Bella's Arcade

Update!

2009-05-26T06:00:00.001-04:00

It's been a couple of months now and the arcade machine is running smoothly. Bella loves playing it and she has gotten quite good at a few games - Ladybug, Galaga 3, Ms. Pac-Man, Frogger, Jungle King and a few others.

She is really having fun!

FINISHED!!!!!

2009-02-18T06:00:00.003-05:00

Well, it's been a very long time coming but over the weekend I managed to put Bella's Arcade in her room in the exact spot I originally envisioned it when I started. I had my dad's help lifting it up the stairs and I think I destroyed my back but it was worth it.

My daughter LOVES it and she is so excited to have an arcade machine of her own in her room - her reaction was thanks enough.

Here are a few more pics with the machine on. I have no idea how to take a picture without the flash that doesn't make the marquee look all washed out. I assure you it is beautiful - especially in a dark room!

It fits the space perfectly and looks like a little toy. It is small (80% of original Ms. Pac-man size - about 50" tall) but it is perfect for an adult to sit in a chair and play. Bella still needs a step stool to reach the controls and see the screen!

A HUGE thanks to everyone over at BYOAC who provided me with all the great advice as I went along. I could not have done this by myself.

It's Alive!!!

2008-03-20T06:00:00.003-04:00

And now for your viewing pleasure...

I apologize for the poor quality of the video - I shot it in my basement and there are barely any lights down there but you get the idea. When I finally move the thing upstairs I'll be sure to post something a little nicer...with more light.

Enjoy!

EDIT: I said Windows 98 in the video but it is clearly Windows XP. Since this video I've removed virtually all evidence that there is a computer running things (there is no splash screen and the task bar hides almost instantaneously).

New Skin

2008-03-15T06:00:00.000-04:00

Not a major update but something worth noting. I enlisted the help of waveryder over at BYOAC to make a few changes to my first MaLa layout. I wanted to change the font, the logo and add an instruction card. I think it came out great - check it out:

The name of the game list and the list itself appear on the left and the original manufacturer and year released along with a screenshot appear on the right.

It looks fantastic and it's easy to navigate!

So Close...

2008-03-02T06:00:00.002-05:00

I'm pretty much finished. The next post will be a small movie showing the cabinet in action (but not out of the basement, unfortunately). All I have left to do is:

Refine my Gamelists. This will be an ongoing aspect of owning one of these things as there are always games I can add or take away if they don't get played. There are literally thousands of games to choose from which is great but it's also a bit overwhelming.
Make a pink dustwasher for the joystick. I tried doing this yesterday and I ended up cracking every single one. Also, centering the hole for the joystick shaft after cutting the circle was also quite difficult. I'll figure something out...

That's it. As much fun as this project has been, I'm ready to move on to another one.

The Coin Door (Lights)

2008-02-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

How could I forget about the coin door lights?!?!? No arcade machine is truly complete without lighting up the coin door return buttons. Shortly after getting the cabinet in a playable state, I got a message from theCoder over at BYOAC - he had put together two LEDs controlled by a circuit board and ran it all to a regular power plug. A few days later it arrived in the mail! All I had to do was plug it in and mount the lights behind the yellow coin return buttons. The only snag (if you could even call it that) was figuring out how to mount the LEDs so the light is evenly distributed. This really couldn't have been any easier and it looks great - especially when there no other lights in the room other than the marquee.

Unfortunately, the only pictures I have are of the installation and not the end result. Since the LEDs blink, there's no good way to show them off with a picture but I will make sure to highlight them when I film the 100% completed cabinet in action.

In this first picture you can see the green circuit board, the plug and the two white LEDs:

I used scotch tape (seriously) to secure both lights in place behind the coin return buttons in a place that seemed to evenly distribute the light. Pretty easy.

Thanks theCoder!!

The Coin Box

2008-02-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

OK, I think we can agree that this is getting a bit tedious, right? I'm forcing myself to cross the finish line within the next week. I am about to have a few free days to work on my new project and I want this one to be complete or else I fear, much like my first project, it never will be (I'll finish it eventually!). Most of the time I used to spend working on these things has been getting sucked away because of Rock Band. I'm addicted.

Anyway, I finally put the coin box in the cabinet. There's no magic here - I took a cardboard box and wrapped it in duct tape to give it some added strength. Then I printed out the marquee and stuck it to the front for show. The only consideration was making sure it was big enough to catch quarters/tokens from both coin mechs. Here it is:

Try to contain yourselves.

The Power Button

2008-02-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

This is it! The final actual construction on the cabinet. It's about time.

One final thing that had been bothering me was the fact that I had to open the coin door to hit the power switch on the computer in order to turn everything on and off. I decided to relocate the power button from the front of my computer to the rear panel on the outside. It's out of sight but easy enough to press before and after a play session.

One consideration was that I wanted the button to be recessed in the panel - I think it looks nicer and whatever small chance there is that it will get pressed accidentally is greatly reduced. I had to come to terms with drilling through my awesome finish on the rear panel - oh well, it's necessary I guess.

Anyway, I wasn't sure about the placement of the button so I actually thought about it for quite some time. I wanted it to be out of the way, easily accessible and aesthetically pleasing in it's ultimate location. I think I achieved all three of these things. I decided to place the button towards the top of the cabinet because it would be easiest to press in that location.

The first thing I did was lay out the center for the button hole using some painter's tape (so as not to mark up the actual cabinet. I measured in from the right to the exact center of the power plug to line up the button hole (for aesthetics) and then measured down from the top the same distance and made a mark and tapped out the center with an awl:

Next, I drilled out the hole in two steps using forstner bits. The first one - 7/8" - was just larger than the overall diameter of the button at it's widest point and the second one - 1/2" - was the exact size you would drill if you were installing the button normally. Here is the resulting hole:

You can see the two different diameter holes here quite easily. Once installed, the button will be flush with the back panel. Next came the tricky part - wiring it up. I had to cut the two wires from the button on the computer case and splice in the two wires from the new button. Easier said than done due to the location of the button - I had to remove the marquee and feed the wires through the same narrow hole that the power cord from the marquee light was in. This took me almost an hour of trial and error until I finally got them in there. Check it out (also notice that I painted the inside of the hole because I'm super anal):

...and here's the button all wired up but not installed:

Here's the finished installation:

I am VERY happy with the way this worked out. The button is very easy to reach and it looks great - everything is tied into it. You press it once and the computer powers on, the marquee light comes on, the speakers power on and the LED coin door lights light up. The computer boots straight to whatever the last game played was. Press it again and everything shuts down. This definitely beats opening up the coin door and contorting my hand to reach the power button on the computer!

The Button Decals

2008-01-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

This past weekend sure was productive. After completing the coin return button hack I turned my attention to labeling the admin buttons on the control panel. This thing has to be user-friendly so everything needs to be clearly marked. Four unlabeled black pushbuttons isn't going to cut it.

There's not much to say here other than to show before and after shots and maybe a brief explanation of what I did. It's really as easy as applying a sticker. Here goes:

Clean each button with some rubbing alcohol and a q-tip. Blow it dry. A super-clean surface is essential.
Cut out each decal as oversized as possible. The decals are small and if you have giant hands like me you want to be able to be precise with the placement.
Peel the paper backing off the vinyl decals leaving a clear plastic film and the vinyl decal (it's sticky on the bottom, duh)
Line it up and apply the decal to the button - be careful - you only get one shot!
Using something like your fingernail, rub over the vinyl decal to make sure it is securely in place.
Remove the clear plastic film leaving the vinyl decal on the button!

Here are the before and after shots:

Close up:

The decals are "Exit" to the far left for exiting out of the current game you are playing and back to the list, the single female icon for the "Player 1 Start" button, the double female icon for the "Player 2 Start" button and "Pause" for, um... pausing the game.

I have an additional decal that says "Launch Game" which is in the shape of a semi-circle which was made to go directly on the control panel above the "Player 1 Start" button. The reason for this is that when you are browsing the game list from the front end, the "Player 1 Start" button doubles as the "Launch Game" button. I'm not sure if I need it though which is why I haven't put it on yet. Start is start, right? Are people honestly not going to be able to figure it out?

Big thanks to Pongo over at BYOAC for printing up the decals for me!

I'm getting closer...

Remaining items:
- Pink Plexiglass Dustwasher
- Relocate Power Button
- Coin Box
- Software Configuration Tweaks

The Coin Door (Return Button Hack)

2008-01-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

Holy bananas - an actual update?!?!?!?

As previously mentioned (like 3 months ago), having to insert a quarter every time I want to play a game is a huge pain. However, it will be nice to be able to limit Bella's play time because I can just give her $5 in quarters or something and let her play until it's gone (this should also force her to get better if she wants to stretch that $5). When I'm playing, I don't want the hassle of popping in a quarter every single time so I needed to do something about it.

I thought about it for a while and did some research over at BYOAC and decided the easiest way to do this was to install a microswitch behind the coin return buttons. When the coin return button is pressed, it will trip the microswitch sending the signal to the computer. The hardest part was figuring out the placement of the microswitch and how to get it to stay in place.

Here are a couple of "before" shots of the back of the coin door. The yellow plastic is the return button and the red plastic is what will come into contact with the microswitch I'm installing.

I couldn't attach the micrswitch directly to the plastic on the coin mech because the cherry button on the microswitch would not be activated in this position. My lovely wife suggested using some fireplace kindling as a shim - what a great idea! I cut the shim to size and then positioned the microswitch on it so it would be activated once the coin return button was pressed - I marked everything with a sharpie and then glued everything together in one shot using some Gorilla Glue and a spring clamp. Check it out:

Finally, I ran the wires in parallel from the actual coin door switch to my newly positioned microswitch. The last shot really gives you a good idea how the whole thing works. The yellow coin return button is pressed which pushes the red plastic into the cherry actuator on the microswitch. Pretty cool.

Now that the coin door is set up, I can insert coins whenever I want but if I don't tell anyone, maybe I can sucker a few friends into dropping some quarters in the machine!

Update!

2007-11-13T06:00:00.000-05:00

Finally an update! Well, I haven't actually done anything on the cabinet but I have made a FINAL list of things that I need to do. I'm posting them here so I don't forget.

Refine the MaLa Layout. I like the way things are laid out but I want to change the font to something more "girly" - the games are displayed in Arial right now and it just doesn't blend in. I also want to increase the size of the font, if possible although right now any letter like 'g' or 'j' or something that hangs low gets cut off a bit... I also want to incorporate some of the colored flowers from the background of the marquee into the background of the layout... I don't know... I need to teach myself how to make these things.
Refine my Gamelists. I don't know how to use the "Tree" functions in MaLa yet - right now I have an "All Games" list, a "Horizontal" list and a "Vertical" list and they are still too cumbersome to sort through. I'm thinking I need to separate them into categories like "Puzzle", "Classic", "Shooter", "Fighter", etc. I also need to go through them and remove the duplicates and generally crappy games that no one will ever play (which there are quite a lot of).
Install the microswitches behind the coin door return buttons for "insert coin" - right now I repregrammed the "Pause" button as "Coin" because it was such a pain to keep inserting quarters for credits. This is actually a decent solution (just get rid of pause) but after playing the other day I realized that interuptions are frequent no matter who is playing so a pause button is essential.
Install the coin box. This should take 10 minutes.
Possibly relocate the power button. Right now if I open the coin door I can reach inside and hit power on the computer itself to power on and off. It works I guess but I'm thinking of relocating it to somewhere on the cabinet (I don't know where yet though - probably the rear of the cabinet). I don't want my kids opening up the cabinet every time they want to play.
Apply the vinyl button decals. I had some pink vinyl button decals made to apply to the black admin buttons. They are really cool - the Start buttons are little girl icons. This shouldn't take too long.
Make a pink dustwasher for the joystick. I want to take a piece of 1/8" thick plexiglass and make a 2-1/2" diameter circle and paint the bottom pink and then polish the edges. Details like this and the button decals will really make the control panel stand out I think.

That's kind of a lot now that I've typed it all out. I almost wish it wasn't playable so I'd just finish the thing! Once I'm done I'm going to take a ton of pics and maybe even record some footage with our new video camera!

Pink Skin!

2007-10-22T06:00:00.000-04:00

Now that the cabinet is working and the computer is mostly configured it's time to start polishing the details. The first order of business is replacing the "gamelauncher" skin on my front end with something a little nicer - and customized for Bella.

When the cabinet is first turned on it loads directly to the MaLa front-end with the "gamelauncher" skin and looks like the picture to the right. There's nothing "wrong" with it I guess - it displays all of the game names over top of a screenshot. It's simple and easy to use but I really want to tie the front end in with the rest of the design - and that means making it pink!

The great thing about MaLa is that it is totally customizable but unfortunately you need some computer skills to get the job done. I was lucky enough to have superbigjay over at the BYOAC forums take a few minutes away from his awesome project to design something for Bella's Arcade.

Check out the results:

It looks great! The main gamelist appears in the largest box on the left and the screenshot for each game appears in the large box on the right as you scroll through the list. The other rectangles contain information like the name of the Gamelist (Favorites, Maze, Puzzle, etc.) or the controls (4-way/1 button, etc.). This is all customizable so I can get it looking however I want.

The design isn't finalized yet - I still need to pick a "girly" font to display the game names (Arial is the default and it's a little plain) and finalize the type of information I want to display in each panel but it's a great start. The cabinet's pink theme is really coming together!

Quick Update

2007-10-09T06:00:00.000-04:00

Argh! I've been using MAME .118u2 with the hi score patch (compiled myself using Mr. Do!'s excellent tutorial) but Mappy and Super Pac-man were giving me errors when I tried launching them. Apparently there is a known issue with the mappy.c driver in MAME .118u2 which both games use to run. This is completely unacceptable.

I decided to recompile MAME using version .119u3 with the hi score patch hoping that the games would work again and I was right - they worked! Unfortunately, Galaga is no longer playable. This is doubly unacceptable. Galaga is on the short list of must-have games for an arcade cabinet. I'm missing a file called 51xx.bin which was added in the Galaga file starting with MAME .119u3 so tonight I have to recompile yet again and go back to MAME .119u2. What a pain - hopefully I can get everything working!

I'm not sure why I posted this... maybe this information will help someone else out there. I don't know.

The Coin Door (Wiring)

2007-10-08T06:00:00.000-04:00

One of the last things I have left to do on this cabinet other than configure the software is to get the coin door working. I bought a Happs "Small Single Coin Door" which comes with two $0.25 coin mechs to accept quarters (or tokens).

The setup is pretty basic - a microswitch is tripped when a quarter is inserted into the coin slot which sends a signal just like any other button press on the cabinet would do. I decided to wire both the player 1 and player 2 coin slots to the same input on my U360 joystick wiring harness so no matter which slot the coin is put in it will register as a "credit" for player 1. This doesn't pose a problem because most of the alternating 2 player games don't care which coin slot the quarter is inserted into. If two coins are entered into the same slot you press the "Player 2 Start" button for a 2 player game. Also, since the cabinet does not have 2 player simultaneous controls all of those games will be available in 1 player mode only.

Anyway, wiring up the microswitches was a snap - I wired the NO (normally open) pin on each switch to the last wire on the U360 wiring harness (which has been set to "insert coin") and the bottom ground pin on each switch to another ground wire on the control panel completing the loop. I should note that the microswitches on my coin door had the NO and NC (normally closed) pins reversed compared to the standard white pushbutton microswitch. It took me a minute to figure out when nothing was happening when I inserted the coin. Simple!

Everything works like it should but I realized after about 10 minutes of playing on the cabinet that fumbling for quarters/tokens every single time I wanted to play something was a huge pain. I think I'm going to try and rig the coin return buttons to act as "insert coin" buttons when pressed which should eliminate the need to have quarters/tokens on hand all the time.

I'm not 100% sure how I'm going to do this but I don't think it will be too hard. Stay tuned.

New "Punch-List"

2007-10-02T06:00:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm coming down to the wire... there's really not much left to do on this cabinet other than software configuration and getting the coin door up and running. I figured I'd make another "to-do" list just to keep me moving forward - this one is really nit-picky but here goes:

Construction

Wire coin door to U360 wiring harness (assigned to "5" in MAME)
Rig the coin reject buttons to register a credit when pressed
Power the LEDs behind the coin slots
Install a coin box to catch the quarters/tokens (cardboard?)
Apply pink vinyl button labels
Relocate power button from front of PC to rear panel of cabinet
Relocate volume knob from speakers to somewhere on cabinet

Computer Configuration

Finish tailoring my Horizontal Gamelist (vertical one is finished)
Change font in MaLa layout for game names to something girly - make it pink!
Download and install "snaps" for background of gamelist
Configure 45-degree maps for the U360 joystick (for Q*bert)
Configure MaLa to play "Arcade Ambiance" when browsing gamelists

I think that's it for now - I should be able to finish this up over the next week or so. A long term project will be swapping out the amber coin return buttons for some pink ones but no one makes them so I'd have to come up with something on my own... probably not happening any time soon.

We will be having some friends over to the house in about two weeks so I'll try to have it 100% finished by then - I'm also coming up on the year anniversary of starting this thing which is pathetic so I'd like to finish before that day passes too.

The Plug: Part 3

2007-09-28T06:00:00.000-04:00

It's installed - and more importantly, it works! Or at least it seems to work - no sparks, no smoke and the SmartStrip has power so I'm reasonably sure the installation was done properly. After much discussion about the right and wrong way to wire this thing over at BYOAC we collectively figured out which wires from the SmartStrip should be connected to which wires on the plug recepticle (I hope). The last step to installing the plug recepticle was to cut a rectangular hole 1-1/16" x 1-13/16" out of the back panel.

Easy, right? Wrong. It took over 2 hours to cut out the hole accurately. After laying out the hole I started by drilling out as much material as possible using a large drill bit in each corner. Then using a very small keyhole saw I connected the holes to remove most of the material. That wasn't so bad - what was excruciating was trying to square everything up to the lines. I ended up using a metal file because I couldn't get one of my chisels in there to really do anything due to the small size of the hole. I thought this would take 5 minutes!

Here's the hole pre-installation:

It's probably the ugliest part of the entire cabinet - I've tried to plan each cut out and make the lines as clean as possible but this is just a mess. Thankfully there is a bezel around the plug recepticle that will hide everything.

And here's the hole post-installation - I secured the plug recepticle to the cabinet using two screws and then added some screw caps for a "finished" look:

Here's a close-up without the screws holding it in place:

And here's a super close-up of the finished installation. I still have to erase the layout lines that I made since I couldn't decide where to put the thing and still leave room on the inside to mess around:

It looks pretty nice.... or at least nicer than a round hole with a plug hanging out.

The only thing left to do was crawl inside and connect the wires. I reversed the black and white wires from my previous post - this is what all the discussion over at BYOAC was about. We were having a hard time figuring out which wire was "hot" and which was the negative one. Turns out U.S. Electrical Code mandates that "hot" wires are black, white wires are neutral and green wires are ground.

Finally, here are some shots of the inside - as you can see it's quite a mess. I mounted the Smart Strip on the inside of the cabinet - it's ready for the computer! I also used some velcro to hold the plastic box containing the wire hack against the side panel.

Maybe I'll paint the interior of the next cabinet I build to really give it a professional look but that's probably crazy talk.

I did take the time to test everything - I hooked up the computer and played a few games of Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga. I have never been more excited about this hobby than I was when I fired it up for the first time and everything worked like it should - with the press of a button, the marquee light, speakers and monitor came on and the computer booted straight to a random game on my gamelist - the cab is fully playable and it's awesome. I still have some software tweaking to do and I have to hook up the coin door but I'm 99.9% done. What a feeling!

The Plug: Part 2

2007-09-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

It's about time. After a month I finally manned up and cut open my SmartStrip plug. The goal is to splice the plug to a recepticle on the exterior of the rear panel of the cabinet. I'm still a little nervous about this process but I'm reasonably positive (99%) that I did this safely and correctly.

I bought a plastic box at Home Deopt for $2 and the idea is to completely seal off the wiring block and any chance of someone touching a live wire. The wire from the SmartStrip goes in one end and the wires from the plug recepticle go in the other - pretty basic stuff. This is about as safe as I think I can make it.

Here's the box:

And here is kind of sort of what I'm trying to accomplish... actually, I don't even know why I took these pictures but here you go:

Here's the exciting "before" picture of the plug. Wow.

And here is the "after" shot. It was like ripping off a band-aid. I just closed my eyes and made the cut with my trusty utility knife.

At this point there was no turning back. Inside, there were three wires representing positive (white), negative (black) and ground (green). The next step was stripping each of these wires to expose about 1/4" of the interior copper wire. Thie next picture shows the three wires (but not stripped).

I matched these wires up to the wires in the wiring block that spacies from BYOAC set up for me. All I really had to do was screw them into the wiring block attached to the plug recepticle. This is how it ended up before I closed the plastic box:

Here are the final shots of everything all closed up:

I'm not totally finished with this (I should be tonight) and I plan on wrapping the wiring block in electrical tape before closing up the plastic box for good. Also, the last thing I want to do is somehow cover the back of the plug recepticle with either electrical tape or some sort of foam - I can still see metal sticking out and I can only assume that once the cabinet is plugged in it will be "hot" all the time whether the computer is on or off.

I want to be sure 1000% sure that there is zero chance of something going wrong or someone getting hurt. My daughter is only 3 and she's curious. If she managed to open up the door on the front and crawl inside I don't want to have to worry about her getting hurt.

That's all for now.

The Plug: Part 1

2007-08-22T17:01:00.000-04:00

I am about to try and hack a SmartStrip by basically cutting off the plug and wiring it to a different plug/electric socket. I want to achieve a "finished" look on the outside of my cabinet as well as be able to disconnect the power cord if I feel like it. Plus, I've never done something like this before and I'm always up for learning something new.

I'm not quite sure how to do this yet but I will post my progress as I go. Anyway, there are three wires coming out of the plug thingy and (presumably) three wires in the SmartStrip after I cut off the plug - I'm just not sure which wire from the plug connects with which wire from the SmartStrip. Check out the pics:

Kind of boring but I'm at the tedious part of the project now... oh well.

The Master Plan

2007-08-17T14:36:00.000-04:00

The plans are here! Well, I finally dug them out of the garage and brought them to work so I could scan them and post them here. The dimensions aren't exact but they are close enough, I guess. I wanted an "80%" cabinet so I downloaded the Ms. Pac-man plans from Jakobud's site and shrunk all the dimensions using my slick math skills. I didn't cut things out perfectly due to the weird conversions (like 80% of 1/16" is kind of tough to measure) but it came out great anyway.

Enjoy even though imageshack totally blows with these tiny thumbnails but it's the only way I could figure out how to host the files so they are readable. Note that I didn't actually use the CRT monitor shown on the last page but the dimensions of the Dell LCD I ended up going with are scribbled on there somewhere - I know, real scientific.

Minor Progress and a "To-Do" List

2007-08-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

OK, after a month of nothing I think I'm back for real.

I completed the computer build and got (most) everything working. I had a bit of trouble with the video card because if it was connected to the motherboard it would default everything to the DVI-out port so I had to buy a DVI-VGA plug converter thingy. I installed Windows XP Professional and it seems to be operating pretty fast (much faster than my old Gateway).

I loaded up MAME and MaLa really quick last night, tweaked the settings for a vertical layout and the games seem to be running in full screen!!!! FINALLY!!! Tonight I plan to finish the computer setup on the cabinet.

I have to:

~~Compile a version of MAME that can save high scores and disables the warning screens~~
~~Get the fatfingers MaLa plugin working properly (for the Ultimarc 360 joystick)~~
Create a solid vertical gamelist
Set the computer to boot straight to MaLa

Once this is done all I'll have to do to finish is:

Cut hole in back of the cabinet and install the exterior plug
Splice new plug to SmartStrip
Wire the computer power button to a button on the cabinet somewhere
Wire the coin door
Touch-up paint
Apply vinyl button decals
Figure out a way to control the volume of everything

That's only like an afternoon's worth of work!

In other (not so) exciting news, I've actually made the executive decision to NOT use the side art that I had printed. It's a waste of $50 but everyone who has seen the sideart in person (held in place by tape) has said the cabinet looks better without it and I tend to agree. I love the art and it came out great but I think that for this project less is more and I'll be better off without it.

I really want to finish this thing so I can start the next one (I hope my wife isn't reading this...).

Time To Finish This Thing!

2007-07-31T06:00:00.000-04:00

OK. I haven't made any progress recently but I think I'm ready to. We have settled into a pretty good schedule with the new baby and I am generally less tired every day. I'm hoping to resume work on Bella's Arcade this weekend. I might as well since we are cooped up in the house for the next few weeks until it is safe to take the baby out in public.

Since my last post I installed all of the computer components into the case I bought but nothing happened when I tried to power it on. I think I got some of the wires mixed-up. It is a pain trying to connect the pins to the power button wires and I can't really tell where everything is supposed to go. I hope to work out the kinks tonight and at least get XP up and running.

Stay tuned!

Jack's Arcade

2007-07-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

Looks like I'll be starting another project in the next 3 years or so. Bella's Arcade is currently on hold due to the birth of her brother Jack. There's not much left to do but finding the time will be tough over the next few weeks as I adjust to the new schedule.

All that's left is the computer installation/configuration and some touch-up work on the paint job on the back of the cabinet. The new computer parts arrived last week and I'll be putting it together soon, I hope. Here's what I bought:

Hard Drive (80GB)
Processor (Dual Core)
Motherboard
Video Card
RAM (2x512MB)
Power Supply / Case

Now I just have to figure out how to put it all together.

Did Someone Say Feet?

2007-07-02T06:00:00.000-04:00

Oh yeah... now this is the good stuff. Last night I managed to finally install the plastic feet to the bottom of the cabinet so it won't mar the floor in my house. It was a painful process which took all of 2 minutes to accomplish. First I had to tear open the package (as seen below). Next, I had to peel off the paper on the back of the feet to expose the adhesive. Finally, I had to stick each piece onto the bottom of the cabinet. Sound tough? Now imagine having to do that 4 times.

I know, let's get on with it... I'm in the middle of programming the computer and the cabinet has been moved inside of the house for final testing. So I didn't exactly make my June 30 deadline - no big deal. I should have this thing 100% finished soon though!

Monitor Bezel Installation

2007-06-28T06:00:00.000-04:00

This is another pretty self-explanatory step. In order to frame the monitor, I decided to use some black matte board - you know, the stuff you use when framing a picture. The only real issue I ran into was finding it. I had to make sure the inside of the matte board was also black so when I cut it to size there wouldn't be a white center or something. I ended up spending about a week looking around for it because places like Michael's and A.C Moore did not carry "black with black core" matte board - they only had "black with white core" matte board. I finally found some at a local art supply store for $3.75 a sheet. It was perfect - and cheap!

Anyway, I ended up just tracing the monitor glass that I already had to size the matte board properly and then with the monitor in place I just measured in from the sides of the cab to the edge of the screen and cut everything out with a sharp razor and a straight edge. It's a good idea to cut it a little oversize and then trim it back to get a tight fit.

The hardest part was cutting out the interior corners because there is a tendency to over cut with the razor knife and you have to be extra careful if you want a crisp corner. I ended up cutting away from each corner on both sides.

The next picture shows how the bezel sits on top of the panel surrounding the monitor (it's not laying flat yet as you can tell). There is nothing holding it in place other than gravity - no glue is necessary. It sits in front of the 1/2" lip created by the top edge of the control panel. The glass will sit on top of the bezel leaving about a 1/8" lip. I wanted the matte board and glass to lay flush with the control panel but I didn't take into consideration the thickness of the velcro when planning everything. Oh well, at least there is no chance of it slipping out.

As you can see from the pictures below, with the grey tinted glass laying on top of the black matteboard you can't even tell that there is a monitor in there unless you really look for it. I can't wait to fire up a game because the screen should be the only thing you notice when it's on.

That's almost it as far as the construction goes. I still have to decide on how to wire up the power plug from the SmartStrip and do a little touch up painting and some other miscellaneous crap but this is pretty much what the finished product will look like.

Next up - installing all of the programs and getting it to actually work!

Control Panel Installation

2007-06-27T06:00:00.000-04:00

There's nothing fancy to see here. The only real problems I had to deal with were making sure the control panel did not move at all during gameplay and making sure the control panel was removeable at any time for maintenance or something. My first solution worked perfectly so it turned out to be pretty easy.

I bought some industrial strength velcro from Home depot and put two strips on the lip of the monitor panel that I had previously routed and the matching strips on the top of the underside of the control panel. Once I put the control panel in place it was a very tight fit. The velcro held up nicely and nothing was moving even when I pulled quite hard on the joystick.

The only other issue was holding the bottom portion of the control panel in place. Since there were some strips of wood on either side from when I first assembled the cabinet, I just used some 3" clamps to hold the bottom of the control panel in place. Easy!

Here are the results - it's looking pretty sweet right now.

Next up - installing the bezel around the monitor.

Update

2007-06-25T09:03:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I installed the monitor bezel and the feet on the bottom of the cabinet. The construction part is just about complete.

I also started to really think about splicing the SmartStrip into a plug that gets flush-mounted on the back of the cabinet. I'm just not sure this is the best way to go - the plug will force the cabinet to sit about 1.5" off of the wall... but so will the plug that goes into the wall so I'm not sure it matters. The alternative is to just cut a hole in the back and use a grommet (like the kind found on computer desks to let wires pass through) to feed the plug of the SmartStrip through.

I have to think about this.

Anyway, I have plenty computer configuration to get through this week to keep me busy.

The REVISED "Punch List"

2007-06-25T06:00:00.000-04:00

I guess I'm going to keep a running list of what I need to do in order to finish - I have to keep pushing forward because I have to have this thing completely finished by the end of June. There are still a bunch of minor things I have to do:

Cut hole in back of the cabinet and install the exterior plug
Splice new plug to SmartStrip
Wire the computer power button to a button on the cabinet somewhere [back?]
Apply the side art
~~Make a bezel out of black posterboard/matteboard and install~~
Wire the coin door
Touch-up paint
~~Install feet for the cabinet so it doesn't mar the floor~~
Install and configure the computer
Apply vinyl button decals (these are on order)

I am fairly certain that most of this can be completed in an afternoon - hopefully this weekend. The only part I anticipate having trouble with is the configuration of the computer. Sure, I'll have Pac-Man and a bunch of other games up and running but I have a lot more than just getting it to work to do. Here's the short list:

~~Wipe current computer clean and do a fresh install of XP~~
Compile MAME so it will save high scores properly and display the proper game information
Install MAME
Install MaLa (the front end menu which will launch the games)
Customizing the art/graphics for the front end (I'm making it pink!)
Create various .MAP files for the Ultimarc 360 joystick and get them to load upon the launching of a game
Configure buttons

The computer stuff scares me but I'll muddle through.

Marquee Installation!

2007-06-21T06:00:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I was also able to install the marquee. Is wasn't too difficult but I definitely hit a few snags along the way that I had to think through.

Here is what I started with:

The first thing I did was cut the marquee retainers that I ordered to the proper size. The plastic that the retainer is made out of is pretty thick but it is also brittle and cracked under the pressure from my radial saw so I ended up using a mitre box and hand saw. I cut them a bit oversized (1/32") and then sanded down the ends with some 100 grit sandpaper until I got a tight fit.

I toyed with the idea of using velcro to hold the retainer in place but the thickness of the velcro made the retainer sit about 1/16" off of the surface of the cabinet which wasn't going to work. The retainer also needs to be removable so I couldn't just glue it down. I decided to use 4 evenly spaced screws to secure it to the cabinet so the next thing I did was mark off where I wanted the screws to go. I decided on placing the two end screws 1" in from the end of the retainer and then I measured for the other 2 central screws so they would be spaced evenly. To place the holes, I measured up 1/4" from the plastic line that is part of the retainer (you can see it in the pictures).

Using an awl and my trusty rubber mallet, I marked off the holes where I would eventually drill. The reason to mark the holes with an awl is so the drill bit does not slip out of place.

After the holes were marked, I drilled them out using a 1/8" drill bit as shown below. Make sure the retainer is clamped in place as you drill so it doesn't slip.

You should get a nice clean hole for the screw as shown:

At this point I ran into my first problem. The screw caps I'm using to cover the screws lay very flat and a typical screw kind of slopes outward towards the screw head. The bottom line is that there was no way that the screw would lay flush with the retainer if I didn't modify the hole somehow. I decided to use a larger drill bit and a razor blade to dig out a cone shape for the screw head to sit in.

It was kind of a pain but it worked. I didn't have to be precise because the screw caps cover any imperfections around the hole.

The next step was to cut the marquee and the plexiglass to the proper size. This was pretty easy to do and just required a lot of trial and error. Mamemarquees printed the marquee a little oversized but all it took was a razor and straightedge to cut it to size.

I also had to cut the plexiglass which I did using my router, a straightedge and a flush trimming bit. I trimmed off about 1/32" at a time, tried to fit everything in place and then trimmed again until everything was nice and tight. I wish I remembered to take a picture of my arm after routing the plexiglass. The bit actually melted the plexiglass and all the little shavings stuck to my arm - it looked like icing from a Hostess Sno-Ball or something.

Now that the retainer, plexiglass and marquee were all cut to size, I clamped everything in place, drilled out the pilot holes and secured everything to the cabinet using 1/2" screws. Once that was finished I capped each screw head with a screp cap to give it a clean, finished look.

Here are the results:

I assure you it was easier to install the marquee than type up this post.

The control panel installation is up next!

Speaker Cover Installation

2007-06-18T06:00:00.000-04:00

It's hard not to rush when you're this close... I am probably 95% done with the build except for the computer configuration which is going to be difficult. Anyway, over the course of this week I'll be detailing my progress for the various tasks that I did over the weekend. First up....

Speaker Grills
A while back I purchased some speaker covers from Chokes Unlimited I finally installed them over the weekend. Nothing fancy here:

Using a stop block up against the back panel, I positioned the speaker covers and taped them in place
Using a 1/8" drill bit I drilled 4 pilot holes for each cover
Then I screwed the speaker covers in place
Finally, I used some black screw caps to hide the screw heads and give it a clean, finished look

I think the pictures are pretty self-explanatory.

More minor updates coming all this week!

The Return of More Pictures!

2007-06-14T06:00:00.000-04:00

I might as well dump what's on the camera... It's not like I'll be using these shots anywhere else so what the hell, right? I took a couple of close-ups of the top and bottom just for fun. I really love how reflective the paint job is - too bad my camera stinks because it looks a million times better in person... Also, the flash from the picture of the top interior really makes the black paint job look terrible - it is completely flat and muted in person with no noticable texture... oh well.

These pictures also helped me decide that I absolutely have to replace the coin door return buttons. They are the only part of the entire cabinet that doesn't fit in right because they are yellow and not pink. They are going to be very difficult to replace because as far as I know no one makes pink ones. Stay tuned for my solution on that...

Even More Pictures!

2007-06-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

I know, I know - this is getting ridiculous... Here are a few more pictures of the cabinet with the t-molding and coin door installed. I had planned to install the marquee last night but I didn't have the proper screws to attach the marquee retainer or the velcro to hold the flourescent light in place. Looks like I have to go to Home Depot today!

Thanks for looking!!

MORE Progress Pictures

2007-06-12T06:00:00.001-04:00

Nothing much to note here regarding the construction or anything. I was able to install the front panel which contains the coin door (and is hinged on the right for access to the computer) as well as the pink t-molding. At first I was put off by the pinkness of the t-molding but after I popped in the control panel and hung the marquee and sideart with some tape it looked really really good - the buttons and some of the coloring in the marquee and sideart match the t-molding just like I had planned.

One note about the t-molding installation... it definitely wasn't as easy as it should have been and that was my own fault. Throughout the finishing process the cabinet was very wet due to wetsanding the lacquer finish. A lot of this water spilled over the edges and I had to continually wipe the spills up with a rag. A lot of the water also came into contact with the unprotected edge of the cabinet where the t-molding slot was located and severely weakened the MDF. When I went to put on the t-molding, it didn't necessarily want to follow the slot I had routed when I was hammering it in with my rubber mallet and there were a few spots where it made it's own groove - off center.

It was an easy fix - all I had to do was remove the t-molding, straighten the slot out with a flathead screwdriver, carefully align the t-molding with the slot and hammer it in again. My previous experience was that t-molding was super easy to install and didn't require careful attention. I won't make that mistake again!

I definitely do not think this will be a long-term problem or anything - the t-molding really fit snugly into the slot (without glue) and went deeper than the water damage on the surface of the edge so it had something to cling to in there. I just wanted to point it out in case someone decided to try my finish.

The Finish: It's... um, FINISHED!!

2007-06-11T06:00:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I was *finally* able to finish the, um... finishing. Woo hoo!!!! What a pain! It took a very long time but I think the results are worth it - plus I learned a ton from the finishing process - the next one will come out even nicer (if there is a next one - I'm seriously considering lamination for the next finish - it's a million times easier and probably looks just as nice).

Anyway, here's a couple of pictures showing off the finish - it really looks stunning in person (flaws and all). In these shots I am 1/2 way finished with applying the rubbing compound - you can see the reflection of the rag I used in the bottom half. The top part is "only" sanded. The difference is pretty unbelievable.

Check it out:

I'll be posting more pictures later in the week and I'll try to do a write up on the last few steps but I think the finishing process has been talked about to death. I should note, however, that I only applied 2 coats of each of the rubbing compound and polish (as opposed to the 4-5 coats I originally planned). That stuff is harsh and cuts through the finish quite easily. There were a few sections where I sanded down too far to the pink paint and the rubbing compound was really eating into that and I didn't want to hit the white primer so I stopped.

Once the finish was completely applied I was going to go inside and start making dinner and get ready for the Sopranos finale but I was so excited so I installed the front panel, the pink t-molding and the coin door. I still have a bunch of things to do but I'm well on my way to wrapping up this project within the next 7-10 days!

Stay tuned!!

The Finish: Sanding It Smooth!!

2007-06-04T06:00:00.000-04:00

I didn't really like Test Panel #1 so I decided to create Test Panel #2 to test out a new finishing process. It came out pretty good (but didn't photograph well) so I decided to use this process on the pink panels (except the back one). I want to achieve an "automotive/piano" finish on the sides and front of the cabinet and Test Panel #1 just wasn't going to cut it. The polyeurathane top coat came out a little too streaky for my tastes (although it's probably due more to using improper supplies than anything else) and it just didn't have that extra special quality that I was striving for on this cabinet. This post will explain the process I went through in finishing the pink panels as best as I can. Two things right up front:

This process is a huge pain and is taking a very long time to complete.
Anyone who is interested on how I got the cabinet to turn out like it did should read here first. This link goes into pretty good detail about how to achieve a mirror finish on an MDF surface using automotive supplies. I followed this guide as close as possible.
For 99% of the sanding I used a Makita Palm Sander. It is worth every penny - your arms will fall off if you try to sand this project entirely by hand.
After sanding I always used a tack cloth to remove the sawdust left behind before applying another coat of paint. I highly recommend doing this.

The first thing I did was sand the surface of the MDF with 600 grit sandpaper. MDF is flat and smooth but not nearly as flat and smooth as it needs to be in order to start the finishing process. It's hard to believe but trust me on this one. After you go over it a few times with some 600 grit sandpaper you will not believe the difference.

The next step was to "seal" the MDF because the pink paint I applied is water-based and MDF will soak up water like a sponge and basically ruin it. I applied two coats of an oil-based primer to seal the MDF - other people suggested watering down some Elmer's glue (like 80% water to 20% glue) and slapping it on there to seal it once the glue dries but I was too much of a wuss to try it out. The oil-based primer worked great on my test panel so that's what I went with.

After the primer dried I sanded the entire cabinet smooth using 220 grit sandpaper before applying the pink paint. I applied 6 coats of pink paint and sanded in between with 220 grit sandpaper (except for the last coat). Then I applied 25 coats of spray lacquer as I described in an earlier post.

Now comes the "fun" part. Once the lacquer fully cured (over a two week period) I sanded it down to a super smooth surface. I spent 5(!) hours sanding one side of the cabinet. Five hours. One side. I used 1500 grit sandpaper, a palm sander, and a sponge. This is the sandpaper I used:

I divided the panel into thirds and spent about an hour and a half wetsanding each third. I'm still not finished with it entirely. I can still see a bunch of reflective sparkles all over the place when the light hits it just right - these are small divots that are still present even though I've sanded like crazy. I don't know what to do next - I'm debating whether or not to continue sanding this week trying to remove the tiny divots or if I should move on to the rubbing compound and polish. I'm not so sure the rubbing compound does anything to be honest - I applied a bit to a lint-free rag and started rubbing it in and I didn't notice a difference at all with the finish. The divots were still there.

Also, there are some sections that are starting to appear duller than others - I'm not sure if the dull sections indicate that I am getting the finish I want (and I just have to keep sanding) or if they indicate that I've completely sanded through the lacquer and I'm sanding the pink paint. The last thing I want to do is sand through the paint to the white primer or worse, the MDF. I am quite frustrated.

However, as it stands now (without rubbing compound and polish) it looks very nice from across the room (or even right next to the thing but if the light hits the cabinet just right you can definitely see imperfections which are making me nuts). I'm probably the only one that will notice them... or maybe I'm not - I don't know.

Check it out:

There are some places that look amazingly smooth and flat and others that have the divots no matter what I do. I've attached some pics of what I did (the sideart is just laying there). As you can tell from the pictures, the finish is quite flat - not a brush stroke to be found! I am going to go over it with 4-5 coats of rubbing compound and then top it off with 4-5 coats of polish/wax just to be safe. This is definitely hard to do and I have a whole new level of respect for people who finish cars (and pianos) for a living - you need some serious talent and experience!

Stay tuned for the polished/waxed panel!

The "Punch List"

2007-05-29T06:00:00.000-04:00

While I'm waiting for the lacquer to fully cure I guess I can turn my attention to some of the finishing details. There are still plenty of things I have to do in addition to the final sanding and polish of the cabinet. I still have to:

Install the speaker covers (and the screw caps)
Install the exterior plug (which involves splicing my SmartStrip so I'm a bit nervous)
Wire the computer power button to a button on the back of the cab somewhere
Install the marquee (cut the retainer strips too) and apply the side art
Make a bezel out of black posterboard/matteboard or something
Install the CP (figure out a way to keep the joystick in place)
Install and wire the coin door
Install t-molding
CONFIGURE THE COMPUTER - this is easily the biggest hurdle for me because I stink.

I'm sure I left some stuff out but all of this can be done in an afternoon so it's really not that much. I'm planning to wake up early this weekend on Saturday and Sunday and sand and polish until noon (or until my arms fall off). I can probably work from 7am-12pm both days. Hopefully I'll get all of the sanding/polishing done on Saturday so I can completely finish everything on Sunday but I'm guessing the sanding and polishing is a two day job so the finishing details will have to wait until the following week.

I can't wait!

UGLY Progress Picture

2007-05-25T06:00:00.000-04:00

After I finished spraying the entire cabinet, I couldn't resist temporarily installing all of the remaining parts and snapping a few pictures to get a sense as to what the finished cabinet will look like. I popped in the control panel (which is now a very tight fit due to the black layers of paint), the coin door, the glass over the bezel panel and hung the marquee in place (with a piece of tape). I am not going to install the pink t-molding until I absolutely have to - after the cabinet is sanded and polished.

Jeez it sure looks UGLY. You can totally see the last spray lines from the final lacquer coat - good thing this will all get sanded out in the finishing process. The pink also comes out really white looking from the camera flash and the front and sides look like 2 different shades but they are identical in person. Something tells me I'm not going to be able to get an accurate picture until this thing inside the house and completely finished (taking the picture at night in an unlit garage probably doesn't help either). I wasn't going to share because it really looks bad but I figure that someone else might follow my lead and get to this point and start to panic so enjoy!

Thanks for looking!

The Finish: Lacquering Has Begun!

2007-05-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

After thinking about it for a while I decided I will be "finishing" the top panel along with the two side panels and the coin door panel in front. When I'm done, all of the visible pink areas will have the super smooth lacquered/polished finish. It is going to be a huge pain to do the top panel because of the two interior corners I will have to sand up against but I've come this far so what the heck. The only panel that will not be "finished" is the back one which will never be seen.

I sprayed on 25(!) coats of lacquer on the cabinet over the weekend. I went through 5 cans of the stuff and probably breathed in more than I should have. This is what I used:

The 25 coats took a while to apply but the good thing is that the lacquer dries to the touch almost instantly so you can recoat after about 5 or 10 minutes. It also bonds to itself so there is no need to sand in between coats to rough up the surface so it will stick. I'm pretty confident it has a thick enough layer so I can sand it smooth but not sand through to the paint.

When the time comes, I'm going to strictly be wetsanding with 1500 grit sandpaper - I'm not going to be working my way up to it or anything because I don't want to remove too much of the lacquer. Now comes the hard part - waiting. I need to give it two weeks for the lacquer to fully cure just to be safe but I really really really want to finish everything this weekend since we have the holiday and everything. Argh!

The Finish: Lacquering Prep Work

2007-05-22T06:00:00.000-04:00

The next step is to apply the lacquer over the final coat of paint. I spent an hour prepping the cabinet by masking off all of the areas that I didn't want the lacquer to get into with some newspaper and painter's tape. I also bought some cheap drop cloths to cover all of the tools in my garage where I was going to spray the lacquer because I didn't want to ruin anything. It would have been nice to spray outside but the pollen from the trees and the dust and everything from neighbors cutting the grass would be more likely to stick to the wet cabinet so I had to keep it in the garage.

This is what it looked like all taped up:

Next up: Applying the lacquer!

Stay Tuned!

The Finish: Final Coat of Pink and Sanding

2007-05-21T06:00:00.000-04:00

Over the weekend I began the final sanding and applied the last coat of pink paint. I ended up putting on 6 total coats with a 4" foam roller and sanding after applying coat #2 (with 220 grit) and coat #5. For the sanding of coat #5 I started with 220 grit and got it fairly smooth and then moved up to 600 to try and really get it nice and flat and remove all of the "orange peel" left by the roller. I had planned to take it all the way to 1500 but I think 600 is good enough and that would have been overkill (kind of like this entire process but that's another story).

After I finished the sanding I added one more thin layer of pink paint before applying the lacquer. I know some people suggest sanding the pink smooth and applying the lacquer immediately afterwards but I just don't trust that the color will be vibrant enough. The sanding really dulls everything. Besides, the test panels I made came out great and I sanded, then applied the final coat of paint and then lacquered so I think I'll be OK. The roller I used is pictured - the brand name is Whizzer. They are really great and I've tried a bunch of different types and these seem to give the best results (little to no "orange peel" and no air bubbles).

It took me way longer than I anticipated to do that final sanding. I kept thinking "when you think you've sanded enough, sand some more" so I probably went over the entire thing 4 or 5 times with the 220 grit and then another 4 or 5 times with the 600 grit. My arms were about ready to fall off.

After the sanding process was finished, I used a tack cloth to remove the dust and get the surfaces ready for the final coat of paint. Everything was VERY smooth at this point so the final coat of paint went on very even - it looks great as it is right now without any lacquer so hopefully the lacquer will come out nice and take this thing to the next level.

Thanks for looking!!

The Monitor/Bezel Glass

2007-05-17T06:00:00.000-04:00

I finally got a chance this past weekend to go and pick up the glass I ordered to cover the monitor and bezel area. The glass shop is only open during the week and I took Monday off to do some chores and stuff around the house so I was able to go pick it up.

I ordered a 3/8" thick tempered piece of GRAY tinted glass. The gray tint actually enhances the colors of the monitor and makes the edges of the graphics look sharper. It's hard to explain but if you've ever seen the difference up close it's a no brainer - gray tinted glass is the way to go.

Here's a shot of the glass:

And here's a shot of it laying in its place (don't mind the little cork squares on the bottom - they are only there for protection right now). The fit is unbelievable - I really did a nice job (surprisingly) with making everything square and level. The glass goes right up to the edges on all 4 sides and I know it is square because that's what I ordered.

Thanks for looking!

It's PINK!!!

2007-05-02T06:00:00.000-04:00

I finally got a coat of pink paint on the cabinet! It is coming out VERY nice - you can hardly tell the paint was rolled on. There are virtually no "orange peel" marks on the surface. I plan on applying 3-4 more coats of pink paint before moving on to the insane finishing process which consists of spray lacquer, 1500 grit sandpaper, rubbing compound and polish.

More pics are coming soon but here's a teaser:

Thanks for looking!!

Side Art?

2007-04-24T18:00:00.000-04:00

I think I'm going to cave and add some side art to Bella's Arcade. From the outset of this project I was not planning on adding side art to the cabinet because I wanted to keep it simple, however after painting everything I realized that the cabinet sides are kind of plain so.... I had some side art designed! megashock05 was kind enough to put something together based on the marquee he previously designed. I really love what he came up with and I think I'm going to have it printed by mamemarquees and slap it on both sides of my cabinet! Check it out:

Pretty cool! It's not 100% finalized (I want to think about it for a little while before I have it printed) but I don't think I can make it any better.

Thanks for looking!!

Control Panel Wiring!

2007-04-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

OK, since I haven't been able to find a chunk of free time to finish painting the cabinet, I decided to wire up my control panel while watching TV. It was pretty easy to do - the whole process took less than an hour from start to finish. Wiring can be an intimidating part of building an arcade cab but once you know what to do it actually turns out to be the easiest part of the entire build.

The first thing I did was make a map of the wiring harness that came with my Ultimarc 360. There are 10 nodes and 9 wires coming out of it. One is "ground" and the other 8 can be hooked up to any button for any use. Since I only have 7 buttons on my control panel (Action 1, Action 2, Action 3, Player 1 Start, Player 2 Start, ESC and Coin) this is the perfect solution and it also means that I do not need any type of keyboard encoder like a KeyWiz or iPac.

As you can see from the diagram, the wiring harness is completely color coded which is very helpful - it doesn't even matter what button you decide to wire up to what color since the entire thing is customizable. The purple node is not being used currently but I'm debating on wiring up a hidden "pause" button so Bella can take a break if necessary - I haven't worked out the logistics of that though (there's nowhere to put it!).

Each button is operated by a microswitch which looks like what is pictured to the left. The top prong typically isn't used for an arcade button, the middle prong receives the wire from the wiring harness and the bottom prong receives the ground wire. The ground wires can be "daisy-chained" together meaning that the black wire from the wiring harness will be run to "ground" on the first microswitch and then to "ground" on the second microswitch and so on until it ends at the last button's "ground" prong. There is no need to complete the loop and wire back to the harness. That's all there is to it.

In order to connect the wires to the microswitches, I used "female wire disconnects" (shown) - they are sold in packs of 100 for less than $5. You strip the end of the wire, stick it in the insulated end of the connector and then crimp it shut so the wire stays in place. The connector then just slides on to the microswitch prong. Easy!

Here are some pictures of the completed wiring job:

Thanks for looking!!

Day 13: The Paint Job Continues

2007-04-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

Now we get to the good stuff... sort of. This past weekend I was fortuante enough to apply the first two black top coats to the interior of my cabinet. I took a few pictures to show off how I'm going about painting it which is a little unusual for cabinets like this (I think). The pictures below were taken after I applied the first coat and you can see right through the black paint in a lot of places - it was very uneven and splotchy and I was quite scared that I ruined the entire thing. The second coat went on much nicer though (which isn't shown, unfortunately). Check it out:

Thanks for looking!!

Day 12: The Paint Job Begins

2007-04-12T06:00:00.000-04:00

Not much to say about this part other than the fact that I applied three coats of a white oil-based primer to the entire cabinet. I waited a minimum of 24 hours between each coat and I sanded in between using 220 grit sandpaper. I used a high-quality foam roller to apply the paint on the large surfaces and a foam brush to get into the corners. It was a tedious process and it is actually quite difficult to get a smooth even coat of paint - I guess I should learn how to use a spray gun. The sandpaper did a pretty nice job of evening everything out though. I don't have any pictures of the all white cabinet, unfortunately but you can use your imagination. The real fun will begin once I start adding the colored top coats.

The plan is to paint any surface black that is visible on the outside that faces the interior and to paint the two side panels, the coin door panel, the top panel and the back panel pink. I can't wait!

Thanks for looking!!

Display Problems

2007-04-11T06:00:00.000-04:00

Ack! For the past week or so I've been trying to configure the software and get everything running properly on the computer. There is a TON of work involved because I basically have to manually go through 6,000+ games that I have and figure out which ones are displayed vertically and which ones work. I loaded up a few games I knew I wanted on there - just the basics - Pac-man, Donkey Kong, Mr. Do!, Super Pac-man (pictured), Frogger, etc. and they are not displaying to the edge of the screen or in the correct aspect ratio (they look squashed). There is about 2" lost on the top and bottom and about 0.75" on the sides and I'm not sure how to fix it. Check it out:

I know... it doesn't look that bad from the pictures but I assure you that it is quite annoying when I'm playing. If I can't resolve this issue I guess I could always cut the cardboard bezel to frame the area of the monitor that actually displays but that would be a last resort. I'm probably going to need some tech support once I really dive into the software configuration and am ready to finish this thing...

Thanks for looking!!

Progress Pics

2007-04-03T22:11:00.000-04:00

I took these a while ago and never got around to posting them - just a few shots of the finished control panel installed in the cabinet with the coin door, monitor and marquee all in place. All that's missing is the paint job and the t-molding!

I will be posting pics of a very white cabinet soon. I was able to recently put three coats of primer on the cabinet - I'm almost ready for the pink!!

Thanks for looking!!!

Time To Get Organized - Again!

2007-04-02T11:48:00.000-04:00

*SIGH*

I still have a ton of work to do on my cabinet and it's time to make another "punchlist" so I have some sense of order to what I'm doing. Here goes (again!):

Cabinet Construction
1. Cut hole in rear for power attachment (See HERE for what I'm talking about)
2. Tape cabinet to accept the black paint on the interior
3. Paint black section of the cabinet (4 or more coats, as necessary, sanding in between)
4. Tape cabinet to accept the pink paint on the exterior
5. Paint pink section of the cabinet (4 or more coats, as necessary, sanding in between)
6. Spray on 15 coats of lacquer
7. Wet sand coin door panel and two side panels with 1500 grit sandpaper for finish
8. Apply rubbing compound and polish to coin door panel and two side panels
9. Cut marquee retainer
10. Install marquee
11. Install speaker covers (use screw caps)
12. Install pink t-molding
13. Cut posterboard bezel
14. Install glass over the monitor

Electronics
1. Install recessed plug outlet in rear of cabinet (hook up SmartStrip)
2. Install coin door
3. Install monitor
4. Wire everything (buttons, joystick, coin door, etc.)
5. Set up MAME
6. Set up MaLa (front end)
7. Place computer in cabinet

To Buy
1. Recessed plug outlet

Wow - this looks like a lot more than it really is when you break it out. By this weekend I should have at least one coat of the pink and black paint on the cabinet (it's completely primed right now). Basically, all that's left is the finish on the cabinet and hooking up the computer (and some miscellaneous stuff). I'm getting closer!!

Thanks for looking!!

Day 11: The Finished Control Panel (part 3)

2007-03-13T12:00:00.000-04:00

This is it! Part 3 of "The Finished Control Panel" really shows off how I finally applied the vinyl overlay and installed all of the buttons into the control panel. I am very pleased with the results.

I had some left over vinyl from my other arcade project so I didn't even have to spend any money on it (which is a good thing because I'm already over-budget). Anyway, if you need to obtain some vinyl I got mine from Happs. The exact type I used is called Black Pica Vinyl (Part No. 49-0474-10). I normally don't recommend them because they really really kill you on shipping but at the time I placed my order (2004) it was the only place I could find - there are probably better places to get it nowadays.

First and foremost I made sure that the entire control panel was sanded completely smooth - especially at the joints where two pieces of MDF were glued together. I can't stress this enough - ANY imperfection on the surface that you apply the vinyl to will show through to the finished product because the vinyl is so thin. Even though MDF is very smooth to begin with, I still sanded the entire surface down, including the edges, using 600 grit sandpaper. This is the part that is tempting to rush through because it's tedious and the fun part is applying the vinyl but definitely take your time. If you rush and there's a bump or a seam showing through to the finished control panel you are going to notice it every time you sit down to play.

After sanding the control panel smooth the next thing I did was eyeball the size piece I was going to need to completely cover the control panel as well as wrap around to the back (so it would stay on better). I cut out the rough rectangular shape using a regular pair of scissors. Again, the vinyl is very thin so it is super easy to cut.

The next step is where things get a bit difficult and you really have to be careful and take your time. As you can see from the picture, I removed the paper backing to the vinyl. It's really like a giant sticker - the entire back is coated in an adhesive.

I applied the vinyl to the actual control panel surface first because the less vinyl that is stuck on the more control you have over it and if there was any place I didn't want any air bubbles or imperfections to show through this was it. I worked from the front edge and rolled the vinyl on towards the back making sure everything was lined up properly. My rough cut piece was plenty oversized so it's not like I had to be too careful here - the main concern was smoothing out the surface, removing all of the air bubbles and pulling everything tight. It's tricky to manage everything with only two hands!

After the vinyl was applied to the entire surface of the control panel and wrapped around to the back it was time to cut the vinyl to proper size. To do this I just used a razor and the edge of the MDF and cut it freehand. As long as you keep the blade tight against the edge of the MDF you will get a perfectly straight line. Make sure that the edge of the control panel that you are trimming is flat against your cutting table, including the edges. This may take some creative maneuvering of the control panel around the table - especially when you are cutting the pieces you wrapped around to the inside of the control panel.

And there you have it. As you can see below, the entire surface of the control panel has been covered in vinyl and cut to the proper size. You can see the indentations where the holes are for the buttons and joystick. I did clean up the back a little bit so the vinyl that wrapped around wouldn't be in the way of the buttons.

Now comes the really fun part - installing the controls! There's really nothing to it. Before cutting out each button hole I pressed the vinyl into the hole to make sure it was stick to the edge of the button hole as best as possible. Then using the razor, I rough cut the hole making sure to not even come close to the edge. Once I removed the piece of vinyl in the middle I used the razor to make a ton of little cuts in the vinyl from the edge of the hole to the center (probably about 15 per button). This allows the vinyl that is overhanging the hole to wrap rather neatly inside of the hole so the button can fit through with little resistance and no warping of the top surface.

I repeated this process for each button and installed the controls accordingly. I think is came out great - I was able to achieve a "professional" look with just a little time and minimal effort. There are no unsightly screws showing through to the surface and the look is very clean.

Here are the results!

In addition, I should note that I decided to not use a piano hinge to connect the control panel to the cabinet. I decided instead to use two 3" clamps on the bottom of the control panel to secure it to the cabinet on the inside - there are two pieces of 1.5" x 0.75" strips of wood on the inside that I can clamp it to. Along the top edge I am going to install a strip of velcro which will allow the top part of the control panel to attach to the rabbetted lip on the bezel panel. The reason I made this decision is because there was not enough overhang by the control panel to allow for the bottom to be hinged. Also, the actual hinges would end up overhanging the coin door panel by about 1/8" and it would not be able to open.

I think the clamps and velcro will be strong enough to hold the control panel in place but I guess I won't really know until the cab is up and running and Bella is pulling on the joystick. This is one of the first design decisions I had to make on the fly but I think it will be OK.

The only thing I'm waiting on in order to truly call the control panel 100% finished is the vinyl button decals I'm ordering from MikeDeuce over at BYOAC. This will add the finishing touches and label each button so the user will know what does what. Hopefully he will be able to send them to me soon!

Whew! That was a long post... Thanks for looking!!

Day 11: The Finished Control Panel (part 2)

2007-03-09T12:00:00.000-05:00

OK nothing much else to explain in these next pictures... Here are some shots of the fully assembled control panel with the clamps removed and then a dry fit into the cabinet:

As you can see from the dry fit below, things are starting to come together. A nice coat of paint and it should look like it came straight from the factory!

Here are some pictures of the assembled control panel with the controls installed and again dry fit into the cabinet.

That's it for now. Part 3 of the Finished Control Panel posts will detail the vinyl application and final touches.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 11: The Finished Control Panel (part 1)

2007-03-07T12:00:00.000-05:00

Finally! This past weekend I finally put my table saw together and got it working! The first order of business was to complete the angled cuts for my control panel. I already have the top piece cut where the buttons and joystick will go but I needed to cut two more pieces to form the bottom of the control panel box as shown in the pictures below.

In order to glue these pieces together I used a caul that was cut at the same angle. This allowed me to apply even clamping pressure over the entire joint (you can see the glue-up process with the caul better in a pic below). I still had to sand the joints smooth though. The vinyl covering that will go voer the control panel is very thin so any imperfections will show through to the finished product.

These next pictures just show how the control panel will eventually look in place when the top piece was installed.

The next step was to attach the control panel top to the base that I had just glued together. Before doing this, I wanted to round over the front edge of the panel. When the cabinet is in use the player's hands will be resting there quite a bit so I did this for comfort (and aesthetics I suppose - I think it looks nicer with a rounded edge).

Here's a "before" shot of the control panel top and a few shots of my router with the 1/4" roundover bit installed. The ball bearing on the bit rides along the edge of the MDF to create a perfectly round surface.

And here are the "after" shots of the rounded over edge:

Finally, here are some shots of the glue-up of the weird control panel base to the top. As mentioned above, you can see the caul I used to create a tight bond between the panels. The clamps would have been impossible to position properly without the extra piece which is cut at exactly the same angle as the other pieces. You can really start to see it take shape.

I will be posting parts 2 and 3 of this process in the coming days.

Thanks for looking!!

Color Scheme

2007-02-20T12:00:00.000-05:00

I didn't get much done over the weekend unfortunately due to pulling a muscle in my back and having to lay on the couch the entire time. It figures - I finally get a three-day weekend to work on the cabinet and I can't. Anyway, I was feeling better on Monday so I routed some t-molding slots on my test panel so I could see what the final color scheme will look like. Here are some pics:

Apparently my camera doesn't like to take close up shots of anything so excuse the blurriness but you get the idea. I'm actually quite happy with how it looks in person. I was going back and forth on whether or not to just use black t-molding and play it safe but I think the pink t-molding really makes it stand out and have a unique feel.

In other news, I started Test Panel #2 but all I could get done was putting 3 coats of primer on it because it takes 4 hours for the oil-based paint to dry. I will be adding 3 or 4 coats of pink to Test Panel #2 today and hopefully spraying on the lacquer finish tomorrow. The pink paint is latex so it dries in an hour and the lacquer can accept another coat every 20 minutes (but will take about a week to fully cure).

I am purposely spending a lot of time trying to get the finish just right because if this thing has any chance of residing in Bella's room the wife is going to have to approve of it.

Thanks for looking!

More Progress Pictures!

2007-02-16T21:48:00.000-05:00

I couldn't resist. I decided to temporarily install the controls, the monitor, the coin door and the marquee. You can get a pretty good idea what the finished cabinet will look like!

Thanks for looking!!

Finish: Test Panel #1

2007-02-15T12:00:00.000-05:00

Finishing the cabinet has become a sticking point for me on this project. I want to achieve as shiny and reflective of a paint job as possible and make it resistant to damage or juice spills or whatever - 2 year olds can be very messy! The only way I could think of to get the finish I know I would be happy with is to do a series of test panels and stop when I get the look I'm going for.

Over the last few days I've been playing around with a scrap piece of MDF, some pink paint and some Minwax polyurathane. Here is the process I used for finishing Test Panel #1:

1. Sanded MDF with 150 grit sandpaper
2. Rolled on first coat of primer

NOTE: I used an OIL BASED primer because a water-based primer will soak into the MDF and ruin it!

3. Sanded with 150 grit sandpaper
4. Rolled on second coat of primer
5. Sanded with 220 grit sandpaper
6. Rolled on first coat of paint

NOTE: I used a latex, water-based paint (made by Behr) which is OK to apply after the MDF is sealed.

7. Sanded with 220 grit sandpaper
8. Rolled on second coat of paint

At this point I was completely unhappy with how it was coming out. I had multiple particles/hairs in the paint (probably from a bad roller) and there was an unmistakable "orange peel" texture all over the place that you could feel and worse yet see. I decided to change up my strategy:

9. Sanded with 220 grit sandpaper
10. Using a FOAM BRUSH I applied a third coat of paint.
11. Applied first coat of poly (Minwax) using the foam brush.
12. Sanded with 220 grit sandpaper
13. Applied second coat of poly using the foam brush.
14. Sanded with 220 grit sandpaper
15. Applied third coat of poly using the foam brush.
16. Sanded with 600 grit sandpaper
17. Applied FINAL coat of poly using the foam brush.

It's pretty smooth to the touch but it definitely isn't reflective in any way (the pics lie!). The color is consistent though which is really great. It isn't perfect but it looks much much better than the "orange peel" thing I had going on. There is still a very slight "brushed" look on it but it is not that noticable (of course I notice it though - and it's making me a little nuts).

Here are the "before" and "after" pics:

Not too bad I guess but there's definitely room for improvement.

Here are some extra (not so good) shots of the finished panel. The flash of the camera kind of ruins the pictures and I don't think you get a good sense of what it actually looks like unless you are standing next to it. The finish is still a bit streaky and there are a few spots where air bubbles in the poly dried leaving it a bit bumpy - you just can't see it in the pictures. That said, the bottom picture really makes the finished surface look like it is mirrored or something - check out the reflection of the paper towel! I assure you it doesn't really look like that up close.

I'm going to try a different method over the next few days on a separate panel and see if I can come up with something better. I haven't tried using a foam roller and since I kind of like the way the foam brush came out I'm going to give that a shot. I'm also hoping to talk to an actual painter or someone that works at a paint specialty shop and see what they think. I will be starting test panel #2 in a few days when I get a chance to buy a foam roller and some different supplies.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 10: Crazy Bezel Panel - DONE!!

2007-02-13T12:00:00.000-05:00

I finally finished the monitor bezel panel! It wasn't that difficult to make once I figured out how I was going to go about holding the monitor in place. The main things I wanted to accomplish were getting the monitor to rest exactly flush with the monitor bezel panel and placing the monitor in place so it could not move around yet still be easily removable for maintenance or whatever.

The pictures I took of this process are self-explanatory (and totally overkill!):

The reason I have two separate strips covering the back of the monitor is because of the button in the center on the back of the monitor which is used to release the stand that came with it. I could have used one panel and drilled out a hole or something but this was just as easy.

Here is a shot of the monitor bezel panel installed in the cabinet:

Here are some "money shots" of the panel with the monitor in place.

I think it came out pretty good - I'm really glad I went with the 19" monitor over the 17" one because it fills up the space nicely. Besides, when talking about TVs and monitors, bigger is always better!!

Tips:
1. Make sure the measurement for the height of the side strips is as accurate as possible. This will determine the depth at which the monitor will sit. All of the other cuts and measurements don't need to be exact because the player will never see the framing of the monitor once the cabinet is finished.
2. Before gluing anything in place permanently make sure to test your cuts for accuracy. Place the monitor face down inside the monitor bezel panel (which should already have the rectangular cutout in it) and build the monitor frame without gluing anything. Make sure there is absolutely no spacing between the back of the monitor and the strips of MDF that stretch across the back.
3. Use clamps to glue everything together - one piece at a time. This takes longer but will produce a more accurate result.

Thanks for looking!!

Time To Get Organized

2007-02-09T12:00:00.000-05:00

OK, I need to get somewhat organized if I am ever going to finish this project so this is going to be a detailed "punchlist" of things I have left to do.

Cabinet Construction

~~Cut second monitor strip to hold monitor in place~~
~~Glue monitor strips in place~~
~~Re-cut top panel to proper size (the first one is about 1/8" too short)~~
Glue top panel in place
Glue bezel panel in place
~~Cut angled control panel pieces (3) on tablesaw~~
~~Glue angled control panel pieces to control panel top~~
Cut angled rear panel to hide speaker wire and marquee light wire
Drill hole in rear for Smart Strip
Prime entire cab (2 coats, sanding in between)
Tape cabinet to accept the black paint on the interior
Paint black section of the cabinet (3 or more coats, as necessary, sanding in between)
Tape cabinet to accept the pink paint on the exterior
Paint pink section of the cabinet (3 or more coats, as necessary, sanding in between)
Add polyurethane/rubbing compound to entire cabinet for protection/shine
Cut marquee retainer
Install marquee
~~Add vinyl overlay to control panel~~
~~Install speaker covers (use screw caps)~~
Install grommet for Smart Strip
Install pink t-molding
Cut posterboard bezel
Install glass over the monitor

Electronics

Install buttons and joystick
Install DVD-ROM to computer
Install coin door
Install Smart Strip
Install monitor
Wire everything (buttons, joystick, coin door, etc.)
Set up MAME
Set up MaLa (front end)
Place computer in cabinet

To Buy

Screw caps for speaker covers
Hinge for control panel
Primer/Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
1/4" Glass (to cover monitor)
Black posterboard (for bezel)
Grommet for Smart Strip plug

Wow that's a lot of things left to do! I guess the tasks are broken down quite a bit so maybe it won't take forever but I better get moving on this if I want to finish sometime in the spring.

Thanks for looking!!

So... cold... can't... work...

2007-02-05T18:00:00.000-05:00

It has been hovering around 10 degrees outside for the better part of a week now so I haven't been able to get much work on my cabinet done in my unheated garage. In fact, I noticed that the cold weather started to affect the dimensions of the cabinet - pieces that I had previously cut (but hadn't glued) that used to be snug were fitting a little looser than before.

On Saturday I had my dad come over and help me move the unfinished cabinet from the garage to the basement. By Sunday night when I went to test fit the same piece it was snug again due to the warmth of the basement. Whew!

The big problem now is going to be painting the cabinet in the basement. I am going to try and set up some sort of paint booth made out of plastic drop cloths so I don't get the paint everywhere. I'll probably end up covering other important stuff with plastic just to be safe - I wouldn't want to get pink paint on Knights of the Arcade Table! I'll also have to make sure the booth is well ventilated to the outside somehow so I can breathe.

Anyway, I managed to cut a few of the smaller pieces to fit around the back of the monitor bezel panel which will eventually hold the monitor in place. It looks pretty good so far and my cuts were accurate enough to allow for the front of the monitor to lie exactly flush with the monitor bezel panel. I'm also playing around with the idea of physically screwing the monitor to the monitor brace. It depends whether or not the brace I'm making plus gravity holds the monitor in place with no chance of movement. There are 4 screws on the back of the monitor that don't seem to do anything so I would be able to use them to screw the monitor in place. Take a look:

Bringing the cabinet inside also let me play around with some of the finishing pieces like the marquee to get a feel for what it will look like when finished. I can also install the coin door and monitor to really get a sense of what the finished cabinet will look like (I'm even tempted to put the t-molding on but I'd have to remove it to paint so that's not such a good idea).

I guess the next few steps are going to be setting up the computer and making sure all the vertical games you can play with 3 buttons and a joystick are working properly. I'll also have to configure the front end (MaLa) which could take a while. I'm getting so close!!

Thanks for looking!!

Progress Pictures

2007-01-29T18:00:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd post a few pictures of the current status of the cabinet with the coin door panel and bezel panel in place. You can really get a sense of the overall proportions of the cabinet if you look at the monitor frame. The 19" monitor was a good decision!

I'm really looking forward to getting this thing finished. I spent a little time this past weekend putting the computer together. I hope to configure it over the next few weeks so all I'll have to do is pop it in the finished cabinet and hook up the controls when it's ready!

Thanks for looking!!

Day 9: MORE of the Crazy Bezel Panel

2007-01-22T15:19:00.000-05:00

I was able to find a little bit of time over the weekend to get some more work done on the arcade cabinet. I finished making the last cuts on the bezel panel (cutting out the rectangle for the monitor). This proved to be a little more difficult than it sounds because I had no way of getting into the corners to make a perfectly square cut. I ended up eyeballing it and sanding - it came out OK but it will eventually be covered by the black posterboard bezel I'll be making to hide the monitor casing.

The first thing I did (after laying out the rectangle using a t-square and pencil) was to drill pilot holes in the corners. I picked the largest bit I had and drilled 4 holes about 1/8" inside of the lines. Next, using the holes I just cut as starting points, I used my jigsaw to connect the holes - again staying about 1/8" inside of the lines. Yoo can see the pilot holes and the crooked lines I made connecting them in the picture below.

At this point I had a rough cut frame that needed to be cleaned up:

The next thing I had to do was use my router, flush trimming bit and a straight edge to remove the extra material and make a perfect rectangle. This is where I had to get creative with my router set up and my use of shims and clamps. As you can see by the pictures, I had to raise the work piece quite a bit to get everything set up properly. It worked though! This is what I love about home projects - there is always a solution to a problem if you stare at it long enough.

I used a piece of 1"x2" wood as a straight edge and I set it up so I could run the router and flush trimming bit along the inside edge of the bezel cut out. I repeated this process 4 times (once for each side) and I ended up with a perfectly cut rectangle - except for the corners.

As you can see by the next set of pictures, after making the 4 cuts around the bezel, I was left with some material in each of the corners that the router bit could not reach.

In order to remove the excess material, I used the jigsaw, a steady hand and some sandpaper. I wanted the corners to be as square as possible but they will eventually be covered by the black posterboard bezel so I'm not too worried if there are small imperfections in the corners.

This is the final result:

Not too bad, eh?

Thanks for looking!!

The Marquee is Here!!

2007-01-22T15:11:00.000-05:00

The marquee is finally here! I am very pleased with how everything came out - this is going to really get me motivated to finish the arcade cabinet so I can see how it will look all lit up! Bella is really going to love it - almost as much as me!

My entire experience with Mamemarquees was fantastic. The service and the product are top notch. Even though I think the marquee I ordered is a little pricey it is definitely worth it. I can recommend them without hesitation to anyone else out there who wants to make their arcade cabinet really stand out. Here is a shot of the real marquee:

Thanks for looking!!

The Marquee Is Ordered!

2007-01-11T10:08:00.000-05:00

The title just about sums it up. I placed the order today with mamemarquees for my custom marquee. The total cost came to $58.93 with shipping. The marquee was $15.95 and I also ordered plexiglass cut to size for $24.99 and an upgrade to the "Ultimate" style material for an extra $10.00. Shipping was $7.99.

Overall, I think it's a little pricey but I also think it will be worth it in the long run. I've heard nothing but praise from everyone who uses mamemarquees so I'm excited to see the final product. This ups the total spent on the project so far to $663.52. Wow! I'm waaaaayyyy past my self-imposed $500 limit and there are still a few things left to buy.

Here's the final design of the marquee - sized properly to 6.5" tall by 18.5" wide and leaving a 0.75" edge on the top and bottom to accomodate the marquee retainer that will be used to hold it in place.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot - a HUGE THANK YOU to megashock05 for designing this awesome piece of art and putting up with me through all of the minor tweaking I had him do. I am very very pleased with how this came out.

Thanks for looking!!

Happy New Year!!

2007-01-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

Well, it's January. The last 2 months have been abnormally mild (in the 50s). If I had more free time I would have been able to get the finishing done before the weather got cold but it might be too late now. As you can probably tell, I have everything set up in my garage which is detached from the house and unheated. In order to paint it is recommended that the temperature is over 50 degrees and that's probably not going to happen for a few months. Bummer.

I do have some options though if I really get motivated but it could be expensive or messy (or both). I could:

Bring the cabinet to the basement. It is definitely warm enough to paint down there but it would be extremely messy because I will be spraying and sanding. I would have to set up a spray booth (made out of a plastic drop cloth) because dust and overspray are definitely a concern. I also don't want anything to get caught in the vents and travel through the house.
Keep the cabinet in the garage. It is getting cold out there but there is no wind in the garage so the temperature would be my only concern. I would still have to set up the spray booth but the problem would be allowing the paint to dry properly. I would probably have to buy a space heater and even then there's no way to guarantee the paint would dry evenly.

I'm torn but I'lll probably keep the cabinet in the garage and just deal with the weather. I'll have to be extra patient and if it takes a few more coats to get it right so be it. I'm guessing that I'll only have enought time for one coat per day once I get started (including sanding the previous coat smooth).

Anyway, the monitor should finally be arriving this week and that's the last piece I need in order to completely finish the construction of the actual cabinet before I finish it. I'm hoping to complete construction this weekend but the NFL Playoffs start (go GIANTS!!) so I'll probably be glued to the TV. Oh well!

Thanks for looking!!

Cost Breakdown to Date #4

2006-12-29T10:45:00.000-05:00

Yikes. I ordered the monitor today from Dell. I decided to buy a refurbished one because they no longer sell (relatively) cheap LCD monitors with black trim. They come in silver now and I don't want the trim to be noticeable at all so that just wouldn't work. I'm a little nervous ordering a refurbished monitor because it only comes with a 90-day warranty instead of the 3 year warranty on new ones.

I do save $30 though and from what I've heard if a refurbished monitor lasts a week with no problems it will probably last just as long as a new one. It is pictured to the right.

Anyway, here's the updated breakdown so far:

Bought:
MDF: $35.00/4'x8' sheet x 2 sheets = $70
Screws: $5.98/box x 1 box = $5.98
18" flourescent light (for behind marquee): $8.97
Wood support strips: $0.97/foot x 12 feet = $11.64
3 buttons, balltop joystick, t-molding from Dream Arcades = $32.75
Smart Strip power supply = $37.31
Hinges and magnetic clasp = $8.43
Ultimarc 360 Joystick = $59.00 (+$14.00 shipping)
Ultimarc Encoder Harness (for button wiring) = $8.00
Ultimarc Restrictor Plate (to shorten joystick throw) = $14.00
Ultimarc Hard Spring (to tighten joystick movement) = $5.00
Computer Speakers (2.1) = $21.39
Happ Small Single Coin Door = $59.95 (+$17.00 shipping)
Happ six (6) black buttons with microswitch @1.35ea. = $8.10
Happ 60" Marquee Retainer @$5.00 per 30" = $10.00
Four (4) Speaker Grills from Chokes Unlimited = $10.84
Dell 19" LCD Monitor E197FP (refurb) = $189.00 (+13.23 tax)

TOTAL so far: $604.59

To buy:
Marquee
Primer/Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
1/4" Glass (to cover monitor)
Black Posterboard (for bezel)

I'm getting close to acquiring everything I need! Too bad I completely blew my $500 budget but I'm very pleased with the way things are coming along so far.

Thanks for looking!!

Control Panel Vinyl Decals: Design

2006-12-27T08:55:00.000-05:00

When the time comes to "finish" the control panel I want everything to be labeled and as self-explanatory as possible so my daughter (or anyone) can operate it easily. I am ordering several vinyl decals from MikeDeuce over at BYOAC to label everything. He makes these in his spare time and does a fantastic job. He will customize your order to pretty much anything and he is very responsive to emails (and multiple design changes!).

Here is the final control panel design:

The entire surface of the control panel is going to be black vinyl as well as all of the admin buttons. The only color will be the pink action buttons, the pink balltop joystick and the vinyl decals. The button to the far left (currently red) is the "exit" button, and on the far right (from top to bottom) is the player 1 start, player 2 start and "pause" (currently orange).

The decals can be ordered in a bunch of colors (as shown to the left) but of course I'm going to go with the pink - The more pink the better! I want to apply the decals to each of the "admin" buttons as well as one around the joystick for decorative purposes.

The decals I ordered for the admin buttons are as follows:

A player 1 start button with the female figure (as shown to the right)
A player 2 start button with two female figures next to each other
"pause" (all lowercase)
"exit" (all lowercase)

In addition to the admin button decals I also ordered a "select game" decal (all lowercase) in an "overwrap" style to go above the player 1 start button. This decal will be in a 1/2 circle and "wrap" around the top of the button. The player 1 start button serves two purposes - to start each game once a quarter is inserted (duh) but also to select the highlighted game you want to play from the master list. I think this is a good solution and people should be able to figure it out. [I also ordered a "$" decal even though I'm not putting a coin button on the control panel just in case I decide to add it at a later date.]

Finally, I decided to add some decorative arrows/triangles to go around the joystick dust washer on the control panel (shown at the base of the joystick to the left). The washer will rest on top of the vinyl covered control panel and hide the hole that the shaft goes through.

Here's my ugly mock-up (in paint) of what I'm trying to accomplish - the arrows have to be spaced far enough so the circular "void" in the center clears the dust washer.

That's about it! I'm hoping the decals arrive sometime next week so I can finish the control panel.

Next up - painting and finishing the cabinet!!

Thanks for looking!!!

Day 8: Crazy Bezel Panel

2006-12-21T17:27:00.000-05:00

The bezel panel has finally been cut to size and it fits in place rather nicely (I still have to glue everything though). So far this has been the craziest piece I've cut due to the fact that I had to make 3 rabbet cuts in addition to cutting a notch in the rear for the speaker and marquee light wires to pass through. Also, this is a great excuse to show how the control panel will look once it is installed and explain how I made room for the black cardboard bezel which will eventually surround the monitor and the glass that goes on top. I think it came out pretty good!

The following is a shot of the rear of the bezel panel showing the notch I cut for the wires. I just used my jigsaw to cut the notch freehand. I am going to be installing an additional panel between the marquee bottom panel and the bezel panel that will go in front of the wires and cover the notch.

A while back I installed strips of pine on the interior of the cabinet so I would have a place to rest the bezel panel (which is also on the same plane as the control panel). However, after assembling the cabinet and placing a sheet of MDF in place where the bezel panel and control panel would go I realized that I hadn't allowed space for the black cardboard bezel and glass that would eventually cover the monitor.

My solution for this was to cut a 3/8" rabbet on the sides on the bottom of the panel. This would allow the bezel panel to sit 3/8" lower than I had originally anticipated. However, since I didn't want the control panel to sit lower as well I created a 3/8" rabbet on the top of the bezel panel that the control panel could rest on. This would also create a lip between the control panel and the bezel panel so the black cardboard bezel and glass had a place to sit and the entire thing would be flush when finished. The picture below is a mock-up of what I am trying to accomplish.

As you can see, I am going to use the control panel as a lip for the glass and cardboard bezel to rest on. Once they are installed the entire surface should be uniform.

The next pictures show how I cut the bezel panel. The close-ups are of the side showing the rabbet cut which allows the panel to sit 3/8" lower than I had originally planned (creating the space for the cardboard bezel and glass).

The next picture is a close-up of the front of the bezel panel with the rabbit I made in the front which the control panel will sit on. It is also 3/8" deep and as you can see removing 3/8" from the top and bottom of a 3/4" sheet of MDF completely removes the corners. This gap will be covered though so it's not a problem or anything.

The next picture shows the front rabbet across the width of the cabinet.

Finally, these last shots show what the final installed control panel will look like as well as the lip that will support the cardboard bezel and glass that covers the monitor.

Thanks for looking!!

Cost Breakdown to Date #3

2006-12-14T09:30:00.000-05:00

I finally ordered the coin door, additional black horizontal pushbuttons (for the admin buttons on the control panel) and the marquee retainer. I ordered all Happ parts from a BYOAC member who sells to the arcade building community cheaper than Happ does (and doesn't kill you on shipping). These parts should be here early next week!

Here's the breakdown so far:

Bought:
MDF: $35.00/4'x8' sheet x 2 sheets = $70
Screws: $5.98/box x 1 box = $5.98
18" flourescent light (for behind marquee): $8.97
Wood support strips: $0.97/foot x 12 feet = $11.64
3 buttons, balltop joystick, t-molding from Dream Arcades = $32.75
Smart Strip power supply = $37.31
Hinges and magnetic clasp = $8.43
Ultimarc 360 Joystick = $59.00 (+$14.00 shipping)
Ultimarc Encoder Harness (for button wiring) = $8.00
Ultimarc Restrictor Plate (to shorten joystick throw) = $14.00
Ultimarc Hard Spring (to tighten joystick movement) = $5.00
Computer Speakers (2.1) = $21.39
Happ Small Single Coin Door = $59.95 (+$17.00 shipping)
Happ Six (6) black buttons with microswitch @1.35ea. = $8.10
Happ 60" Marquee Retainer @$5.00 per 30" = $10.00
Four (4) Speaker Grills from Chokes Unlimited = $10.84

TOTAL so far: $402.36

To buy:
Marquee
Dell 17" LCD Monitor
Primer/Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
1/4" Glass (to cover monitor)
Black Posterboard (for bezel)

There's not much left to purchase! I was hoping to keep this project under $500 but it looks like I will be over $600 once I order the monitor. Bummer.

Day 8: Coin Door Cutout

2006-12-12T10:28:00.000-05:00

This isn't glamorous but it sure was more time-consuming than I thought it would be. Last night I cut out the hole for the coin door on the front panel of the cabinet. This is the same panel that is hinged and can open up to reveal the computer for easy maintenance.

The coin door that I ordered is pictured (Part No. 40-0055-00). It's a little pricey but I think it adds a real nice finishing touch and an "authentic" look to the cabinet. Plus, since I decided to remove the "coin" button from the control panel it will be the only way to start up the games!

The first thing I did was remove the coin door panel from the hinges (and remove the hinges too) so I could layout the mounting template in the center. This was pretty easy to do with just my t-square and pencil.

As you can see from the template, the corners of the hole are rounded and have a 1" radius. I had to drill a 2" diameter hole in each corner in order to get the proper cut. Here are some shots showing the layout and some of the holes drilled:

Once all 4 holes were cut in the corners I used my jigsaw to connect the holes and remove the interior material. I made sure to stay 1/8" inside the line for the rough cut so I can clean it up with the router and a flush trimming bit.

The final thing I did was use the router to make everything nice and even. Here are the results:

Unfortunately, the coin door hasn't arrived yet so I can't get a finished picture but it is supposed to come this week and I will post a few pictures when it gets here.

Tips:
1. Be patient. It takes a while to make each of the 4 holes in the corner with a forstner bit or hole saw because MDF is so dense.
2. Make sure you have a piece of scrap MDF underneath the workpiece at all times. You don't want to cut a hole in your workbench.
3. Make sure everything is clamped tight to the workbench before you start cutting.
4. Plan on spending an hour and a half or more to cut the coin door hole. I know it sounds crazy but that's how long it takes if you follow my method.

Thanks for looking!!

Status, Problems and To Do List

2006-12-11T09:22:00.000-05:00

Status: I got a little bit of free time over the weekend to continue working on my arcade cabinet. I spent about an hour and a half making some cuts to the control panel and cutting the bezel panel and fitting it into place. I will post photos and describe the process in a later post.

Problems: I did figure something out though - I am having a very hard time finishing the cabinet portion and getting everything ready for paint. The main problem is the control panel - I can't seem to figure out how the front piece of the control panel should connect with the rest of the cabinet. I also have to make sure it is removeable in case I need to do any maintenance in the future and I'm not quite sure how to accomplish this. The only thing I can think of is to cut the panels on an angle and I don't know how to do this accurately with my tools. Every thing except for these last two panels is cut and ready for paint so I'm almost there... I'll also post pictures of the trouble area in a little while so you can see what I'm talking about and hopefully avoid the issue if you try to build something similer.

To Do This Week:
1. Cut hole in coin door panel for the coin door (Monday)
2. Remove material on back edge of coin door panel sides so door closes easier (Monday)
3. Cut hole in bezel panel for the monitor (waiting for monitor to arrive)
4. Cut CP front panel with an angled edge (hopefully before Saturday)
5. Cut CP bottom panel with another angled edge (hopefully before Saturday)

It's not that much and #1, #2 and #3 will probably only take an hour or so each but #4 and #5 are going to be a huge pain. I really want to get the thing completely finished so I can get it out of the garage and inside the basement fot painting - it's starting to get cold out there!!

Thanks for looking!!

Day 7: The Real Final Control Panel*

2006-12-04T12:02:00.000-05:00

OK, I didn't have much time over the weekend to work (stupid trees dropping leaves all over the place) but I did get a chance to make my final* control panel. I went with a similar layout as the test one I made previously but I ended up removing one of the buttons on the right to shrink the overall height. The control panel looks way more proportioned now and it's just an all around better design.

I did have to sacrifice the "coin" button but I am going to be installing a working coin door so my daughter will just have to figure it out. I might wire the player 2 coin return to act as a "coin" button if I find that inserting quarters is too much of a pain. I'll also mount a switch on the inside to toggle this on and off so she isn't "free playing" all the time.

Anyway, here are some pictures of the panel with everything cut:

In the last picture you can see that I routed out a rectangle on the back of the panel - this is to install the joystick. If I were to mount the joystick on the back of the MDF without this routed section, the length of the joystick would be shortened considerably.

There are several steps to routing this rectangular area:

1. Using a pencil, I laid out the area where I wanted to remove the material.
2. Next, I scored the lines with a very sharp utility knife/razor and a straight-edge. I tried to get as deep as I could using just the knife.
3. Then, using a dado cleanout bit and setting the depth of the cut to 1/8" I carefully removed the material inside of the rectangle. When I got close to the edges with the router, the material popped out because of the previously scored edges and made a nice clean edge line.
4. After that was completed I reset the depth of the router bit to 1/4" and ultimately 3/8" and made another two passes. Once the initial cut was made the ball bearing on the bit guided me along the inside edges so there wasn't a need to rescore anything.
5. Finally, I removed the excess material in the corners with a small chisel to square it up.

Here is a close up of the result and a shot with the joystick installed:

Here are some pictures of the control panel with everything installed (the bottom edge of the t-square is the top of the CP). It's not completely finished though. I still have to:

1. Cover the entire surface with black vinyl;
2. Round over the bottom edge to meet the control panel front;
3. Change out all the admin buttons to black; and
4. Install pink vinyl labeling on each button so the users know what does what.

That's about it - I think this new design looks a million times better than the old one. It is designed to play only the vertical classics and I'm not trying to cram a ton of controls into a small space. My hands seemed to be in a comfortable position and all of the buttons are in reach but there's almost no chance of accidentally hitting the wrong one. I'm quite happy with it right now.

Thanks for looking!!

* subject to change.

Day 6: Hanging The Coin Door Panel

2006-12-01T14:12:00.000-05:00

I finally hung the coin door panel on the front of the cabinet underneath where the control panel is going to go. From the beginning of this project I knew I wanted the computer to be easily accessible so I could add and remove games and just do general maintenance without having to move the cabinet away from the wall. A hinged door on the front seemed like the perfect solution.

This was kind of a pain to do and I ruined a few pieces of scrap MDF in order to practice drilling out the various holes required for this task. I want the coin door panel to give the illusion that it does not move but if I cut the panel the exact width of the cabinet there wouldn't be any room for it to pivot. I did a little research and found that "European Hinges" allow for a door panel to span the entire length of an opening (minus 1/16" on either side to allow the door to move). They come in various shapes and sizes.

The European Hinge I ended up using is pictured on the left. It came in two separate parts - one part attaches to the door frame and the other part attaches to the door panel itself. It was pretty easy to install and the instructions included a template which showed where to drill and how to line everything up.

After I laid everything out using the templates, I had to drill two large holes in the door panel (one for each hinge) making sure not to come through to the other side. I used a 1-3/8" (35mm) Forstner bit to drill the hole and get the results shown and to get the hinge to fit flush in the hole.

This is what the hinge looks like installed in the panel:

And this is what the hinge looks like ready to be screwed into the frame:

And the final result:

Once the door is hung, all that's left to do is tweak the various screws on the hinge so the door will open and close easily and there is a 1/16" space on either side.

Here are the final pictures of the door on its hinges. The clamps on the left are holding the frame piece in place. In order for the hinges to work I had to install two pieces of MDF on either side flush to the front so the door would have something to close onto and there would be a place to install the hinges themselves.

Whew! That was tough. Note theat I still have to cut out the hole for the coin door but I haven't received it yet and I don't want to cut anything until it gets here.

Thanks for looking!!

Control Panel Mock-Up

2006-11-30T09:41:00.000-05:00

Well, it's time for the daily control panel update - it seems like this has become a sticking point for my cabinet. Last night I finished making a mock-up of the control panel using the design with the 4 buttons on the right.

The top of the control panel will be right where the bottom of the T-square is located. The bottom of the CP more or less goes right to the bottom of the panel (I just need to rip it straight but if you look closely you can see the pencil line). Also note that all of the admin buttons will be black on the final CP - I just didn't have enough extra lying around.

I'm thinking it is one button too tall and that I need to seriously consider relocating or removing the coin button so only 3 buttons are on the right. It's not that I don't have the room for it - this is strictly on proportions by eyeballing it.

Mini-buttons: I have thought about using mini-buttons in order to shrink the overall design but this cab is for Bella, not me. I know there's not much difference in what a mini button does versus a regular one (you just press it, duh!) but for some reason I think the size will make it easier for my daughter to understand and to press.

My goal is to keep everything on the same plane (no buttons on the front) and all of the buttons the same size. I know this isn't the ideal solution for a regular cab but I think it is what will make it easiest for her.

I'm leaning towards the shorter "upsidedown L" shaped design for the admin buttons that I posted yesterday or possibly removing the coin button altogether and just hoping she can understand that you have to insert a quarter if you want to play. I'll probably go with the "upsidedown L" shape for simplicity's sake and sacrifice a little bit of uniformity in the overall layout.

Time to go make Control Panel Mock-Up #2.

Thanks for looking!!

Control Panel Design #3

2006-11-29T12:50:00.000-05:00

OK, I started to make a mock-up CP last night and the button layout forced the height of the CP to be 6-7/8" tall which seems a little high. I have room for it but that means there is a lot of dead space on the control panel (which I could use to install a spinner or something) so I'm not sure overall how it will look. I'm going to go ahead and finish drilling out the holes for the action buttons and joystick (which is arriving today!) and maybe even cover it in black vinyl (if I have enough) to see what the "finished CP" will look like. If I decide to scrap it, no big deal - it only takes an hour or so to layout the buttons and drill out the holes...

Another design to shrink the overall height:

Also, another idea someone suggested would be to put the "coin" button on the face of the control panel to save space on top. This is making me crazy!

Thanks for looking!!

Control Panel Design #2

2006-11-28T10:24:00.000-05:00

OK, after only one day of sleeping on it and asking for some opinions over at BYOAC I've decided to redesign the control panel just a little bit to make it more Bella friendly. My first thought was that having the Exit button all the way to the right might not be the best idea because my right hand will be constantly moving over the action buttons and could still accidentally hit it at an inopportune time. My next redesign was to just flop the admin buttons on the top row like this:

I like the new placement of the Exit button but I really don't like where the other 4 admin buttons ended up. The right side of the control panel looks too cluttered in this configuration. However, several people over at BYOAC answered my request for some criticism and suggested that I keep the Exit button on the left and the admin buttons on the right but line them up vertically. Genius!

I also moved the action buttons and joystick to the left a little so my right hand wouldn't be resting where the admin buttons are. I might have to make the control panel a bit taller but I think I have the room - as it stands now 6.5" might be tight for four buttons because I need to leave at least .75" on the bottom to accommodate the panel for the front of the control panel.

I really like the current state of the control panel and I'm going to make a mock-up out of MDF to test it out (so of course this is still subject to change!).

Thanks for looking!!

Day 6: Marquee Top

2006-11-28T08:58:00.000-05:00

There's nothing magical about the installation of this panel. I just cut an 18.5" piece of MDF to cover the speakers and marquee light in the top portion of the cabinet. I haven't glued it into place yet because once I do the speakers are going to be extremely difficult (if not impossible) to get to if they aren't working properly. I think there is enough room to get a mini screwdriver in there but I won't be able to see a thing. Also, I want to add some type of lining to ensure that no light will escape from this area in case the panels aren't perfectly aligned.

Anyway, I made sure to cut the marquee top panel so it is flush with the back panel and is lined up with the bottom marquee panel as close as possible. The marquee retainer will eventually cover the ends of the MDF and frame the marquee.

That's really all there is to it. Here are some shots of what the upper part of the cabinet will look like once everything is glued in place.

Tips:
1. Make sure that you do not install the interior wood strips so the ends are flush with the ends of the marquee panels. If you do that it will create 4 square shadows in the corners behind your marquee. This is actually a tip that should have been given a while ago but better late than never.
2. Try to make everything as flush as possible. Light will escape out of any gaps where two pieces of MDF come together. I am going to line the inside with aluminum foil or something shiny for maximum reflection and to also seal any gaps that might let light out.

Thanks for looking!

Control Panel Design

2006-11-27T20:43:00.000-05:00

It's now time to put some serious thought into the design and layout of the control panel. This is probably one of the most important things anyone will have to do in design an arcade cabinet. There is no such thing as an all-in-one solution but I still want to be able to play the most amount of games as possible. Since this is going to be a vertical cab and really limited to the classics I think 3 buttons will do the job nicely - there aren't many that require more and the only one I can think of that I might ever want to play is Super Punch-Out!! but I don't think one game is worth an extra button on the control panel. I've said it before but I also want this thing to be simple to use.

Along with the action buttons that will control jumping and shooting or whatever while I am playing I'm going to need "admin" buttons in order to make a game selection from the list, to insert a coin and to pause when I'm playing. I think 5 of these buttons will suffice (player 1 start, player 2 start, coin, pause and exit back to the game list). Here's my first stab at it:

As you can see, I'm trying to keep the admin buttons all in a row on the top and then center the joystick and action buttons so it is comfortable while playing. I thought about this design for a few days and even made a mock-up (with different colored buttons) to see how it would look.

I didn't really like the spread out look of the admin buttons so I decided to redesign it a little bit. Here's what I came up with:

I clustered all of the admin buttons to the left except for the exit button - I don't want to accidentally hit this in the middle of a game when I'm reaching for the pause button to go grab a cold beer or something! I also rearranged the action buttons a little bit because I think it will be more comfirtable to play this way. Unless I think of anything radical in the next week or so I'm going to call this the final design.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 5: Speaker Installation

2006-11-26T08:20:00.000-05:00

Installing the speakers was a little tougher than I anticipated (just like everything else). I thought it was going to be a 20 minute job but it ended up taking well over an hour. I bought a set of cheap 2.1 speakers from CompUSA to put in the cabinet. Most older arcade games have very primitive sound so this is more than adequate to recreate the authentic arcade experience.

I already had the holes cut out in the panel where the speakers were going to be mounted. The holes are 2.5" in diameter and the speakers are 2.0" in diameter. I ended up removing the speakers from the casing for installation but I still used the front panel of the speaker casing to secure the speakers in place.

As you can see from the picture, I totally destroyed the brand new speakers I bought. First, remove the front cover. This pops off quite easily to reveal 4 screws holding the casing together. Next, using a thin screwdriver remove all 4 screws which will separate the flat front piece from the large plastic piece that encases the speaker. Save the screws! I used them to secure the speakers to the cabinet. Be careful here though. The wire that is attached to the actual speaker is also attached to the back casing and you don't want to break anything. The trick here is to make a big hole in the back casing so the wire and fit through and be removed. I used a saw to cut a groove in the back and then jammed a screwdriver inside and twisted it around until I had a hole big enough to get the wire through.

Once the speaker is out of the casing you should be left with the speaker attached to the front panel and the long wire coming off of it as shown in the picture above. The next thing I did was drill 4 holes in the front panel in order to secure it to the speaker cutouts in the cabinet. In the above picture you can see the drill on the top and one of the holes I drilled on the left- I drilled a hole in each corner the exact size of the screws I saved when I took the speakers apart.

After you have all 4 holes drilled out, put the speaker in place and make sure it is lined up from underneath. Then use a pencil to mark where the screws are going to go and drill pilot holes. Finally, screw the speakers in place!

That's all there is to the speaker installation however you need to do something with the speaker wires - they need to connect to the bass tube which will be located at the bottom of the cabinet. and they can't hang out over the back! This "problem" has a simple solution - I drilled a 1-1/8" hole up against the back panel of the cabinet so the speaker wires could fit through and drop down to the bottom. I also made sure the hole was wide enough to accomodate the power cord for the marquee light that will be installed in front of the speakers because the power strip is also going to be installed in the bottom of the cabinet.

That's all for now!

Tips:
1. Go slow and be very patient when taking the speakers apart. I actually ruined one because I was rushing to finish (good thing I had a spare from an old project).
2. When drilling the holes in the plastic casing make sure everything is secured to the work bench or you are holding on very tightly. Drill slowly.
3. Test everything on scrap MDF. Before I did anything to the cabinet I secured one speaker to a some scrap MDF just to see if it would work properly.

Thanks for looking!

Control Panel Issues

2006-11-24T10:40:00.000-05:00

I've run into a little snag - I am still trying to work out how the control panel and monitor bezel are going to interact with each other as well as how the bottom of the control panel is going to transition to the bottom portion of the cabinet (the top of the coin door panel). I ended up staring at the cabinet for a solid 45 minutes without doing a single thing because I want to make sure I do this right.

This is a picture of the problem area:

Hopefully the pencil lines are viewable - they show where the control panel will go. Right now the control panel top/bezel is going to be at a 90 degree angle to the control banel bottom. I should note that the small support piece in the middle of the cabinet (as shown in the picture) is not glued in place so it is moveable.

I think I want the control panel and bezel to be made out of one sheet of MDF except I run into problems when I start thinking about adding the smoked glass overlay (3/16" thick) and potentially a thin posterboard bezel to frame the monitor closely. I am probably going to offset the control panel top and monitor bezel by 1/4" to accomodate the glass and the posterboard but this might be tricky.

The monitor is going to be a 17" Dell LCD computer monitor. I plan to cut a hole in the MDF bezel panel the exact size of the outer circumference of the monitor case so I can have the LCD screen flush with the MDF bezel panel. The monitor will be supported from behind and I plan to add a thin piece of black posterboard on top to cover the edges of the monitor and make it look nice. I'm also planning to cover the entire control panel with Happs black vinyl so it will be able to withstand a little abuse from my daughter.

The next issue to resolve is how the angled front of the control panel meets the middle support piece. The only reason this middle piece is there at all is to frame the hinged coin door panel on the top. I wanted a small lip on the top of the coin door panel so it didn't just butt up against the front of the control panel. This lip will also hide the fact that the coin door panel opens.

I think the follwing diagram is a nice solution but it also means I will have to cut the MDF at some very odd angles to make everything fit.

Oh well, I hope this works. I also have to keep in mind that I need access to the underside of the control panel in order to install the controls and wire everything. My head is going to explode!!

Thanks for looking!!

Cost Breakdown to Date #2

2006-11-24T10:20:00.000-05:00

Last week I ordered the Smart Strip power supply for $37.31 ($26.99 + $3 for a black cord + taxes and shipping). Today I placed the order for the Ultimarc 360 joystick and a few accessories for $100 to go along with it - it's is expensive but hopefully worth it. I also just went to Home Depot and bought the two hinges ($6.99) and the magnetic clasp ($0.89) for the coin door panel for $8.43 (after taxes). Finally, I hit up CompUSA for some cheapo 2.1 speakers for $21.39 (after taxes). Here's the breakdown so far:

Bought:
MDF: $35.00/4'x8' sheet x 2 sheets = $70
Screws: $5.98/box x 1 box = $5.98
18" flourescent light (for behind marquee): $8.97
Wood support strips: $0.97/foot x 12 feet = $11.64
3 buttons, balltop joystick, t-molding from Dream Arcades = $32.75
Smart Strip power supply = $37.31
Hinges and magnetic clasp = $8.43
Ultimarc 360 Joystick = $59.00 (+$14.00 shipping)
Encoder Harness (for button wiring) = $8.00
Restrictor Plate (to shorten joystick throw) = $14.00
Hard Spring (to tighten joystick movement) = $5.00
Computer Speakers (2.1) = $21.39

TOTAL so far: $296.47

To buy:
Coin Door
Two (2) black pushbuttons
Marquee Retainer
Marquee
Dell 17" LCD Monitor
Primer/Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
1/4" Glass (to cover monitor)
Black Posterboard (for bezel)

Day 4: Is That An Arcade Machine?

2006-11-20T10:16:00.000-05:00

It's official. What was once just two sheets of MDF now unmistakeably resembles an actual arcade cabinet. I didn't really do anything yesterday except take the clamps off and stand it upright but it is still cool to see it take shape.

I also installed the kickplate and cut the cross piece for the middle which will give added support as well as provide a guide to frame the coin door panel. The coin door panel is going to be hinged and swing open so I can access the computer.

Anyway, here are some new pictures!

Thanks for looking!!

Day 3: The Glue Up

2006-11-18T21:14:00.000-05:00

I didn't do a lot of work today but I did get a chance to glue up the panels! I now have an actual 3D cabinet - it's starting to take shape - check it out!

Tips:
1. Dry fit everything first. You want to make sure everything fits together properly before applying the glue.
2. Use a light bead of glue on the edges. Make sure all surfaces are covered but you want to avoid a lot of squeeze out, if possible.
3. Clamp, clamp, clamp. You can never have too many for a job like this. Try and make sure you have at least one clamp on each edge of each surface you are trying to glue together.
4. Make sure everything is square!

Tomorrow I'll be filling out the rest of the cabinet frame with the remaining cross pieces and hopefully putting the front door in place with the coin door cutout. Then it should be ready to be painted!

Thanks for looking!!

FINAL Marquee Design!!

2006-11-15T19:00:00.000-05:00

A HUGE thanks to everyone who submitted a marquee design for me. I decided to go with the one made by megashock5 but modified to incorporate the color scheme of the second one submitted by onetrackmind. Here it is:

I wasn't sure about having green as the only secondary color in the design because it would be the only place on the entire cabinet where green would appear. I think the "rainbow" of colors doesn't made any one color stand out over another. I am going to wait a week or two before ordering the marquee from mamemarquees just in case I think of any other minor tweak because once it is printed I've got to live with it. Besides, I'm at least two weeks away from being able to install the marquee if all goes according to plan.

Thanks again megashock5 - Bella is going to love it!!

Day 2: Speaker Holes

2006-11-15T02:00:00.000-05:00

The last thing I did today was cut a pair of 2-1/2" holes in the bottom marquee shelf for the speakers - I will have to also cut a smaller 1-1/4" hole to feed the plug from the marquee light and speakers through but I think I need to wait until the thing is assembled so I can get an exact placement. The computer is going to be in the bottom of the cabinet and the light and speakers have to connect to the computer somehow! To accomplish this task I used a 2-1/2" hole saw and my drill. It was pretty simple - here are the results:

Tips:
1. After you find the center point where the holes are going to be, use a nail and lightly tap it into the center point to make a mark so the drill bit will be lined up properly.
2. When cutting out the holes apply light pressure and let the saw do the work.
3. As you cut through, make sure the drill and saw are perpendicular to the work piece.
4. Move the saw in and out of the hole very slowly once you begin cutting - this helps the sawdust escape so the saw can cut deeper. Drill the hole in several steps if you have to.
5. Make sure you clamp the piece to the work bench with a sacrificial piece of wood or MDF underneath. You don't want to ruin your work bench! It took way longer to do all of this stuff than I thought it would but that's always the case and I should know better by now not to plan too much ahead. Next weekend my father is coming over and we are going to put everything together so it should start looking like a real arcade cabinet by then. I can't wait.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 2: Cabinet Back

2006-11-14T14:48:00.000-05:00

The next thing I did was cut out the cabinet back. This was a little tough to do because it had to be 50" long by 18.5" wide and I don't have my table saw set up yet. Also, my t-square and longest straightedge is only 48" long (and, as I found out while trying to make the cabinet back, not actually square) . I had to think about this one for a while before coming up with a solution that I think worked quite well. I had a fresh piece of MDF and I measured 18.5" from the long factory edge (the 8' length) on both ends. Next, using my nonsquare t-square I connected those points the best I could with a pencil line and then I used my jigsaw to make a rough cut about 1/8" wide of the line. Then, I placed the other 8' factory edge of the MDF on top of my pencil line making sure that the two points I measured previously were touching the edge and clamped the two boards together. The sloppy pencil line doesn't matter as long as the two measured points are accurate (and the factory edges are straight!). Next, using my router with a pattern cutting bit and the straightedge I easily removed the excess material and had a perfectly straight edge. The back panel is now cut and ready for assembly.

These are the best pictures I have right now of the cabinet back but you get the idea. Note that nothing here is glued or nailed into place yet - I just clamped the pieces together to take some pictures.

Tips:
1. Since the factory edge of the MDF is straight, don't worry about your pencil line. As long as the edge is lined up exactly with your two marks on either end you will make a straight cut.
2. Clamp everything to the workbench before you use the router - you don't want the piece to slip!

Thanks for looking!!

Day 2: Support and Cross Pieces

2006-11-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

This weekend was a bit of a disappointment. The Giants lost (damn Bears), I was finally kicked out of my NFL suicide pool with only 5 people left (damn Patroits) and my fantasy team (The Vampire Slayers) got killed too. To top it all off, I didn't make as much progress on Bella's Arcade as I had hoped. I spent about 8 hours total working on it but nothing major got done. It is nice to get a lot of the "grunt work" out of the way though.

The first task that I completed was finally installing the wooden support strips on both cabinet sides. This proved to be much more difficult than I had originally anticipated because you have to make sure that the wooden strips on one side are lined up exactly with their counterparts on the other cabinet side otherwise the shelves won't be level. To attach each strip I used a combination of wood glue and #8 wood screws (1-1/4"). I put a very light amount of glue on the wood strip only (there was almost zero squeeze out) and then carefully clamped it in place making sure the edge of the wood strip was exactly on the edge of the pencil line I laid out on the cabinet side. Then, depending on the length of the wood strip, I predrilled 2 or 3 holes with a 1/8" drill bit and then screwed the strips into the MDF.

Tips:
1. Make sure the bit is no more than 1-1/4" from the collet on your drill so you don't go all the way through the MDF when predrilling.
2. Double and triple check the alignment of the wood strips - it is vital that they are as even as possible on both cabinet sides.
3. Go slowly - this part is very tedious and very boring. If you rush you are more likely to make a stupid mistake.

Thanks for looking!!

Marquee Designs!!!

2006-11-12T10:00:00.000-05:00

I posted a request in the forums for help in designing a cool marquee for Bella's Arcade over at CheapAssGamer and Build Your Own Arcade Controls. I have no photoshop skills and I've received a few responses so far from some very talented (and generous) people. I will keep posting them here as they come in.

From peteloaf:

From megashock5:

From onetrackmind:

A huge THANK YOU to these guys for doing this for me. Right now I'm undecided as to which one to use. I'm leaning towards megashock5's design right now but I've got probably a month or more to think about it. I need to get this thing assembled and painted before ordering the marquee!

Thanks for looking!!

Cost Breakdown to Date

2006-11-12T04:00:00.000-05:00

This thing isn't cheap but I definitely think it's reasonable. Plus, it's almost as fun to build the cabinet as it is to play the games! It's just the cost of having a hobby you enjoy!

Bought:
MDF: $35.00/4'x8' sheet x 2 sheets = $70
Screws: $5.98/box x 1 box = $5.98
18" flourescent light (for behind marquee): $8.97
Wood support strips: $0.97/foot x 12 feet = $11.64
3 buttons, balltop joystick, t-molding from Dream Arcades = $32.75

TOTAL so far: $129.34

To buy:
Ultimarc 360 Joystick
Encoder Harness (for button wiring)
Restrictor Plate (to shorten joystick throw)
Hard Spring (to tighten joystick movement)
Coin Door
Dell 17" LCD Monitor
Marquee
Marquee Retainer
Smart Strip (to plug everything into)
Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
Glass (to cover monitor)
Black Posterboard (for bezel)
Computer Speakers

Day 1: T-Molding Slots

2006-11-12T02:30:00.000-05:00

Once the sides were cut, and before any of the battons are screwed into place you should route the slots for the t-molding. This is a very easy thing to do but you have to have the right tools for the job. Using a slot cutting bit I was able to route the slots around both cabinet sides in about a 1/2 hour. It was easy!

The most important thing to do for this task is to make a few practice cuts on scrap MDF and fit a t-molding sample to make sure the depth of the cutter is set properly. You only get one chance to get it right on your actual sides and you don't want to have to start over now!

Here are some shots of the router with the slot cutting bit installed. There is a ball bearing that will ride along the edge of the cabinet side and a blade will do all of the cutting. The idea is to get the blade on dead center of the edge so the slot will be cetered and as a result the t-molding will be centered too. This is why it's a good idea to practice on scrap MDF.

The above picture should give you an idea on how this is supposed to work. Note that the router is upsidedown - you will be holding the router on top of the MDF as you route the slots.

This is what the edges of the cabinet sides should look like with t-molding slots routed.

Tips:
1. Double and triple check the router depth to make sure it is exactly centered.
2. Test your cut on a scrap piece of wood.
3. How to tell your slot is perfectly centered: Place your router upside down on the work table (off, of course). Put the test piece on the router base and slide it onto the blade. Next, turn the test piece upside down and do the same thing. If the piece slides onto the blade then you know it is centered. If not, make an adjustment and try again. It also helps to fit a piece of t-molding in the slot you just cut to see how it looks.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 1: Progress Pics!!

2006-11-12T02:00:00.000-05:00

I finally got some actual, real work done on this thing and it's looking pretty good so far. The entire cab is made out of MDF. So far I've just cut out the sides and routed the slots for the t-molding. I also cut all of the interior battons out of wood for support so I can assemble everything soon.

The first thing I did was plot out the design onto the surface of one of the MDF sheets using a pencil and t-square. The curves were made using a string tied to the end of a pencil to act like a large compass. Once the shape was drawn as well as all of the interior panel lines so I know where everything is going, I cut out the cabinet side using my jigsaw. I did it freehand and tried to stay about 1/8" outside the line all the way around. When that was finished I used a straight edge and a pattern cutting bit in my router to make the straight edges perfectly straight. To cut the smooth curves I was very careful with the jigsaw and got as close to the line as I could taking my time as I went. Then I used a sanding block to sand to the line and make a smooth curve.

Once I finally had one side to the cabinet cut out, making the second one took about 20 minutes. I placed the good side on top of another piece of MDF and traced it with a pencil. Then I cut it out with the jigsaw to get a rough shape. Next, I clamped the original to the rough cut piece and used my router and pattern cutting bit to make a perfect match! Finally, I transferred all of the interior lines to the second piece (on the opposite side, of course since the two pieces should be mirror images of each other).

The next thing I did was cut out the interior support pieces - in the pictures they are placed in their appropriate spots where cross pieces will go but not fastened down yet. I am trying to be careful not to make any holes on the outside of the cabinet because I want it to look like a finished piece of furniture. All screws and supports will be on the inside and hidden from view.

That's all for now. Next up: routing the t-molding slots!

Thanks for looking!!

PINK Is The New Hotness!!!

2006-11-12T01:00:00.000-05:00

Since this cabinet is for my lovely 2 year old daughter I've decided to go with a very pink theme. I want it to be as girly as possible and truely be her own personal arcade cabinet. I am going to be painting the entire thing a light pink on the outside and black on the interior. I'm also going to try and get a real shiny finish on the outside so the cabinet will be protected from juice spills and also easy to clean but I don't know how to go about doing that yet. I think you have to add many layers of paint while sanding in between each coat and then apply some kind of rubbing compound to get the shine. I will document that process when I get to it.

The buttons, t-molding and joystick ball top will be a darker pink from Dream Arcades to accent the cabinet. I've ordered the following parts so far:

3 pink buttons:

1 pink joystick. I only ordered this for the ball top. I'm actually going to be using the Ultimarc 360 joystick for this project but it does not come in pink. Most joystick balltops are just threaded on to the shaft so I'll just unscrew them and make the easy swap.

30ft. of pink t-molding. This is a plastic trim which will go around the edges of the sides to give the cabinet a finished look.

As for the marquee artwork, right now I'm just planning on a bright colorful marquee - the control panel will be covered in black vinyl so the buttons really "pop" and I don't what type of artwork I'm going to add to the sides yet, if anything.

It's All In The Details

2006-11-11T09:05:00.000-05:00

After deciding on the plans, the next step is to decide what type of cabinet to build. There are literally an infinite amount of configurations for the control layout, type of monitor to use, type of controls, monitor orientation, etc. There's really not an ideal all-in-one solution (although many have tried). These decisions should be based around what type of games you want to play. If you mainly like driving games then you should plan on a steering wheel and some pedals. If you mainly like fighting games you should plan on 2 joysticks and a 6 button layout. You get the idea.

Since I'm building a "classics" cabinet, I've decided on one joystick with three buttons (most older games take 2 or less) and a vertical arcade monitor which is basically a regular monitor turned on its side. Most older games are taller than they are wide. Here are some screenshots of a vertical game and a horizontal game.

I will be able to play vertical games if I really want but they will have giant black bars on the top and bottom. Initially I don't think I'll be putting any on there though. I'm going to order a 17" Dell LCD monitor to play the games on. I'm a little unsure of using an LCD monitor because it's not "authentic" (the resolution is too good) but there are tricks that you can use to make the screen look close to the originals. I'm using an LCD because of size constraints - there's no room for a full-sized monitor to fit inside since I'm scaling it down to 80%.

Next, I have to decide on what type of joystick to use. There are a ton to choose from and not all joysticks are created the same. Each arcade game has controls that are specifically tailored for that particular game and when you are trying to build something that will play many different games you run into some problems. For example, Pac-man is a "4-way" game meaning the joystick will only move in 4 directions (up, down, left and right) but 1942 is an "8-way" game meaning tha the joystick will recognize the diagonals as well as the cardinal directions. If you try and play Pac-man using an 8-way joystick it is very frustrating because the game does not know what to do when a diagonal is pressed (because, for example, up and left would be pressed simultaneously) and it could result in a ghost catching you in the middle of a high score attempt!

There are numerous joysticks that try and solve this problem - the most popular solution is switching a restrictor plate on the bottom of the joystick so it will only be allowed to move in the desired directions. As you can imagine, this can be a pain when you are switching from game to game. The joystck I've decided to use is the Ultimarc 360. It is software based and it allows you configure the joystick to act any way you want (2-way, 4-way, 8-way, etc.) for whatever game you want. You can even customize it if you want. I've never used one before but I am anxious to set it up for this cabinet because it sounds like a true all-in-one solution. A great review of the joystick can be found on RetroBlast!.

Since most vertical games are fairly simple, I've decided to use only 3 "action" buttons on the control panel. I am also planning on having 4 additional buttons near the top of the control panel for administrative purposes. I need a button to start each game, to simulate inserting a cion into the machine, to pause in the middle of playing and to exit back to the front end). On the inside, I will be using my somewhat old junker computer (Gateway PIII, 40GB HDD, 256MB RAM) to run everything. This should be more than enough to run all the games I want.

That's all for now. In the next post I'll let you know the color and design that I've chosen for this project - it's going to be girly!

Thanks for looking!

Plan, Plan, Plan...

2006-11-11T07:48:00.000-05:00

And now for the good stuff !

Now that I've got one of these things 90% under my belt I feel like I can be much more efficient building Bella's Arcade than I was building my first one, Knights of the Arcade Table. The first three things that anyone should do are:

1. Plan
2. Plan
3. Plan some more

If you are like me, free time is at a premium these days with responsibilities to my wife and kid (Bella!) and a demanding job that pretty much kills the week. It is a juggling act to make sure that you have all of the pieces you need when you finally find an couple of hours to work on it.

The Plans!
The first thing I had to figure out was what type of cabinet I wanted to build. Since Bella is only 2 years old I don't want to build anything too complicated. This will be her first introduction to video games so I want to keep it as simple as possible and have her mainly play the classics. I have always liked the dimensions and overall look of the original Ms. Pac-man cabinet (pictured) so that's what I'm going to build. Also, since this is for my daughter and she is about 2'-6" I am going to scale it down to be 80% of it's size so it will be more playable for her.

I got the original Ms. Pac-man plans from Jakobud's site. He's got a bunch of cabinet plans there and it's a great resource. You could build a cabinet in any style you wanted or even design your own from scratch. I just multiplied all of the dimensions on the plans by 0.8 to get the dimensions I was going to use.

The guts of the arcade cabinet will be a regular old computer loaded with probably 100 or so classic games like Mr. Do!, Pac-man, Donkey Kong, Dig Dug and of course, Ms. Pac-man. I will go into more detail on how everything works much later when I get to that point in the project.

Next I'll talk about laying out the cuts and the materials I'll be using. I'll also try and include a cost breakdown so if you decide to build one yourself you will know what you are getting into - these things can be expensive!

Thanks for looking!!

Electric Boogaloo

2006-11-10T23:17:00.000-05:00

In the tradition of arcade cab builders everywhere I have begun work on my second cab and my first one is only 90% done (playable but there is a bit of work left on the cab and configuring everything). You can check it out here.

This cabinet is going to be an 80% mini-cab following the plans of an original Ms. Pac-man cabinet. I am not going for 100% accuracy and I will be taking a few liberties in the details and especially the color scheme but the shape is definitely Ms. Pac-man. I'm building this for my daughter so it's got to be super simple to operate and it's definitely going to be girly!

Thanks for looking - updates are coming soon!