EL Wire Question

[vertygo]

I'm just wondering how feasible it would be to "embed" el wire into a control panel ? I mean looking down at the controls, and having the el wire snaking around in some sort of pattern (routed out of the wood, of course)

Thanks

[DaOld Man]

I think it would look great. Heres a pic of a marquee I made like that for The Rage

[YoGaBaR]

I think it would look great. I am going to embed the wire on my side panels once I can get someone with a CNC machine to route it out. I dont have that steady of a hand so I need help with something like that. Post a pic when its done.

[vertygo]

I think it would look great. Heres a pic of a marquee I made like that for The Rage

Looks great! how did you 'secure' it to the marquee ?

[DaOld Man]

Thanks..
I have the way I did it pretty well laid out in the link I posted above, but the short and sweet version:
I routed it with a bit that was just slightly larger than the wire.
I also routed it deep enough so the wire would lay down inside the wood, the edge of the wire flush with the surface of the wood.
Then after primering and painting the wood, I just laid the wire in the grooves, then covered the whole thing with plexi glass.
The wire fit snug in the wood grooves, but I suppose you could put a spot of crazy glue ever so often under the wire to hold it, if you didnt cover the whole thing with plexi.
Side note:
The pacman and donkey kong pics were printed on a laser printer.
I cut two holes in the marquee with a 3 inch hole saw, then put the pictures over the holes. The pictures have 12 volt lamps behind them, similar to coin door lamps. It turned out pretty good, better than I expected actually.
Check out the website, it has tons of pics on it.

[AcidArmitage]

make sure you set up a switch to turn off the wire when not in use because it'll fade within a couple months if its on 24/7

[DaOld Man]

Here is a snippet from:
EL Wire FAQ

>At 60hz (household) it'll lose 1/2 it's luminosity in
>about 7 years of continuous use.  At higher frequencies, this is much
>faster.  At 2000hz it's still in the range of hundreds of hours and the
>stuff is quite bright.

[BASS!]

weisshaupt just made this amazing ultra over the top machine, He even lit the t molding.
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=75411.0

[Beretta]

I think it would look great. Heres a pic of a marquee I made like that for The Rage

sorry for reviving a old thread but i also have been thinking of trying to some el wire on a control panel..

it's been a year have you notice yours dimming? how often do you have the machine on? how bright is it in the day time?

[javeryh]

I thought the OP was Spanish.  Shows you what I know.   

[DaOld Man]

sorry for reviving a old thread but i also have been thinking of trying to some el wire on a control panel..

it's been a year have you notice yours dimming? how often do you have the machine on? how bright is it in the day time?

My son has the arcade, I built it for him.
He lives about an hour away, and last time I was there, and we played the arcade, I really didnt pay much attention to the marquee brightness, but nothing out of ordinary caught my eye.
I will try to remember to ask him next time we talk and get back with you.

[csa3d]

I thought the OP was Spanish.  Shows you what I know.   

 

[DaOld Man]

Beratta:
I talked to my son tonight and the marquee on The Rage is still looking good!
He has not noticed any dimming or fading at all, but he did say that he doesnt leave it turned on 24/7.
So if you leave your EL wire on all the time, this may not be a good comparison.

[Beretta]

thanks oldman, i might try it then, i dont plan to have mine on 24/7 but quite a lot for sure even if just for ambiance.

it does'nt seem terribly expensive stuff just the work of taking up the plexi or lexan to replace it, means stripping the entire control panel.. which would be annoying.