On the Control Panels
First I cut up some 3/4" solid oak boards to the size I needed. I used solid on the CP because it can take more wear and tear than the plywood and feels more solid.
I think drilled my button/joystick holes in the top piece. I used a 3/4" round over bit and rounded the front panel both the top and bottom edges that are exposed outward. I then used a 5/32" slot cutting bit in my router that was set up for #10 biscuits. I could have used a plate jointer but I don't have one. I used #10 biscuits because I was afraid that the #20 might be a bit large considering I had part of the board already cut away with the round over edge.
I did some test slots on some scraps with the slot cutting bit and dry fit a biscuit in there to make sure the boards lined up even. If you have the right depth using the biscuits will not only give you a very strong joint, but it will also auto align your joint up perfectly.
Once I had it all looking good, I cut my biscuit slots. I cut slots for 2 biscuits on the end panels and 3 slots on the long 3rd cp. I then glued and fit the biscuits and clamped them up overnight.
More info on using your router as a plate jointer look here:
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/biscuits.htmlIf you want to cut #10 biscuits you need to get the #20 cutter and a different bearing. Mail them about what bearing you need exactly for #10.
For the Vent and Speaker slots, I didn't use a template but I could have, might have made it a little easier. I first figured out where I wanted the slots and marked the center. I then used a compass and drew a 4" circle. I then drew 4 lines across the circle using a straight edge spacing them out equally. I then used a straight edge and lined/squared it up so that my plunge router would route along the line that I just drew. I clamped down the straight edge and then used a plunge router with a 3/8" straight cutting plunge bit and routed along the line up to the edge of the circle. (do this step in a few passes) Tip: don't start routeing from the exact place you want one line to stop.
Might sound kind of hard but it was pretty simple. If you are worried about screwing up, do a practice on a piece of scrap. If you have your straight edge clamped down tight so it won't move you shouldn't have any problem. It was actually harder to stain the slots than it was to cut them.
Only thing I'm going to need to do sometime is to put some screening on the inside of the cab to guard against a little person sticking their little fingers though the slots and into the fan.
The whole cab was constructed using 4 power tools, circle saw, drill, router, dremel advantage rotary saw.
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