My custom arcade cabinet. Who's got dibs on player one?
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I started with a cardboard template of my gables, starting with my desired dimensions. The radius on this template was a little too tight for the bead board to wrap around it.
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(I'm really having to lower the quality of these photos in order to post them)
Next I made the frame.
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Then, because I was only using available scraps from the shop, I used rubber ply for the top, and bead board for the bottom curves. I used 3\4" MDF for where the controls go, and rabbeted the edges so it could sit flush with the 1/2" of bead board.
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I did the gables last so I could do any final adjustments to the design/size to better match the pieces I had made. I have access to a CNC , but decided to do it by hand
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Assemble
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Poke the holes
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As I was routering out space for the mini hi fi audio amp in the monitor panel so I could poke the volume dial through, there was a little mishap, and the router bit rattled out of the collet just enough to go through the face, So I had a 3" hole. I fixed it with a little piece of aluminum. I ran an AUX splitter from the pi, so I could have a headphone jack, as well as a volume dial for the speakers overhead.
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Finally, mounted this thing on 2 french cleats. This took a LOT of work. Thinking of making more to sell, but would be cut on the CNC to increase production speed. Interior design would improve.
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Thanks for the update, it's really impressing piece of work. I do admire anyone who can build something like this from scratch, since I'm the extreme opposite of a handyman. Thus, I built my own upright cabinet from a flat pack kit and used printed car foil instead of paint.
I have two questions about your project:
- Why didn't you use the CNC if you could have?
- What made you choose grey as the base colour? It's rather unusual in the colourful arcade world.
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@Clyde I do custom millwork for work. Not everyone is highly proficient in woodwork, and that's okay. Thanks for comments!
To answer your questions
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I wanted this one to be fully handmade, and using the CNC removes that aspect. Less skill involved. I did the curves with a bandsaw, edge sander, and a random orbital sander.
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I used black and white high gloss plastic laminate (no grey, I suppose it's just my shoddy photography) for a number of reasons. I was limiting myself to shop scraps so i paid nothing in material costs. I barely squeezed out what I needed from what we had. Laminate Is also durable and more impact resistant than paint or vinyl. I did use matte black paint for the monitor panel to reduce distracting reflections and glare. I almost went with a brushed brass laminate instead of white, but decided the black and white would better fit the retro/modern look I was going for
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That thing is sexy! Super clean and sleek and it's a great modernization of the 50s and 60s view of the future. Well done!
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@simpleethat said in My custom arcade cabinet. Who's got dibs on player one?:
That thing is sexy!
me: looks at picture number 2 after reading this quote..
me: snickers out loud because I am 12... -
me: looks at picture number 2 after reading this quote..
me: snickers out loud because I am 12...Hahaha! That had me chuckling pretty well as I was scrolling through the post
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@simpleethat I'm still giggling about it
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@Skinsey said in My custom arcade cabinet. Who's got dibs on player one?:
- I wanted this one to be fully handmade, and using the CNC removes that aspect. Less skill involved. I did the curves with a bandsaw, edge sander, and a random orbital sander.
Haha, from my unskilled perspective, using the CNC is still absolutely handmade, but with a bigger, slightly more convenient tool. 😄
As for the laminate, it really looks grey on my monitor, not white at all. 😎 The control panel of my cabinet is also coated with laminate, about which the printing shop said "you can dance a waltz on it". 😄
@Thorr69 said in My custom arcade cabinet. Who's got dibs on player one?:
me: looks at picture number 2 after reading this quote..
me: snickers out loud because I am 12...At first, picture #2 was the only picture in the opening post. 😲😉
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@Clyde Where did you get the laminate from?
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Nice build. I'll take player 2 please... I also need that workbench/assembly table you have. Mine is too small for my new shop setup and I've been too lazy/busy to build a new one.
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@HurricaneFan I got the laminate from the German printing service https://arcadeartshop.de/. You'll have to ask for it when ordering the prints, though. I read about it in the shop owner's blog (example, example).
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@Clyde A CNC is waaaaay more than a slightly convenient tool. Scan a barcode and hit start. In minutes you have any curve you can draw on a computer that would take hours by hand, or a bunch of cabinet parts with all tongue and groove joints, screw holes for assembly and any hardware all machined out. It makes a huge difference depending on what you're making. If I were to make several of these, I'd CNC almost all of it.
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@zerohex I have a 4'x8' melamine top for my bench. Great size
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