Author Topic: johnnysmitch's CAF Arcade (Read 34227 times)

Zakk · « **Reply #80 on:** November 06, 2004, 11:10:36 am »

Don't worry about slickstick stuff, your design LIGHTS UP!!! Sign me up as your first customer if you make some of these (did I mention I like things that light up too!)

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #81 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:28:18 am »

OK, finally got around to taking some more pictures this weekend; some of them are backtracking a tiny bit in the progress, but I thought I'd share nonetheless. These first couple are from when I was lathing the first couple of shafts for my lightup balltops:

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #82 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:29:15 am »

and the most difficult part of the lathing - drilling the through-hole:

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #83 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:30:29 am »

here's a picture of when I was masking the sides and front for some painting:

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #84 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:33:01 am »

and here's a pic of the cab after the paintjob - I don't know what's going on with the flash on my camera, but it's obviously pretty screwed up ATM... the detailing looks MUCH better than in this picture; the flames are very subtle [ a nice dark blue that fades into a translucent blue] - maybe even too subtle - I'm thinking of triming them out with some white or silver... feedback?

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #85 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:34:09 am »

Here's a picture of the whole machine in the dim light [which is when all the lighting looks best...]

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #86 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:35:56 am »

and finally, a closeup of the control panel, showing off my 2 current prototypes of my lightup balltops, as well as the vinyl graphics I recently put on [that I'm extremely happy with; adds some much needed contrast to the CP]

wrxh8r · « **Reply #87 on:** November 08, 2004, 05:58:49 am »

This cab just seems to get better and better.Legendary
Gotta love those flames.

Matt, GoC · « **Reply #88 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:28:29 pm »

Awesome!

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #89 on:** November 08, 2004, 12:30:33 pm »

Quote from: Zakk on November 06, 2004, 11:10:36 am

Don't worry about slickstick stuff, your design LIGHTS UP!!! Sign me up as your first customer if you make some of these (did I mention I like things that light up too!)

OK, I've gone this far... I'm gonna HAVE to light up my start buttons too

- any tricks for this? (I remember seeing stuff about it awhile ago, but I can't find anything now... Zakk?)

wrxh8r · « **Reply #90 on:** November 08, 2004, 04:27:16 pm »

http://www.arcadeparadise.org/arcade/ap3/lighting.html
I wanna do this myself

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #91 on:** November 08, 2004, 04:36:38 pm »

Quote from: wrxh8r on November 08, 2004, 04:27:16 pm

http://www.arcadeparadise.org/arcade/ap3/lighting.html
I wanna do this myself

very cool - thanks for the link! I'm not sure if I want to rig mine to flash w/games or just be always on - partly because my machine is 4player [so I'd prolly wanna light all 4 player buttons], and partly because I'm not sure how many games actually suppport flashing LEDs [just a handful of the classics, right?]

Zakk · « **Reply #92 on:** November 08, 2004, 05:16:19 pm »

There was a gizmo posted in here a while ago that would light the buttons that were active for a certain game. I'm not sure if it ever got completed, but that would be killer.

Too many lights might be overkill, (oh I can't beleive I'm saying that!).

Red volcano buttons would have been perfect...

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #93 on:** November 08, 2004, 10:38:07 pm »

Quote from: Zakk on November 08, 2004, 05:16:19 pm

Too many lights might be overkill, (oh I can't beleive I'm saying that!).

HAHA, NEVER!!!

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #94 on:** November 08, 2004, 10:38:45 pm »

starting to look REALLY sweet with the lights off...

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #95 on:** November 08, 2004, 10:39:42 pm »

and of course, a gratuitous dramatic-angle artistic shot:

wrxh8r · « **Reply #96 on:** November 09, 2004, 04:54:31 am »

What would be really cool is if you could get your lit up ball like those cube things with the hologramy image in the centre.
A quick search reveals

If you could get some custom lasered spacy styles that would look pretty amazing.

brained · « **Reply #97 on:** November 09, 2004, 08:30:36 am »

!@#$!@#!@# COOL!!!
I WANT ONE OF THOSE

:

HaRuMaN · « **Reply #98 on:** November 09, 2004, 08:34:36 am »

*drooling all over the keys*

I hate you...

Seriously, though, that is awesome. Hall-of-Fame quality work!

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #99 on:** November 09, 2004, 10:11:48 am »

Quote from: wrxh8r on November 09, 2004, 04:54:31 am

What would be really cool is if you could get your lit up ball like those cube things with the hologramy image in the centre.
A quick search reveals

If you could get some custom lasered spacy styles that would look pretty amazing.

Yeah, I was thinking of something along those lines - either laser engraved, or possibly something that I'd embed in the handles when I mold them... maybe in version 2 of my lightup joys...

Zakk · « **Reply #100 on:** November 09, 2004, 10:23:15 am »

Out of curiosity, what sticks are these going to be made to fit? I only ask since I saw 'ultimates' on that panel I think, but they are pretty poor sticks compared to supers or perfect 360's. If you can get a pair done for 'super' sticks I'll paypal you in advance right now, no matter how long the delivery time

(Heh, sorry just never have liked ultimate joysticks)

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #101 on:** November 09, 2004, 10:57:16 am »

Quote from: Zakk on November 09, 2004, 10:23:15 am

Out of curiosity, what sticks are these going to be made to fit? I only ask since I saw 'ultimates' on that panel I think, but they are pretty poor sticks compared to supers or perfect 360's. If you can get a pair done for 'super' sticks I'll paypal you in advance right now, no matter how long the delivery time

(Heh, sorry just never have liked ultimate joysticks)

Actually, they're Competitions on my panel [stayed away from ultimates due to quite a lot of negative feedback thanks to the knowledgeable folks 'round here]. I definately want to make these things as compatible as possible - I think it was in the thread that I started in Buy/Sell/Trade that I requested someone to send me a control drawing of a Super stick, or possibly let me borrow one so I can machine a copy of the shaft/channels... I've noticed that Supers seem to be the most popular around here, along with Competitions I believe, and of course the T-Stick Plus, which I'm still working out a solution for

paulcola · « **Reply #102 on:** November 09, 2004, 12:10:50 pm »

First time poster, long time gamer. There's nothing better than originality. I would love to see more unique cab's such as this, I'm really impressed.

Thanks for sharing your past and future experiences with this thing. BTW, is that screen hell on your eyes when you're trying to read text?

Paul

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #103 on:** November 09, 2004, 12:20:34 pm »

Quote from: paulcola on November 09, 2004, 12:10:50 pm

First time poster, long time gamer. There's nothing better than originality. I would love to see more unique cab's such as this, I'm really impressed.

Thanks for sharing your past and future experiences with this thing. BTW, is that screen hell on your eyes when you're trying to read text?

Paul

Welcome to the boards! Always good to see new people popping up.
To answer your question - yes, the screen is a bastard when reading text in windows, but text during games and such isn't bad. Messing with my config files on it sucks quite a bit tho.

MoonDog · « **Reply #104 on:** November 09, 2004, 11:59:24 pm »

Like others have said before me, that is SWEET!! I also really like your MameWAH layouts. Whenever you get a chance to post those somewhere that will be a hot item to download. Have you considered making an Atari 2600 layout?

lucindrea · « **Reply #105 on:** November 12, 2004, 05:24:29 am »

wow that thing is just sick .... heh no guest will forget that thing.

Pixelhugger · « **Reply #106 on:** November 13, 2004, 11:01:20 pm »

HOLY CRAP!

GGKoul · « **Reply #107 on:** November 13, 2004, 11:16:31 pm »

Looks good!!!

Just wondering if you are going to release some of the lightted joysticks??

As I'm very interested it a set!!

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #108 on:** November 14, 2004, 05:12:10 pm »

Quote from: GGKoul on November 13, 2004, 11:16:31 pm

Looks good!!!

Just wondering if you are going to release some of the lightted joysticks??

As I'm very interested it a set!!

Yes, I've been working on getting a smallish run produced; I'm currently getting machining quotes, and I'm trying to cast the tops myself so that I can make custom translucent colors. I'm still trying to get my hands on a Super stick so that I can try to make them compatible with both Super and Competition bases... look for updated progress after thanksgiving - I've got a few days off work that I'm gonna put towards this project. Thanks for all the positive comments!

Pixelhugger · « **Reply #109 on:** November 14, 2004, 05:27:25 pm »

You are a god among men. This is one of those projects that ups the bar. A while back I had seen an engraved plexi sign in a window display which was lit from beneath with a blue neon tube. I fell in love with the idea but gave up the thought of incorporating it into my cab as I figured it would require expensive equipment and specialized lighting. My jaw flat out hit the floor when I saw this thread. This is gonna get copied! I hope you don't mind if I steal your CCFL fighting style for use in my own dojo. I am so excited this is possible.... not like I needed yet another detail to slow down my project, but this is just too cool to pass up. Unbelievable work.

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #110 on:** November 14, 2004, 11:24:05 pm »

Quote from: Pixelhugger on November 14, 2004, 05:27:25 pm

You are a god among men. This is one of those projects that ups the bar. A while back I had seen an engraved plexi sign in a window display which was lit from beneath with a blue neon tube. I fell in love with the idea but gave up the thought of incorporating it into my cab as I figured it would require expensive equipment and specialized lighting. My jaw flat out hit the floor when I saw this thread. This is gonna get copied! I hope you don't mind if I steal your CCFL fighting style for use in my own dojo. I am so excited this is possible.... not like I needed yet another detail to slow down my project, but this is just too cool to pass up. Unbelievable work.

Hehe - thanks for the kind words! I'm glad you dig what I came up with; I can't wait to see how yours comes out too (you've got some remarkable ideas there!) Feel free to use any of the ideas I've done on my cab - I can't wait to see how people expand/improve upon the stuff I did (I almost wanna build another just to see what I could do with what I know now...). Keep on maming!

Matt, GoC · « **Reply #111 on:** November 15, 2004, 12:35:06 am »

Quote from: Pixelhugger on November 14, 2004, 05:27:25 pm

A while back I had seen an engraved plexi sign in a window display which was lit from beneath with a blue neon tube. I fell in love with the idea but gave up the thought of incorporating it into my cab as I figured it would require expensive equipment and specialized lighting.

Yeah, I thought of doing that too. Johnny, could you give more info on how you placed the lights and how you planned it? I know you gave an explaination but more info is good info (in the form of pictures please). Also, do you think an engraver would work for something like this? I know you thought about a dremel, but I've got a dedicated engraver and was entertaining the thought of using it to do a similar but more detailed sign for my apartment. In high school I had a notebook with a black plastic cover that I engraved with a needle. I still have that notebook and I am still impressed by how well I did the shading of the characters (several of the Dragonball Z fighters) just by using sketch-like lines. I thought I might try the similar idea with an engraver. Any thoughts / concerns?

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #112 on:** November 15, 2004, 11:14:45 am »

As far as placing the light against the plexi, you can pretty much put it anywhere along the edges of the plexi. For mine, for the sake of trying to mount it vertically, I actually put my light BEHIND my plexi, instead of on the edge [you can play around with the placement and see the difference it makes - more light gets into the plexi and engraved areas if the light source is placed on the edge of the plexi]. I basically constructed a 'slot' for my plexi using a couple pieces of angled aluminum and my ccfl light, as shown in the drawing below. As far as using an engraver to do the etching, all I can say is try it out on some scrap plexi first. I tried using my dremel, and wasn't very happy with the results for a couple reasons. Number one is that I couldn't find a bit that would give me as thin a line as I wanted, therefore I couldn't get good detail. Number two is, because of the nature of the tool (rotary) and the nature of the material (soft), I couldn't get a consistant 'cut depth' with the dremel. Furthermore, because I was using balltop bits (generally work well for engraving), the inconsistency of depth led to inconsistency in line thickness. Both could be rectified by using a depth guide (like the dremel router base), but this makes it a little more unwieldly - better for a larger pattern. When I get around to it, I want to make a sign for my arcade room, which I'll use a dremel for, and I'll post up my results and any other tips I pick up while doing it. Be sure to do the same!

Matt, GoC · « **Reply #113 on:** November 15, 2004, 01:08:07 pm »

cool, thanks! Where do you get one of those ccfl lights?

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #114 on:** November 15, 2004, 01:12:04 pm »

Quote from: Matt, General of Chaos on November 15, 2004, 01:08:07 pm

cool, thanks! Where do you get one of those ccfl lights?

You can get them at pretty much any place that sells computers now [I've even seen them at best buy and circuit city lately..] They'll be by the cases/casemods area. I got mine at Fry's 2 for like $13. You can also use ultrabright LEDs fairly successfully. That's probably what I'll use for my sign.

Matt, GoC · « **Reply #115 on:** November 15, 2004, 01:33:11 pm »

Thanks!

willyum · « **Reply #116 on:** November 15, 2004, 03:49:27 pm »

What program did you use to make that little illustration? And what device to draw it? (I'm sure it wasn't a mouse)

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #117 on:** November 15, 2004, 04:45:09 pm »

Quote from: willyum on November 15, 2004, 03:49:27 pm

What program did you use to make that little illustration? And what device to draw it? (I'm sure it wasn't a mouse)

Actually, that WAS all mouse

- I used Adobe Illustrator; I use it at work every day, so I've grown pretty comfortable with it for quick illustrations.

wrxh8r · « **Reply #118 on:** November 15, 2004, 05:24:13 pm »

Also anyone interested in lighting plexi should look into laser etches.They do so many cool things with lasers nowadays

.
Here is a very bad picture of my ps2 with only 1 led as i still havnt got round to throwing a ccfl in there.But you can get images etched to really good quallity.The place i went to only had up to 300dpi but they go alot higher.When they arnt lit up you can partially see through and the detail of the etch is fairly plain.But once they are lit it mint.Changing which side you light from also effects the image.
Different surfaces can be etched as well.They use it on marble floors for company logos.BRicks etc.

johnnysmitch · « **Reply #119 on:** November 15, 2004, 05:44:47 pm »

Agreed, laser etching would be VERY cool on an arcade project - you can get some really cool shaded effects that way. Never looked too deep into it myself - how much does it usually cost?


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