Color Scheme

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!

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

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!!

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

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

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

Electronics

1. Install buttons and joystick
2. Install DVD-ROM to computer
3. Install coin door
4. Install Smart Strip
5. Install monitor
6. Wire everything (buttons, joystick, coin door, etc.)
7. Set up MAME
8. Set up MaLa (front end)
9. Place computer in cabinet

To Buy

1. Screw caps for speaker covers
2. Hinge for control panel
3. Primer/Paint/rubbing compound (for finish)
4. 1/4" Glass (to cover monitor)
5. Black posterboard (for bezel)
6. 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...

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

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

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!!

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!

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!!

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:

1. 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.
   
2. 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

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

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:

1. A player 1 start button with the female figure (as shown to the right)
2. A player 2 start button with two female figures next to each other
3. "pause" (all lowercase)
4. "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

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!!