First Cabinet

[Randle00]

Finally got some time this weekend to start my cabinet.  Knievel's arcade mania was the inspiration but I am pretty much flying by the seat of my pants for measurements and stuff.

Started with the control panel and just about have it finished.  Waiting for a box from t-molding.com on Thursday and then just have to wire it up.  I'm using the mini-pac from optimarc.  Made it easy on myself and got the cable harness and pre-terminated wires.  Should go fairly quickly.  Here's some pics so far.  Will try and start the rest of the cabinet this weekend.

[leapinlew]

Looks good Randle.

It's a shame you didn't see my thread first about the perfect control panel:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=65141.0

[Randle00]

Looks good Lew but I would have to definitely integrate a full size dance dance revolution dancepad complete with railings to call it the "perfect" control panel.  Heck with 100 inches to work with I should even have room for the waterski and skateboard attachments for those extreme sports games. 

[javeryh]

That's a nice looking CP!  I really like that artwork too.  Are you going to add plexi on top?

[Randle00]

That's a nice looking CP!  I really like that artwork too.  Are you going to add plexi on top?

I'm going against the grain and not using plexi.  I got the overlay from mame marquees ($30 clearance, woohoo!) and it seems very durable.  I had it laying out on my bartop for 2 months to keep it flat and it was pretty much used as a giant coaster.  Many drinks spilled on it and it survived without a scratch.   

I also like the looks minus the plexi so I'm gong to be a rebel I guess.

I am also mounting the speakers on the cab to the left and right of the GASP! 19 inch computer monitor.  This one's going to be fairly unique compared to the standard on this forum.  I'm not after an "authentic" experience.  Just want it to be fun, easy to use and good looking.

[Randle00]

Got my t-molding from UPS today.  Looks like a real CP now.







You can tell from the pictures that I have some gaps between the base and the top.  That's what happens when you don't have a tablesaw.  At least that's going to be my excuse. 

On to the Wiring!

[Randle00]

Was finally able to get the cabinet started yesterday.  Of course I had to throw my pc and control panel on it immediately to get a few games in.  I ended up using a 27" tv I had laying around and am relatively happy with it so far.  I like the clarity of the PC monitor much better but until I can find a 24" cheap, I am going the TV route.  Here's some pics:

[needlesmcgirk]

Looking good my man!

[Randle00]

I am just about ready to call this thing finished.  At some point I will need to redo my control panel due to an unfortunate accident.  Ever wonder what 100 degrees will do to a CP overlay?  Here's some pictures:





When I went to paint my cabinet I took the control panel, computer, speakers, subwoofer, etc and threw them in my car in the driveway.  It was about 82 degrees that day and probably over 100 in the car.  I melted the adhesive on the overlay like nothing.  It even made the clearcoat on top of the overlay start peeling off of the graphic itself.  At least it's still playable! 

So my plan is just to live with it for now and when I'm bored this winter I'll unwire, deinstall and put down a new overlay.

Here's some pics of the whole cabinet.  I'm happy with how it came out.  Would be very pleased if I didn't screw up the control panel.  Live and learn I guess.

[shardian]

I like what you did with the speakers beside the marquee.
Too bad about the CPO.

[Stuka]

Good job, I like the speakers, too. And the cupholders

[Crafty]

Lovely cabinet.

  about the CP.

[leapinlew]

Holy smokes... thats a huge bummer about the CPO. Fix it immediately! Right now, that cabinet is a butter face but with a little bit of TLC it could be 100%.

[Apollo]

That's really slick, I like the speaker idea as well. Congrats!

[Randle00]

I love the butterface comment.  Fits this situation perfectly!

I purposefully built this early in the spring to so I could get it finished before nice weather arrived.  Now I've got my hands full with yardwork and kids activities.  Not to mention my teacher wife is finishing the school year up in about 3 weeks.  The honey-do list won't end until September! 

So this will have to be a fall/winter refinishing project.  Oh well, maybe I'll come up with some real grand ideas by then.

For those of you who like the speaker placement here's a little more info.

The speakers are logitech z-4's and include a subwoofer.  I love the looks of them so I wanted to incorporate them into the cabinet in a way that they could be seen.  This is what I came up with.  The subwoofer is in the cabinet and I mounted the volume knob above the coin door.  This setup worked out perfectly since I also have an mp3 juke box running off the pc. 

Here's another picture where you can see the speakers better.



I appreciate all of the comments.  After building this one i feel like i could do a way better job on a second.  I'm already kicking around the idea of a mini bartop.  This is quite the addicting hobby!

[leapinlew]

I'm already kicking around the idea of a mini bartop.  This is quite the addicting hobby!

Good idea about the bartop. I did one and I think a bartop is a great idea to customize for any specific game/game types. I did a multi-williams since the defender/stargate layout is so unique. But looking at your CP, it looks like you could make a vertical 4 way machine, or perhaps a mini-tempest.