Been awhile

It's been a while...

Long story short...the PC I was using decided the night before the deadline to die on me. So I sulked for an hour or so before coming up with an idea to use my laptop to at least run the thing for the party.

I worked on it for awhile and got it working, but wasn't able to put some of the finishing touches on it that I had wanted to. I'm currently searching for a replacement system to use...my funds have been nearly depleted for this project and I'm really trying to pick up something for free...or next to free.

I'll try, over the next few weeks, to fill in some of the gaps between my last post and the nearly finished product that I have now.

Artwork

I've been working the cab's artwork...until recently there hasn't been much to talk about.

Here is what I have so far:

Marquee:

Side Art:

Control Panel Overlay:

I just need to finish up the CPO and then get them printer...cheaply. Then I can start moving again on getting this thing completed.

All wired up

I got some more done the last couple of days...basically down to sanding & a final coat of paint...then mounting the system inside, and final hookups.

Here are some shots of my CP...I was going to use quick disconnects, but couldn't seem to find a bag of just the female end...so I thought screw it, I'll just solder it. I never used to be very good with the soldering iron...but after learning to heat the parts, not the solder - it turned out to be much easier.

It doesn't look half bad.


I'm gonna work on my artwork some more tonight.

Name picked!

While I still need to work some more on the OS & computer system, it will work for now. Almost all pieces have had at least one coat of paint sprayed on...a couple are done.

I'm waiting on the joystick (Ultimarc Ultrastik 360) to arrive so I can figure out my final angles for the control panel. Once I have that, I can determine the exact height that I need to have my CP, and then I can mount my side rails & velcro. After the side rails are on, I'll glue all the pieces together and start fitting in the system...then I'll need to wire the CP.

I think I've come up with a theme for the unit. As I was searching for a font to use on the marquee...since I'm waiting on the 360, I decided to start on the artwork...anyway, I came across a Gaelic font that I really liked. I'm leaning toward the name "Irish Luck". My marquee will consist of about 10 mini-marquees with Irish Luck in the middle surrounded by Celtic knotwork. For the CPO, I had three thoughts for art: 1. a 4-leaf clover in the middle with green lightning shooting out from around it, 2. a 3D Celtic knot on a background TBD and 3. a picture of green, rolling Irish hills with a Celtic knot border...and knot border for buttons.

I'm leaning toward the landscape pic, but I might do a version of all three...just to be sure. I have VERY limited Photoshop skills, I've made a few desktop wallpapers for a few companies I have worked at...mostly abstract stuff.

I haven't decided on side art yet...although it will probably depend on the CPO I end up going with.

Nothing major

Nothing major to report today.

I sanded and painted another coat of paint to a couple of pieces...the front and speaker panel and sprayed the first coat onto the angle/fan board.

I started to work on the computer today as well. I installed a copy of Tiny XP and started to load the emulator on...more to add later though.

Lots done

Today was a productive day...I was able to cross off a few things from my punch list.

I got the hinges recessed, screwed in & puttied over...although one side will require some sanding to fix.


I started to fill the right side and then added more putty to the mix...then it started to firm up much better. The left side looks much smoother. I will probably need to mix up some more tomorrow and even out the right side.

I also drilled my button holes for the front panel and sides. While I was working with the putty, I painted the front, speaker board and one of the sides' inside. After I painted the side, I realized that I still needed to cut out my marquee slot. You can also see where I had to fill in a space from a skill saw mishap on the painted side.

My cab went 3D today!!

I started to work on the computer I have for the cab - I ordered a "new" HD...but it was apparently already formated to NTFS, so using Win98 is out! I also have a spare copy of Win XP...so it shouldn't be a problem...it just wasn't expected. I also noticed a slight problem with the speakers I dissected earlier...apparently in my enthusiasm to get them opened I broke a small piece of metal used as a jumper...a quick fix with the trusty soldering iron, and they are as good as used!



I've included a "behind the scenes" look at my new, not-yet-patented level/drill design. I'm really starting to love the hot glue gun I got...it has soooo many uses!



Here is a look at one of my boards awaiting dowel implantation. It's a very scientific process...fill hole with hot glue...insert dowel...wait for glue to dry. Don't try this at home kids!



This is when I started to get a little giddy! Finally!! 3D!! The placement of the dowels in the base board weren't perfect...put with a little persuasion from my rubber mallet...it fit fine.





Lastly, a couple of looks from the back and front after fitting the other boards with dowels.




This was the solution I came up with to angle cut my fan board...I had to clamp the fan board to another board (this board was placed along a pencil line to allow me to cut straight - like that could happen!). This board was then clamped to the saw horses for stablity. In the end, the cut turned out to be pretty close...can't complain!

More pieces cut.

Today I cut the middle pieces of the cab.
This is my MDF mapped out before the cutting.
I've decided to use a dowel system to hold the thing together. It should require less sanding (which I hate) and should be pretty sturdy when all is said and done. It also will not require screws and therefore putty to be used on the outer surface.
Even though it is hard to see, this is the model I used to ensure that I wouldn't waste too much MDF in cutting my pieces.
This still leaves me with a little bit of extra MDF...probably a second control panel (CP) if I end up screwing up the real one.
Here is a look at the dowel holes for the base. I bought 8' of 1/4" dowel rod for like $1.80, with tax. That gives me roughly 90 1" dowels. That should be plenty...if not, I'll buy some more...at that price, who cares?

Here are some shoved in for show...they are not glued in yet. Another step that was finished today was that I marked the side panels with the layout of where all of the pieces line up. This gave me precise measurements on the lengths, and should allow me to line everything up better when it comes time to assemble everything.

The waiting is partially over.

The monitor arrived! Now I need to take some measurements and make some final decisions about the width of this thing and start cutting some more pieces!!

That should happen tomorrow...I will also probably work on the computer system tomorrow as well. I will need to kill some time while the glue dries. I'm planning on using a dowel system to hold the cab together. This seems to be a sturdy design as I have assembled furniture using this method often and nothing has fallen apart on me yet! I'll need to line up my pieces, and drill a small hole, then pump in some glue and shove a wooden dowel into the glue filled hole...once the glue dries, it should have a strong hold...if not, I'll have a stack of MDF for the garbage guys!!

Construction starts

Today I was able to use a bigger car to bring home my MDF. I picked up a 49x97" 3/4" sheet...but I had them cut it in three 2'x4' sheets and one 2'1"x4' sheet. I figured the store has a better rig for cutting this stuff than I do...and they'll do it much straighter than I could...and it was free. That's always nice.

I first had to make some saw horses...as you can see, I did a pretty good job...it is nearly perfectly level. This little process took a little longer than I had hoped for...but it is done, and shouldn't need to be touched again!

Next I started to mark out my side panels on a sheet of MDF. However, I made my first mistake...I was in such a rush to get it marked that I f'd up on the depth measurement. Luckily I caught it when I stepped back to admire it...and thought "that doesn't look right!" Then a quick comparison to my graph paper sketch and I realized my mistake. So I flipped over the MDF and started over.

Here it is...correct!

I had been trying to do something to help document this whole process in pictures...but it didn't work. So I don't have any pics of me cutting it...but here is what the sides look like after they were cut out. You can clearly see my bad outline on the back side.

I will attempt to get my documentation gimmick up and running later when I start cutting out some more pieces. I called it a day after cutting the sides...it took a lot longer than I had hoped for...and I had a big mess to clean up. MDF puts out a LOT of dust! And yes, I was wearing goggles and a mask....no sense in taking a chance of getting hurt while trying to have some fun!

This is where it all starts...

Welcome to my blog!

This will chronicle the adventures I have in building my first MAME cab. I'm starting by building a bartop cab first, since these are the smallest...and should be the cheapest - and hopefully easiest - to build. If all goes well...and not too over budget...I'm sure other cabs will follow.

Let's get to it.

I kinda started in a strange place...I had a pair of old speakers laying around...so I decided that they would be the first victims in my attempt to build some fun.

There were no screws holding it together, and I didn't notice any clips or such that would make it easily pop apart.

So, with a little help from my trusty friend, Mr. Screwdriver (you can see him in the pic), I was able to crack it open. Turns out it did have some tabs, but they were glued into a slot on the other half of the speakers.

Anyway, after yanking out what I need, I gained two 3" speakers and a PCB with a volume knob already attached in a way that I think can easily be used with little to no modification. He shoots, he scores!

I'll need to borrow a bigger car to pick up my MDF...that'll come in a day or two. Then the real fun begins!