A couple of questions about a Disassembleable Arcade cabinet

[Cobolisdead]

So, here is the deal, I want to build myself a MAME machine. The general idea is to make it where is comes in pieces and can be easily moved from room to room and reassembled in minutes. Also, I like the idea of being able to store it under the bed if I need to. I imagine that the general design I have come up with would also make shipping it easier if anyone wanted to do so, but I don't intend to manufacture these. It's just for my own use.

The general design is to have a frame structure that connects various points together with metal connectors bolting them in place. Then the front, back, and side panels attach to that structure.

Here is what I have for it:

Dual Core HP PC running Windows 7
39" RCA 60Hz 1080p LCD
HDTV Mount
IPAC4 with all the led buttons and joysticks to hook up to it for four players plus the Admin buttons and a trackball.
2.1 PC Speakers

Attached is my general design mock up. I need to get sketch up and make it in that to be more precise, but I need to find out some hardware info first.


On to my questions:

Is there anywhere I can find some metal connector pieces to bolt in and connect the wood segments together?

What would be the best way to attach the panels without being too unsightly?

Am I re-inventing the wheel here? Has someone else already made a cabinet that disassembles?

[Jimbo]

Hey

It seems you want it to be 100% pull-apart-able. I did similar (almost)... check out my first build: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=70093.0

This can be disassembled in bits but the inside timber frame can't be.  Not quite what you wanted but it may help to see how i stuck things together

I used big carriage bolts on the sides, which some might call ugly, but I actually think they look pretty cool.

Good luck!

[Malenko]

its called a stand alone control panel, and a shelf

[Generic Eric]

Seems neat as a thought experiment,  but almost like a solution without a problem.  Do you have enough room for a full size cab?

Consider the game of boxes thread in my signature.   I would approach it as a 2 part internal frame that you attach things to.

Pinball machines can be broken down.  I think it can be done. But to make it durable for weekly breakdowns would increase the costs considerably.

If you have to store it under your bed, I don't think you have enough room.

[Vigo]

It's been years since I have played with one, but I am pretty sure the classic Taito cabinet was about as close as it came to a commercial machine that you could disassemble and reassemble easily. They had no timber frame, just mostly corner brace brackets and furring strips. It was the same concept as Jimo's, but brackets and furring instead of the frame. You could see carriage bolt heads on the sides, and I agree with Jimbo that the carriage bolts don't detract, but I suppose you could sink your bolts in and cover the hole with bondo and the bolts would stay in place.

The only thing I can think of that wouldn't be at a hardware store would be torque washers. Those should make the job easier if you want carriage bolts in wood. Like a regular washer, but the square neck of the bolt will catch on these to keep from spinning and easier to tighten:



Then on the inside, have the bolts go through a couple sets of these as the main backbone, and smaller brackets elsewhere. Take off the nuts off your brackets and it should all come apart.



Have your CP box snap on and off from the inside easily with some control panel latches.

[Cobolisdead]

Hey

It seems you want it to be 100% pull-apart-able. I did similar (almost)... check out my first build: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=70093.0

This can be disassembled in bits but the inside timber frame can't be.  Not quite what you wanted but it may help to see how i stuck things together

I used big carriage bolts on the sides, which some might call ugly, but I actually think they look pretty cool.

Good luck!

I read through your thread, and it looks cool. I like how you have the sides come off, but I want even the frame to be able to be disassembled too.

 

its called a stand alone control panel, and a shelf

Yeah, but it wouldn't give you the arcade feel like a cabinet does.

Seems neat as a thought experiment,  but almost like a solution without a problem.  Do you have enough room for a full size cab?

Consider the game of boxes thread in my signature.   I would approach it as a 2 part internal frame that you attach things to.

Pinball machines can be broken down.  I think it can be done. But to make it durable for weekly breakdowns would increase the costs considerably.

If you have to store it under your bed, I don't think you have enough room.

I have plenty of space in the garage where I am setting up my Arcade games. The reason why I want to be able to disassemble it is more for moving through my home's narrow hallways than lack of space. I want to be able to move this to my gameroom or my livingroom for parties with ease. The fact that it would be able to be stored underneath the bed is for when the Fiancee gets tired of looking at it or all my spare rooms become rooms for children. I could take it down and store it for a little while then rebuild it later on when I get the desire to play some more.

It's been years since I have played with one, but I am pretty sure the classic Taito cabinet was about as close as it came to a commercial machine that you could disassemble and reassemble easily. They had no timber frame, just mostly corner brace brackets and furring strips. It was the same concept as Jimo's, but brackets and furring instead of the frame. You could see carriage bolt heads on the sides, and I agree with Jimbo that the carriage bolts don't detract, but I suppose you could sink your bolts in and cover the hole with bondo and the bolts would stay in place.

I like that idea, that way I can have the bolts in the panels, and just slide them into the frame and bolt them down from the inside. 

The only thing I can think of that wouldn't be at a hardware store would be torque washers. Those should make the job easier if you want carriage bolts in wood. Like a regular washer, but the square neck of the bolt will catch on these to keep from spinning and easier to tighten:



Then on the inside, have the bolts go through a couple sets of these as the main backbone, and smaller brackets elsewhere. Take off the nuts off your brackets and it should all come apart.

Sweet! I will see if I can find some of those when I am at Lowes tonight!

[rovingmind]

Then on the inside, have the bolts go through a couple sets of these as the main backbone, and smaller brackets elsewhere. Take off the nuts off your brackets and it should all come apart.

You could get heavier brackets and thread the holes for machine screws, or weld some nuts to those, and use torx head machine screws to attach the panels.