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

[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

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[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

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[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

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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.