Antinull's BIG BAD Podium *pictures* 8/12/8

[BASS!]

Picture of the formica glued down and drilled
no worried about the rough edges i ordered a laminate jig saw blade and will be trimming the areas that got broken

The surface is a slate matte finish, i like it because its not too glossy and will make the arcade buttons stand out more.

I like the formica! As far as cutting it out, why not just use your router and a flush cut bit. Then you can cut directly to the edge of the panel. Jig saws can be finnicky, and if that guide gets crooked on your saw, you could very easily cut at an angle or worse, cause your formica to crack.

[nullb0y]

nullb0y, man, dont flame me bro, Im just wondering why formica?  I have a little trick that would be just as cheap but look a little better if you havent already decided to go with the formica.

If you are interested than read on, if not, just ignore what you are reading!

If you want to go straight black with a slight silver or something, try this.

Remove that formica, brush paint your CP with straight black based paint.  Put at least two coats.  Sand lightly, just get all the brush stroke out and make it smooth as possible.  Clear coat twice, then paint black again.  Shouldnt have to even sand the black because the clear coat will be as smooth as glass.  Put at least 4 coats of clear coat sealer on top of the black.  Use a brush and lightly streak some grey or bright silver paint accross the panel.  Sand very very lightly. Clear coat no less than 4 or 5 times.  It comes out real nice.  Its like glass but hard as steel.  If it chips, just touch up with paint and drop some clear coat on the area.  Has spilled drink repelent powers too...

No offense, that formica is going to let you down after you get your whole arcade done. 
Clear coat wont fingerprint that bad either.  If it does, clean it with Sprayway foam glass cleaner and not Windex.  Windex has Ammonia which will strip the gloss.

You can also do the sides too, but it would be easier to just Vinyl.

Okay, let the flamming begin... 

yeah, too late no flaming
But i flush mounted joysticks and think plexi or this was the best idea
And i KNOW id botch the plexi

[nullb0y]

Okay, so i bought a router bit for laminate
IT CAME OUT FANTASTIC
a little filing and some black paint and this thing will be ready to use ^_^

[nullb0y]

ALSO, Started on the paint today
Primed all 3 sections

BTW thats the bottom of the CP
the joystick bases are perminately wedged + hotglued in place under the formica which is also held on with more heavy adhesive

[Spaced Ace]

Well, goodluck man.  Looking great.

[Timstuff]

Looking good, dude! I know from personal experience what it's like to have to go through a whole two years without working on my own cab... But it looks like you're making good progress! Stick with it, and you'll be playing games on it before you know it.

[nullb0y]

due to future time constraints (moving into a condo) im not bothering with the monitor portion
ill just be using my media center and 37" 720p set
ah the wonders of usb

So, this is turning out great the primer is making it look better lol

Tonight i plan on doing the textured hammered black paint  (layer 1)

Im also going to use my extra mdf and formica to make some small single player pads nice for chilling on a couch and playing

[nullb0y]

So, its painted
It came out a sort of gunmetal/black two tone mix with the hammered finish i think it looks awesome
The cp is a slate textured finish and i think its gonna look great assembeled ^_^

aparently my over taping and painting of cp ended up with some primer and paint on the formica...
the primer comes off with some cleaner and elbow grease... its just gonna take a bit of time

[nullb0y]

Wired up ^_^
Now onto testing and re assembling the podium
p.s. im cleaning the paint on the edges of the CP up
its just primer so it cleans up fine

[nullb0y]

A few more details like the paint not existing in one area and the cp still has primer on it... (this is taking a while)
But its assembeled and playable ^_^

[nullb0y]

Every thing is wired up programed and works great
Had a awesome 4 player game of simpsons and turtles in time yesterday

I do need a new piano hinge as the one i installed is bent and the screws need to be replaced..
I still have a tiny bit of paint that needs to be cleaned up

[nullb0y]

project is on hold
all it needs:
Coindoor / coin buttons
New 48" piano hinge
Wide base (doesnt really tip when your playing it but it would be nice)

[nullb0y]

got the new piano hinge
I am considering rigging up some coin reject slots for credit up buttons
48" piano hinge installed
alot more sturdy and the screws are the RIGHT size
I probably need help lineing it up things are about .1 inches off

ONTO THE CASTERS!