win7 and make sure the specs were good enough to run new pc games like Mortal Kombat Komplete, SSFIVAE, SFxTekken.  King of Fighters XIII is coming out soon (Taito Type X version already "out").  Again, utilizing all the real estate on that big hi-def widescreen.  I'm running MKK at 720p with all the video options turned to low and it still looks gorgeous to me.

[Maximus]

Thanks for that Max, carnevil is definitely on the menu.   I put $120 in the budget for processor but I could sure use some back if it's not needed.  Nothing's been bought or fabbed and we're already well over budget.

Forgot to do this last night. I just put a calendar event in my phone to do it tonight so I don't forget (the old brain cells dont fire too good in the evenings).

[TopJimmyCooks]

budget is not the primary concern.  I just want to make sure everything works without wasting capacity in one area or the other.  Sounds like Xp is the way to go.  The client doesn't care so much about fighting games but I would like to make sure as much widescreen stuff as possible runs for the reason you said.  We will be running a 650 or better vid card and I am definitely an nvidia man. 

I've got those type x games stashed somewhere, this will be a good time to check them out. 

looks like about $1500 worth of tasty pc and arcade components are getting ordered tonight    I'm stoked about the build because I rarely do stuff where the budget is so flexible.  This is going to be a mame rig to be proud of. 

[Maximus]

Tries to test carnevil but I don't have the chd. Sorry.

[TopJimmyCooks]

No prob' ordered a smoking set of PC parts yesterday.  However if it doesn't run carneval on max frame rate it is your fault.

Sent from my semaphore flags using Tapatalk 2

[BadMouth]

<--- doesn't think a 2.6Ghz processor has any chance of running CarnEvil full speed, nor Demul or Supermodel.

[TopJimmyCooks]

3.4 ghz ivy bridge
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116773

GTX 650 vid
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127701

Hopefully no trouble.  Can't RMA the processor but otherwise, if it doesn't cut the mustard it's going back.  Thoughts?  I know you're not a big intel guy. 

[kahlid74]

3.4 ghz ivy bridge
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116773

GTX 650 vid
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127701

Hopefully no trouble.  Can't RMA the processor but otherwise, if it doesn't cut the mustard it's going back.  Thoughts?  I know you're not a big intel guy.

You'll have no issue.

[BadMouth]

3.4 ghz ivy bridge
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116773

GTX 650 vid
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127701

Hopefully no trouble.  Can't RMA the processor but otherwise, if it doesn't cut the mustard it's going back.  Thoughts?  I know you're not a big intel guy.

Excellent choice. 
I don't think you'll have any issues running CarnEvil, Demul, or Supermodel.

I've used AMDs in all my builds because they were the best price for performance option at the time.
The next one (if I ever have the spare cash) will be more focused on performance and use an Intel.

Not sure if this will be an issue since you're using a newer video card, but I updated to the newest NVidia drivers and performance on Demul & MAME took a huge dive.  Reverted to an older driver and games are all running full speed again.  So if they don't run full speed, try some older video drivers.

[TopJimmyCooks]

Good info, I'll try the latest versions but will check out the earlier versions if any problems/lag/frame drop issues pop up.  I appreciate the help and I'm sure I'll need to lean on you guys more due to my inexperience with non-mame emulators. 

I'm normally super value conscious as well, but too chicken to stray from the intel borg.  Switchcade has a $30 recycled pc in it. However, the end user wanted to make sure the pc didn't hold the rig back in any way.   

[TopJimmyCooks]

Nothing juicy to picture yet but the pc is setup.  Runs everything nicely.  I've enjoyed seeing some stuff I've never seen before in Mame - like any 3D game. 

Hyperspin/emulators/art/videos are at 90%.  xml cleanup and custom genre wheel setup is at about 5%.  the controls and various remaining parts are all bought coming in gradually. 

Artwork is about 60% done.  will post some on this when it's done.  it's not a theme I would have chosen for myself but it's cool and turned out well.  all will be revealed. 

Intro video - soundtrack is 90% done.  Need to start on the vid part. 

Next post will have more visual appeal. 

[Nephasth]

Nothing juicy to picture yet but the pc is setup. 

Black Rose is juicy!

[TopJimmyCooks]

Unfortunately that juicyness belongs to my brother, just holding it until christmas.  I shopped it out and am currently playing the [insert euphemism for exuberant intercourse] out of it.

there might be enough info in that picture to tell what game is behind BR as well, mr. eagle eyes. 

[Nephasth]

there might be enough info in that picture to tell what game is behind BR as well, mr. eagle eyes.

Nope, my pin-fu is weak.

But I spy, with my little eye, a box of Cheez-its!

[thatpurplestuff]

Unfortunately that juicyness belongs to my brother, just holding it until christmas.  I shopped it out and am currently playing the [insert euphemism for exuberant intercourse] out of it.

there might be enough info in that picture to tell what game is behind BR as well, mr. eagle eyes.

Haha I was about to write about how insanely jealous I was that you have a Black Rose!  I don't own any pins (yet!) but Black Rose is probably in my top 5 wishlist.

[thatpurplestuff]

Unfortunately that juicyness belongs to my brother, just holding it until christmas.  I shopped it out and am currently playing the [insert euphemism for exuberant intercourse] out of it.

there might be enough info in that picture to tell what game is behind BR as well, mr. eagle eyes.

And possession is 9/10ths of the law, so you might consider telling your brother that he's out of luck when Christmas comes around. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

alright you arcade cab hugging weenies- here's my best pinball porn.  Six 100% working games and one basket case (black knight, not pictured).

and a box of Cheez it for Nep.    how could you tell they were there from the first picture?  smell?  they are not in the picture.

[Nephasth]

and a box of Cheez it for Nep.    how could you tell they were there from the first picture?  smell?  they are not in the picture.

Reflection in the glass on Black Rose. And now I can see that Solar Fire is next to it... need to work on that pin-fu...

[TopJimmyCooks]

 i looked at the pic looking for cheez its for two minutes and didn't see that.   remind me not to play where's waldo with you.

[jmike]

i looked at the pic looking for cheez its for two minutes and didn't see that.   remind me not to play where's waldo with you.

  he got me too. Darn you Nep.

Getting all the software done early is the right way to go. That way when the build is done all you have to do is plug it in. Of course that's not what I do. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

[TopJimmyCooks]

Aimtrak holster-sketch attached below.  simple so I can cut it out with a zizz wheel and brake it in a 3" vice.  Otherwise its $30 each plus ship for the Happ optical submachine gun holster.  It's a perfect fit for the gun but it's a bottom mount and I need a side mount. 

EDIT: Pic of the final result.  I still need to final sand and spray a final coat but they turned out very nicely. 

[BadMouth]

Is the dark colored section below the monitor anything?  2nd monitor?

Now that you've had a taste of the newer games, is Switchcade going to get an upgrade?

[TopJimmyCooks]

Is the dark colored section below the monitor anything?  2nd monitor?

Speakers behind a mesh grill.  the woofer goes in the opening in the back.

Now that you've had a taste of the newer games, is Switchcade going to get an upgrade?

No switchcade upgrades planned. But I did break down and buy the same video card for my main PC to get it up to the same spec's as this rig.  I'll ghost the HS setup onto my machine so I can poke around with it.  maybe get a gamepad or two and play around with PSX/dreamcast etc.   

The aimtraks are super tempting but switchcade's 19" monitor is too small for guns, and the $300 price tag (incl recoil and power supply for recoil.) is just too steep.  I'm going to enjoy these while they're still here though. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

two and a half sheets of mdf broken down.  (only one of the sides is shown).




completed the main cab.  complicated glue up so I glued four sub assemblies first, then laid out and cut biscuit slots.  the sub assemblies reduce the amount of aligning and fiddling needed, and the biscuits help keep everything lined up the way you want it, and add some strength. 

I used a ton of pocket screws.  no MDF is edge screwed in this project. 


next few days:  the CP, side feet and the monitor holder section. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Even a total badass such as myself messes it up sometimes: 

[BadMouth]

Random tip on these newer 3D emulators -
If you have an Nvidia card, enabling "Single Monitor Performance Mode" in the global options of the NVidia software can get you a little more oomph.  On the PC I'm setting up now, it was the difference between having constant sound skips in crazy taxy(demul) and having none.
It is set for dual monitors by default, even if only one is connected.

[TopJimmyCooks]

will do.  I've only had a couple of sound skips so far but I haven't been able to play much without controls. 

[CaptainMarvel]

I used a ton of pocket screws.  no MDF is edge screwed in this project. 

So all of the joinery is going to be done via pocket screws?   I absolutely love using poket hole joinery - but I've been wondering if pocket screw joinery would be strong enough - in MDF - for an arcade cabinet. 


Do I see some biscuit joinery on the side panels too?


I will be anxious to hear as to how sturdy/strong the connections are after you get them together.


 

[TopJimmyCooks]

The four sub assembled sections (everything between the two side pieces) were pocket holed and glued.  This is faster and easier than biscuits for my purposes, and these pieces are easy to access and hold or clamp in proper alignment while screwing.  it's a little fiddly to do odd angles because the screws are angled and want to slide the two parts out of alignment on the slippery glue.  If you can clamp the pieces in alignment it's easier and that's what I try to do most of the time.  You can also just push the piece about 1/16" towards the screw side and let the screw pull it over into exact alignment as you tighten it. 

The sides go on with biscuits.  the reason is that biscuits help with alignment and positioning.  I don't have access or time to screw the sides on through pocket holes inside the case.  it would be trying to screw in 20 screws and pay attention to alignment while the glue is still active.  With the biscuits, I pop them in, glue each sub assembly and drop it on, then apply glue on the top side of them and pop the second side on and clamp.  I can get it all done in 5 minutes or so so the glue is still active when the clamps go on. 



With either system combined with wood glue, it's never going to come apart.  the screws never go into endgrain which will not hold screws in mdf. 

[Brian74]

I like it! I was thinking of building a showcase, but my wood skills suck

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[TopJimmyCooks]

Here's the PC rack with the flight stick sitting on it.  It's a Happ and it's a monster.  big and extremely heavy duty.  I painted the exposed steel shaft black. 



Aimtraks modded with recoil and a slider switch to turn recoil on and off (on the other side of each gun).  I'm using black spiral wrap with heat shrink strain relief for the cables.  haven't done that yet. 

[CaptainMarvel]

With either system combined with wood glue, it's never going to come apart.  the screws never go into endgrain which will not hold screws in mdf. 

GREAT INFO .... THANK YOU !!!

Keep the updated posts and pics comin'


 

[CaptainMarvel]

I like it! I was thinking of building a showcase, but my wood skills suck

There are literally THOUSANDS of resources all over the internet from which to learn basic woodworking skills.

TONS of "how to" videos all over YouTube. 


Two of my favorite sites to visit and learn from are START WOODWORKING and WOODWORKING FOR MERE MORTALS

[stinkyrob]

These progress threads are absolutely fascinating to read!  Thank you for sharing everything, it's really an inspiration for when I get my opportunity to build my cabinet.

[TopJimmyCooks]

cp overlay came in lighting fast from GameonGrafix (Thanks!) and the cp is set up ready to start wiring. 


ALSO:  see post 34 edited to show the results on the custom aimtrak holsters.

[TopJimmyCooks]

feets don't fail me now. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Pic of the custom holster in use.  My phone can not focus on anything less than 5 feet away from the lens.  I think it's messed up.  I'll be taking final pics with a real camera. 

[Brian74]

Pic of the custom holster in use.  My phone can not focus on anything less than 5 feet away from the lens.  I think it's messed up.  I'll be taking final pics with a real camera. 

I will take 2

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk 2

[TopJimmyCooks]

Do you have a vice and a bfh?  The plans are in the thread.   

Seriously I'm not going to sell them, but I am going to do a thread on basic sheet metal work anybody can do at home, with the steel holsters and the aluminum tread plate from this build as examples.  If you have access to a decent bench vice, an angle grinder and a few hand tools you're in business. 

[ModernGamer]

Pic of the custom holster in use.  My phone can not focus on anything less than 5 feet away from the lens.  I think it's messed up.  I'll be taking final pics with a real camera. 

I will take 2

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk 2

Hey, I'm topjimmy's irl brother, and depending on what you want to pay, I might be persuaded to make those holsters.  I don't make my living this way, so I'm just talking about a price somewhere between "token payment" and "I don't regret doing it for the guy" prices. I've got real metal shears and brakes, and if you were serious I might be able to make you a set.  The more ordered, the better, you know the deal for custom fabrication.  TJC can confirm identity and vet my fab skills.

Also, much earlier, thatpurplestuff commented that he was jealous of my Black Rose.  Anyone should feel free to shoot me a number, indicating just how jealous they might be of the old BR. . .  Might be easier to let it go than to ship it to middle america. . .

And to the guy that was saying the thing about possession. . .  I agree but if TJC offloads my machine without permission, no worries- I'll just forgo asking his permission when I relocate his Tommy to my house. . .  Fair huh?  Heh heh, as you can see above I really might let him sell it.

Hello to you folks on AC.com!

[mattgold]

Fiendin' for some complete pics... and a set of those holsters. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Complete pics are getting taken this weekend prior to delivery so that will be up soon.  On the holsters check with my brother Moderngamer - he can hook you up with those. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

A few pics of the completed project.  I had to take the pics in the shop because I waited until delivery day to take them and of course, it was raining like crazy that day.  Oh well, at least it was fairly clean in there. 

Left 3/4 view


Right sideart


Topper


Back right


CP guts


Only 4 connections to remove the cp:  usb, 5v, 36V and the Ipac ps2.


CP overlay


CP detail


PC rack


PC and recoil power supplies


Backbox folded down for transport.


Hyperspin intro video.  The sound got clipped at the end for some reason on this youtube upload. 

Specs:

• Core I5 on Asrock mobo
• MSI GEforce GTX 650 Video card
• 40” LCD display
• 2.1 sound with remote volume and tone under the cp. 
• Smart strip. 
• Two aimtrak lightguns with recoil solenoids, huge 36V power supply and custom metal holsters.
• Custom showcase cabinet with slide out pc rack. 
• Custom Universal monsters theme carried throughout
• Servo stik 4-8 way switching joystick at P1
• Happ analog flight stick with U-hid Nano interface.
• Electric Ice track ball
• Ipac 4
• Nova link LED marquee lighting
• Hyperspin running mame, atomiswave/Naomi on Demul, Model 2 on M2Emu, dapnne, Atari 2600 on stella, NES and SNES on Nestopia, and Sega Genesis.
• Custom hyperspin wheels for 4 player games and gun games.
• Theme is Universal Monsters with custom sideart, cpo, marquee, desktop wallpaper and intro video. 
• Leather textured t molding. 
• Checker plate at the base and kickplate.

This was a lot of fun – all new, top of the line components, and a great client to work with.  Mr. Hyperspin and Mr. Demul were a bit of a pain, but we came to terms. 

[mattgold]

 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Did you get some holsters worked out Matt? 

[mattgold]

Working on it... Holidays have kept him busy.

I'm ready when he is. 

[mgb]

Very nicely done   

[BAMBOO]

That is insane.  I have a Showcase cab in storage and I am scared to death to even mess with it.  I can't imagine how much heart and sweat you put into something like this.

Wow!   

[TopJimmyCooks]

Thanks for the replies.

I didn't come up with the flat screen showcase concept.  This cab is different in every dimension but it's the same concept as the Global VR showcases like terminator salvation, blazing angels, etc.  Hyperspin coder/owner Bad Boy Bill did a custom mortal kombat cab in this configuration that was a primary inspiration.  All those cabs have coin doors and I'm not sure how the guts are accessed.  I need to go down to the movie theater and check out their terminator salvation.  The front door opening like a cabinet makes this very mame friendly, as you can access literally everything without pulling the cab off the wall. 

If you want proper viewing distance on a 40" or better display this is the way to go.  I believe that it's the best way to do a larger cab and that you will see more like this. The old CRT showcases/dynamo etc have the disadvantage of needing a big connector between the main cab and the pedestal, and the CRT's they hold still are not that big.

There are no plans per se but I can post the sketchup files with dimensions if anybody wants to give it a shot or modify for their own purposes.  it's really no more material or woodworking than a standup, just in a different configuration.  If you do full sideart, you may run into limitations with the printers due to the max width their machine can print - make sure to check with your printer. 

[kahlid74]

Aimtrak holster-sketch attached below.  simple so I can cut it out with a zizz wheel and brake it in a 3" vice.  Otherwise its $30 each plus ship for the Happ optical submachine gun holster.  It's a perfect fit for the gun but it's a bottom mount and I need a side mount. 

EDIT: Pic of the final result.  I still need to final sand and spray a final coat but they turned out very nicely. 

Mind expanding this to maybe 1/4 or 1/3" thick and sendind it to me or linking me an upload and I'll 3D print it and see if it works well that way too.

Also it looks fantastic man.  Great job.

[TopJimmyCooks]

I would do a very different design for 3D Print.  Something to think about.  The inside dimensions from my plan would still be useful if someone wanted to give it a go.  I think the cost of the amount of plastic would be an issue pretty quickly woudn't it? 

[TopJimmyCooks]

If anyone's seriously in need of holsters I've got metalwork to do this weekend anyway and can run 1 set.  LMK.

[kahlid74]

I would do a very different design for 3D Print.  Something to think about.  The inside dimensions from my plan would still be useful if someone wanted to give it a go.  I think the cost of the amount of plastic would be an issue pretty quickly woudn't it?

So my bad here, but I don't remember seeing the dimensions/diagram/design for your holsters.  Did I miss it?

Plastic price wise it depends.  It'd probably only cost 6-20 dollars depending on the cost of Filament.  Would be significantly cheaper for someone who prints their own filament too.

[TopJimmyCooks]

The plans are a .jpg attached to reply #34.  as long as you stick to those dimensions and the 45 degree angle at the bottom of the bottom "box" the aimtrak will fit.  it's a little tight vertically - the top tap that the front sight blade rests under ended up bent a little past 90, so I might increase that dimension slightly for a plastic version. 

[Lucky S.O.B.]

Do you have any documentation on the cabinet dimensions? Or even just the control panel?

I am about to start my pedestal cab but I will my TV on the wall, I looking though all the designs to figure out the best pedestal size for a 4 player cab.

[TopJimmyCooks]

This cp box was 42" wide and 16 " deep at the deepest.  That was a compromise - 48" is really nice for best-in-class 4 player play, but

A. how often do  you get 4 burly guys together playing really,
B. looks like an aircraft carrier,
C, customer didn't want to take up all the space. 

So 42" is about the minimum for wrap around 4 player play.  if you're going 2 player pedestal I'd do 32", plenty of room and doesn't look too small in front of the display. 

[yotsuya]

I actually commend you and your customer for keeping it down to 42". It looks more proportional and less bulky that way. Other pedestal builders in the US and Kaneda should take a good look a it. Good job all around.

[kahlid74]

The plans are a .jpg attached to reply #34.  as long as you stick to those dimensions and the 45 degree angle at the bottom of the bottom "box" the aimtrak will fit.  it's a little tight vertically - the top tap that the front sight blade rests under ended up bent a little past 90, so I might increase that dimension slightly for a plastic version.

Bah, I was hoping to be lazy and that you would link me and instead you made me go back and find it lol!




Sketchup attached.  When I get home after lunch I'll print it out.

[DaOld Man]

Great job Jimmy!
It looks very professional.
I agree with your comments about wood screws and MDF. I have used just glue on my last two builds and they are still holding tight.
But I did use screws in areas that might be stressed during moving, but I drill a hole first, then coat the screw threads with wood glue and screw them into the holes.
I like your biscuit idea, I need to try that on my next build. Holding the pieces square until the glue sets can be a pain in the asbestos, because while the glue is still wet, it allows the wood pieces to move easily against each other (like DaOld Man's shoes on an ice covered side walk), so you have to be very careful and alert until the pieces are securely clamped, because they will move while clamping.
Again, great job on the cab. I like it!
 

[kahlid74]

Great job Jimmy!
It looks very professional.
I agree with your comments about wood screws and MDF. I have used just glue on my last two builds and they are still holding tight.
But I did use screws in areas that might be stressed during moving, but I drill a hole first, then coat the screw threads with wood glue and screw them into the holes.
I like your biscuit idea, I need to try that on my next build. Holding the pieces square until the glue sets can be a pain in the asbestos, because while the glue is still wet, it allows the wood pieces to move easily against each other (like DaOld Man's shoes on an ice covered side walk), so you have to be very careful and alert until the pieces are securely clamped, because they will move while clamping.
Again, great job on the cab. I like it!
 

So I had this problem many times and found pretty much one of the best ways to get around this, use a 1" Brad nailer.  Cover the firing strip or piece of wood with glue, line up, steady and bang bang bang.  Then either clamp or pre-drill and screw to pull it tight for the glue.  Works amazing!

[TopJimmyCooks]

I avoid brads on finished mdf because the brads make the mdf blow out around the hole.  There's so much work involved in smoothing out the little mounds of displaced/raised fiber and filling the holes.  Too much work and it never looks as good.  I avoid sanding the face of mdf, it's never as consistent as the factory smooth finish. Also, the filled spots tend show more and more over time.  I used some brads on parts of the switchcade cp and regretted it later. 

On dimensional wood and plywood that don't pooch out around the hole I would use them, since you can easily fill the tiny hole flush with the surface.  I've got 15 ga, 18 ga, headless pinner and narrow crown staplers in the shop for things where the appearance isn't as critical. 

[wp34]

Fantastic job.  That turned out nicer than any production showcase I've ever seen.  The proportion on it is perfect.   

[thatpurplestuff]

Man that turned out fantastic looking.  Great work!

If you wouldn't mind, I would love to know more about how you shaped the diamondplate.  It's most likely above my skill/tool capability, but I'm still curious!

[TopJimmyCooks]

  The proportion on it is perfect.   

Thanks, I spent a lot of time on it and futzed around with it a lot in sketchup.  I'm really happy with the shape.  it gets the style of the original Global cabs but is completely custom for the application.

If you wouldn't mind, I would love to know more about how you shaped the diamondplate. 

each foot has two pieces of diamond plate.  a flat piece cut to trapezoid shape for the top, then a long bent piece that wraps around the sides.  I formed them on the wood structure of the foot and then caulked the two pieces together and painted.  Easier and faster than braking it all out of one piece (I don't have a sheet metal brake right now).

I took a lot of build pics of the holsters and some of the feet - I'm going to do a little metalworking how to post here soon.  I do not have any special metalworking tools - just a vice, a drill, a center punch, a grinder and a square are the minimum.  You don't need a whole lot of stuff to do small metalworking.  I'll put a link here when I do that post. 

[kahlid74]

I had a problem with the earlier version of the print but now it's happy.  I don't have an Aimtrak gun to test it on but I can send it to you if you do.

[TopJimmyCooks]

Damn you've got a sweet printer.  you can barely see the resolution between the layers.  whats a budget for a printer that can do that?  is it yours?  can you get black feedstock?

how will it hold up with the weight of the gun hanging off of it? 

I dont have aimtracks atm but Mattgold might be interested in playtesting this. 

[kahlid74]

Damn you've got a sweet printer.  you can barely see the resolution between the layers.  whats a budget for a printer that can do that?  is it yours?  can you get black feedstock?

how will it hold up with the weight of the gun hanging off of it? 

I dont have aimtracks atm but Mattgold might be interested in playtesting this.

It's .25" thick so it will hold up just fine.  I didn't map screw holes in the side piece so you can drill them through but they won't be as strong as mapped through.  Black stock is here as well.  I typically use natural and then just paint it any other color.  More options.  It's my printer, I have two.  That was on the Afinia-H.  It's $1499 and is a 5x5x5 size print bed.  It's proprietary software and design perfected by the Chinese (UP! is the printer the afinia people licenses and then put their brand on it).  You can get that print quality with any other printer but it takes BOAT loads of trial and error to get there.  The Afinia-H comes that way out of the box.  My other printer is a Trial and error Sumpod and it's a lot of fun to better understand how things work.

[TopJimmyCooks]

It took a while to percolate but I took inspiration from Khalid74 and just pulled the trigger on this:

http://www.makerfarm.com/index.php/prusa-8-i3v-kit-v-slot-extrusion.html/



I need to figure out the best workflow to go from sketchup to printing stuff. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Khalid:  question for you:  when you printed the gun holster in it's upright position,  you would have had a 90 degree overhang at the top.  How did you handle that?  Or am I looking at that wrong and you printed it on it's back?