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javeryh's Small-ish Bartop ["Jack Attack!"]
bperkins01:
You captured the essence of what I was thinking in that second drawing.
Its simple.. no angles to cut. no big blocks of wood
Its plenty strong.. don't stand on it..
I've been woodworking for 30 years.. Many of you are worried about how strong something is going to be .. The level of *strength* being designed into some of these cabs is WAY overkill.. (Not this one specifically) Most of the machines in the arcades were crappy 3/4" particle board. Williams made nice 3/4" plywood cabs..
The 23' power boat I made (with a 300HP motor) - hits 50MPH on flat water and has a 1/2" plywood bottom.. Yes - 1/2" plywood.
my point - don't get too caught up on building a fortress.. chances are its way too strong already..
ps. My design is easy - I highly recommend it :P
javeryh:
OK I think I get it now. The second drawing looks doable to me. In fact, the whole time I’ve wished I had the forethought to have an access door on the bottom. I could even glue the CP down permanently as long as I had access to the wiring underneath, right? Or maybe that’s not a good idea if something breaks? I wouldn’t even need to cover the opening with anything other than 1/16” plexiglas held down by a few screws.
So how would you cut a rectangle out of the bottom panel without mangling it/making a bunch of wavy lines? I can’t get the power tools in there and I’m afraid I don’t have the skills to cut a straight line without a guide of some sort.
These pics are really helping me visualize what I need to do.
vertexguy:
--- Quote from: javeryh on February 08, 2021, 09:15:48 pm ---I could even glue the CP down permanently as long as I had access to the wiring underneath,
These pics are really helping me visualize what I need to do.
--- End quote ---
You definitely could but that would make it a little more challenging to get stuff in and out and fix any wiring issues. I also thought you wanted to avoid the super small precision hole drilling which is why I extended the wood and made it thicker. As far as how to make the door, that seems like a good questions for bperkins or someone with a lot more wood working experience. Only thing I can think of is that you would need some form of a small circular saw or dremel to at least get a clean slot started and avoid the typical pilot hole approach. Then something like a keyhole saw or similar fine tooth variant could be used to cut each direction from there, very slowly by hand. As you indicated, I would setup a guide of some sort, maybe with a metal ruler to keep both saws against. If that actually works, then you keep your door in tacts and just modify it with an extended lip on one end and a lock on the other, or add something at the base of your cabinet that you can screw inserts into in order to hold it closed. This process could be made simpler if you can take the bottom off to work with a nice flat board.
The other idea is to blow away the door part. Use a drill / hole saw to start a decent center hole to navigate. Then jigsaw out the rest, again ideally with guides. Not sure you could cleanly get a router in there or not to clean up edges so you might need to rely just on the jigsaw, or ruff cut it out with that and use a coping saw with a guide for the finished edges. Then you'd have to make a new door to fit the hole. My original suggested ways eliminates the precision holes and doesn't require you to make a big access door under it. So there are some trade offs to consider, but the good news is, there appear to be a few different ways you can solve this.
bperkins01:
--- Quote from: javeryh on February 08, 2021, 09:15:48 pm ---OK I think I get it now. The second drawing looks doable to me. In fact, the whole time I’ve wished I had the forethought to have an access door on the bottom. I could even glue the CP down permanently as long as I had access to the wiring underneath, right? Or maybe that’s not a good idea if something breaks? I wouldn’t even need to cover the opening with anything other than 1/16” plexiglas held down by a few screws.
So how would you cut a rectangle out of the bottom panel without mangling it/making a bunch of wavy lines? I can’t get the power tools in there and I’m afraid I don’t have the skills to cut a straight line without a guide of some sort.
These pics are really helping me visualize what I need to do.
--- End quote ---
If you want to cut a clean hole in the bottom - the best way to do it is make a template first, then use the router and cut the panel out.
From my build thread - this exact technique: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,156272.msg1654080.html#msg1654080
The template and the inlay bit set will let you do what you want. Of course this would have been much simpler before assembly. After assembly - this is plan B.
Your CP isn't so busy that you can't fix it from the bottom - glue and screw in place is likely fine :)
javeryh:
--- Quote from: bperkins01 on February 10, 2021, 08:21:34 am ---If you want to cut a clean hole in the bottom - the best way to do it is make a template first, then use the router and cut the panel out.
From my build thread - this exact technique: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,156272.msg1654080.html#msg1654080
The template and the inlay bit set will let you do what you want. Of course this would have been much simpler before assembly. After assembly - this is plan B.
Your CP isn't so busy that you can't fix it from the bottom - glue and screw in place is likely fine :)
--- End quote ---
Thanks. I've read your thread a bunch of times - really clean work and the hardboard templates are great. Like you said though, would have been easier if it wasn't assembled. I cannot turn my router sideways for safety reasons and there's no way to make the bottom sit face up so I can work so I'm kind of stuck (no router table either, which would also probably work). I have a dremel that I can use to cut a sort of straight line through the bottom (about 1" long) and I have a japanese hand saw I could use to finish cutting and get a sort of straight line... it will not be perfect and will actually be a bit sloppy but then again it's on the bottom.
My stupid hair tie solution has actually been holding up pretty good after a few days of playing on it - CP hasn't moved at all - just not sure about long term prospects.
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