Trackball Plate Installation!!!

At this rate I will be finishing my arcade sometime in the year 2047 when my reflexes are all but gone and my "good eye" is at about 20/200. Oh well, I'll have a working arcade one of these days...

Anyway, this past weekend I was able to install the trackball plate on my third control panel!!! In order to recreate the authentic arcade experience for games like Golden Tee and Centipede a trackball is a must. It's really the only way you can play these classics. The added benefit is that the trackball can also double as a computer mouse for navigating windows and performing general software maintenance. After all, the guts of the arcade is going to be a computer running Windows XP and if I ever want to add more games or emulators I'm going to need an easy way to do so. There's no way I would ever open everything up just to tweak the computer settings or add new games - it would be too much of a pain. This way, I hope that all maintenance can be performed outside the cabinet.

In order to install a trackball a "trackball plate" is needed (well, it's not required but it makes installation a heck of a lot easier). It's basically a square metal plate that the trackball attaches to from the bottom of the control panel. The 4 corners of the trackball plate have headless screws that allow the plate to be attached from underneath with a smooth top for aesthetic purposes. You can see what it looks like in the pictures below.

This is all well and good for normal people but since I am super anal I knew that after a few weeks the trackball plate will start to bother me. Eventually, I would have regretted not doing something even cleaner than the normal trackball installation. I decided to completely hide the plate altogether so the only thing showing through the control panel would be the trackball. Other people over at BYOAC have done this so this is nothing revolutionary but I think it is pretty cool nonetheless.

In order to accomplish my goal I had to use my router and a dado cutting bit to cut the area on the control panel where the trackball plate rests down by the thickness of the trackball plate itself. This will enable the plate to sit flush with the top of the control panel. After this is done, the entire thing will be covered with a layer of vinyl which will cover any imperfections in the routing job and completely hide the fact that there is a trackball plate under there at all. This is how it was done:

First, in the picture below you can see the unmodified control panel. The trackball plate will cover up the middle leaving a circular cutout for the trackball to stick out of.

STEP 1: Place the trackball plate in position by lining up the the screws on the plate with the holes in each corner of the cutout.

STEP 2: Using a razor blade and being as careful as you can, trace the plate to make an outline on the control panel. Try scoring the wood multiple times so you get a cut as deep as the thickness of the plate. If you enlarge the picture you can see that the razor marks are there. This is to ensure that when you are freehanding with the router you will get a clean edge when the rest of the wood is removed.

STEP 3: Place blue (or any color) painter's tape around the edges where you want to cut. This isn't required but if you tried to make the cut with the router without the tape it becomes very difficult to see what is going on. There is a lot of sawdust flying around when cutting and I think the blue tape just makes it easier to make the cut as square as possible. As you can see here, the area being cut away is framed by the blue tape.


This next picture shows how the trackball plate would look on the control panel if I didn't go through the effort of hiding it. It sits above the panel by about 1/16" and just doesn't look that great (try picturing it without the blue tape). Now you should be getting a better idea of what we are trying to accomplish. By trimming the control panel down by 1/16" the plate can sit flush to the control panel top. Then a vinyl covering can be applied to the entire surface which will hide any imperfections in my less-than-stellar craftsmanship.

STEP 4: Set the depth of the dado cutting bit in the router to the thickness of the trackball plate. It is roughly 1/16" but I was able to get an exact thickness just using the plate itself next to the router bit with the router upside down. Make sure to do this with the router completely unplugged - you don't want to get hurt. I also recommend finding some scrap wood and routing out a square that the plate can rest in to make sure the depth is properly set. You don't want to ruin your control panel! I had to try two different settings before I got it perfect.

STEP 5: While wearing safety glasses, very carefully (and I mean very carefully), place the router in the center of the cutout and turn the router on. Using nothing but your awesome woodworking skills (and the router of course) cut away the wood inside of the square framed by the blue tape. Try getting as close to the tape as possible without actually cutting into it. When you get close to the line the wood should break off pretty evenly because of the scoring done earlier.

The pictures below show what the end result should look like. Notice I wasn't perfect with my lines but I don't have to be - it's all getting covered eventually. Close is good enough here. The trackball plate now sits completely flush with the top of the control panel in the area I just routed out. Pretty sweet, eh?



The next step will be installing the vinyl covering that will make everything look pretty, installing the buttons, joysticks and trackball to the control panel and attaching it to the actual arcade cabinet!! It's starting to come together!

Hinge for 3rd Control Panel - Installed!!!

This is major news. As you can see by the awesome picture, I was able to attach the metal piano hinge to the third control panel. I used screws and a screwdriver for this tricky installation and it took approximately 5 minutes to install. My skills amaze even myself sometimes...

The hinge is there to provide access to underneath the control panel for maintenance or when I wire the buttons and trackball up for the first time. I left it gold colored (instead of spray painting it black to match) because it will be completely hidden once the cabinet is up and running.

I am glad to get this crucial step in the construction process out of the way - I had been dreading it for months due to its unbelievable complexity. Whew!

Update!

I was able to size the bezel using the small piece of smoked glass as a template and then cutting it to size using a straight edge and razor. I was also able to round the corners of the bezel to fit into the rabbet in the tabletop with a pair of scissors. I think it came out pretty good.

I also cut the t-molding to fit around the edges of the tabletop and placed the bigger tempered piece of glass on top. Eventually, the glass will be held to the top with some glass clips that screw into the underside of the table and extend out over the top to hold the glass in place.

Here are the latest pictures:

The Glass for the Table Top has Arrived!

I will post pictures later but it came out pretty good. I had the pieces custom made at the local glass shop and they based it exactly off of my table top which I left with them for reference. Once I print the artwork and apply it, trim the bezel to the correct dimensions and install the t-molding around the sides it will be 100% complete and ready to be attached to the cabinet. That should take no more than an hour or two to do once I have everything in front of me.

I decided to go with two pieces of glass - one smaller smoked piece for the inside that will just cover the surface of the monitor screen and then another clear, tempered piece that will be the actual table top and cover the entire table top. The small piece sits in a groove and is flush with the actual top and the large piece then covers everything.

A smoked piece of glass really makes the monitor picture pop. Check out www.oscarcontrols.com/smoked for a great comparison of smoked versus clear glass over a monitor. The reason I wanted the bigger piece to be clear is so that the artwork would be clearly visible underneath the glass. Any tint or smoke applied to the glass would make the artwork tough to see.

I will be posting detailed pictures later this week so you can see exactly what everything looks like.

Darth Maul = BADASS!!!



I just got back a piece of the artwork for the top of my cabinet. This is the "finished" Darth Maul picture. He is going to be in the same place as he is in the concept sketch posted from last time. It's not much but you can see the kick ass style I'm going for...

I'm positive the other characters and the final piece with the "Knights of the Arcade Table" font will come out amazing.

Any thoughts or comments?

Progress: Concept Art!!!

Check this out. The artist that I contacted has sent me a rough sketch for the artwork that will end up on the CPO. I can't say enough about what an amazing talent this guy is - just look at it! I have full confidence that the final result will be nothing less than stunning. There are a few little modifications that need to be done to the layout such as the lettering being repositioned to run down the side of the table top along the monitor but this is EXACTLY the idea I am going for... He is going to make a detailed full size drawing and then color it in photoshop so I can give it to the printer.

This has really motivated me to get the thing up and running - who knows maybe this weekend!

Control Panel Overlay (CPO) Needed!!

Now it is time for me to start thinking about putting the control panels together. My Player 3/Player 4 control panel needs some artwork before I can install all of the buttons and the trackball. It is pictured to the left and the dimensions are exactly 21" x 6-3/4". As you can see, I am going for the traditional "Street Fighter" six-button setup which will allow me to play most horizontal games in MAME (I'm a huge fighting game fan but I suck at them). There is also going to be a trackball in the middle where the large square cutout is located as well as several admin buttons along the top such as Player 1 Start, Player 2 Start, Exit (to the list of games), Pause, Insert Coin (in case you don't have a quarter), etc. I don't want anything fancy for the CPO - maybe just some sort of general picture of outer space as shown below. It's a little nicer than plain black but it won't overwhelm you or force your eyes away from the main artwork located on the top of the table.

The big square cutout in the middle of the control panel is where the trackball will go. To install it I am going to be using a trackball plate which is just a piece of metal with 4 screws in the corner that will cover the rectangular cutout (you can see the screw holes in the picture of the control panel. In the middle of the plate there is a small circular hole where the actual trackball will stick out so you can use it.

I really don't like the look of the plate so I am going to hide it completely. To do this I need to complete several tasks. First, place the plate in the screw holes and trace it with a pen or marker. Next, remove the plate and you are left with the outline. Here's the tricky part - you need to rout out some of the material in the control panel so the plate will sit flush with the top and then when you lay down the artwork it will be covered completely. The router depth must be set to the thickness of the trackball plate and you should use a dado-cutting bit to make the cut (obtained from www.mlcswoodworking.com). The cut must be done freehand with the router but it doesn't have to be perfect as long as you stay as close to the line that was traced around the plate - any imperfections will be covered by the artwork once it is in place. Make sure to clamp the control panel down to the work bench before making any cuts. You don't want it to get away from you. Once there is a lip formed around the plate, it can be fastened to the control panel and it should be flush with the top.

Now the artwork can be installed over the top of the entire control panel. Once it is applied, flip the control panel over and use an exacto knife (razor blade) to cut out the button holes, the joystick holes and the trackball hole. The only one you have to pay very careful attention to is the trackball hole because it is the only one that is not going to be covered with some sort of trim (bezel) when the buttons are installed.

I will be posting detailed pictures of this process when I actually get around to doing it (hopefully this weekend). Stay tuned!

No real progress but I'll update anyway...

Wow, where does the time go? I started thinking about this project over a year ago and construction began way back in April and here we are and I'm barely 1/2 way finished. There's still a TON of work left to do.

I haven't been able to find the time to physically work on my arcade in the past few weeks but I have managed to order a few more parts that I need including the artwork! I'm hoping to get started on the interior construction on Sunday. The New York Football Giants don't play until 8 p.m. so the entire day should be free. I recently contacted an artist named Tom Hodges (www.tomhodges.com) who has graciously agreed to draw me a custom Star Wars theme for my cab in the same style as the pictures below with "Knights of the Arcade Table" in a large font to go along the sides of the monitor (for a price of course but it's well worth it). It should take a few weeks at least before the artwork is finished but if it comes out 1/2 as good as these pictures he has drawn it will look unbelievable. Go check out his website and order some art from him!



Pretty cool looking, eh? Tom has agreed to send me the drawing as a photoshop file so I can have it printed by the people over at www.mamemarquees.com. I've never used them before but from what I've heard they do an outstanding job and the customer service is top notch. I will post a mini-review when I reveive the final vinyl overlay from them but it will probably not be for quite some time. First, Tom has to draw the picture and send it to me. Once the file has arrived, I will have to position it on a template (against a black background) in the opposite corners of the table top and it will be ready to print. The file size I requested from Tom is 300DPI (dots per inch), which is a very high resolution so the printed result should have a photographic look to it - very smooth lines and no jagged or pixelated edges. This will be the most important part of the cabinet from a visual standpoint because it is what your eye will be drawn to upon seeing it.

Check out the SWEET layout I drew. Anyone should be able to tell exactly what I'm going for, right? Hahaha... yeah, I don't really have any artistic talent as far as drawing is concerned but you get the idea... I actually sent this to Tom!!! I hope he can figure it out - I didn't really specify a design other than wanting a drawing of jedi knights with their lightsabers out and ready to kick some ass...

More to come later!

I'm a Liar...

OK, I didn't get a chance to wire up my cabinet this weekend like I planned but I hope to do so in the coming weeks. I think I need to make a list of all of the outstanding things that need to be done for this project or I'll never finish - kind of like a punchlist. I need some sense of order because right now it seems like there are a million little things to do and no real order to them.

I did manage to snap a few pictures of the various internal components that will go inside the cabinet (eventually!) for those of you who are curious about that sort of thing. The first two pictures here show the front and back views of the monitor I ordered from Happs Controls (http://happscontrols.com). It's a Vision Pro 19" Horizontal Mount Monitor (Part Number 49-1337-VP2) and it is awesome. I can't believe how nice the games look when this thing is fired up. I forgot to take pictures of it with games running but I will sometime in the future. It really looks exactly like a real arcade game!















Notice all that wiring in the rear of the monitor - it makes me nervous even thinking about installing it! Monitors should be handled very delicately because there are some high voltage areas and even when turned off, it can retain its charge. Also, there is a risk of an implosion if you bump it hard enough although I've heard that it is no less dangerous than handling a 19" TV - in other words, as long as you are careful it should be perfectly safe to work with.

The coolest part about this monitor (other than the great picture) is that it is super easy to hook up to a computer. Since a computer is what will ultimately be running the software inside the cabinet and I don't really know much about computers, this is essential. As you can see by the blurry picture here, there is a standard computer monitor plug thingy that goes right into the back of the computer. All you do it plug it in, hook it up to the computer and turn the computer on and you are good to go. The monitor also powers off when the computer shuts down and turns on again when the computer starts up. This means that when I wire the computer power button to somewhere on the cabinet (probably underneath) the monitor will power on automatically! Think about it - it would totally take you out of the "authentic arcade experience" if you had to individually power everything on every time you wanted to play. Once everything is hooked up, one button will do the trick to get everything going (there's also something called a "Smart Strip" which is a special power strip that everything plugs into inside the cabinet which I will explain later on).

Totally Boring Update:

OK. I've decided to go with a piece of 3/16" smoked glass for the monitor (it will sit on top of the bezel in the groove already cut to accept the bezel and hopefully be flush with the tabletop) and a piece of 1/8" clear tempered glass for the table top. I really want smoked glass over the monitor but I'm afraid if I use it for the entire top I will not be able to see the artwork. I've been told that old atari cocktail tables used to be set up this way. I really hope it works!

I just got back from the local glass shop and priced everything out - $150 for everything. It's expensive as hell but, get this, the tempering process for the top is $100 of the cost! I went with 1/8" because that is all the glass clips could accept (1/4" was too thick). The guy at the shop recommended tempering it because of the thinness of the piece and I kind of agree because tempering makes it 5 times stronger. Basically I just don't want someone to accidentally drop a bottle of beer or something on it and then end up in the emergency room.

I'm not sure when the glass will be ready to pick up but it doesn't really matter because I still need the artwork to completely finish the table top.

Tomorrow I'm going to be wiring the entire thing up! I'm excited because it should be somewhat playable by the end of the day!!! Then I will never get anything more done ever because I will be playing Ms. Pac-man nonstop. Oh well...

Progress at Last!!!

I was finally able to finish the exterior of my cab. I used a Minwax water-based stain (blue, obviously) and a Minwax Polyacrylic finish. I applied 2 coats of the stain to get the color I wanted and 4 coats of the finish to seal it up. I applied the stain with a rag and rubbed it in (OK, it was 1/2 of a white t-shirt) and I applied the sealant with a foam brush. In between each coat of sealant I sanded the entire thing down by hand with a sanding block (a rubber thing with sandpaper on the bottom) and then wiped it clean with a damp rag (the other 1/2 of the white t-shirt). The reason for sanding in between each coat of sealant is so the next coat will have a rough surface to adhere to. The final coat does not get sanded.


There is a very smooth glass-like surface over the wood now. When this thing is (finally) in operation and I am in a heated game of Tetris, Puzzle Bobble 4 or some Mortal Kombat 2 and I spill my beer everywhere it should wipe up very easily. One thing I did notice as I was staining the cabinet is that if I could do it over I think I would finish the pieces individually prior to assembly. I think gravity combined with not being able to get into the corners as well as I wanted to with the brush made the thing come out a little uneven. I stress a little though because I do think it looks quite nice. You can't really tell from these pictures but the stain shows off the wood grain very nicely even though it looks like I painted the thing blue. Notice the Atari 5200 box in the background of the picture to the left. I'm soooo old school!

This shot is a close-up of the Player 2 side of the thing. You can see the t-molding on the edges - this will eventually cover all of the exposed edges of the plywood. It wasn't easy to cut the t-molding to the proper length because of the curved surface I had to apply it to. Also, getting a 90 degree cut on the edge of the t-molding is pretty difficult even though it sounds easy. I used a straight razor knife and eyeballed it. I think it came out OK but I'm sure there is a more precise way to make the cuts. I also sliced my thumb in the process and got a little blood on there (not pictured). Thank god for the smooth finish - it wiped right up!

To the right is a shot of the cabinet with the top on (not attached) and the coin door closed. If you look closely you can see the groove routed out around the top piece - this is for the 1" t-molding that will eventually go around the outside. I am waiting to get the piece of glass made and the artwork applied before I install it though. That will be one of the last pieces of construction. You can also see the difference t-molding makes by comparing the unfinished sides of the control panel to the finished ones in the picture above. I sure do talk about t-molding a lot, eh? Well, it does look nice... This is basically how it will look when it is finished minus the artwork and the controls. The hole in the middle is for the wiring of the buttons, joysticks and trackball and will not be visible once everything is installed.

In this picture you can see the inside of the coin door. I've never wired anything up before but I don't think it is too hard to figure out (I'll probably be saying something different when I actually start though). The coin door will be set to accept quarters and tokens. The coins trip a microswitch (I'll explain that later when I start talking about wiring more in-depth) that sends a signal to the computer and the MAME program will know that a coin has been inserted and will allow you to press start and play whatever game you have loaded. It is a true arcade experience - you've got to put a quarter in to be able to play! I am also planning including a "coin" button on the face of each control panel and wiring them all to the same place so that you won't actually have to insert a coin every time you want to play but you can if you want to make it more authentic. There are also 2 lights for the "coin return" buttons that need power from the computer to light up. I'm not sure how these things work yet because I haven't come across a "coin return" button in MAME but I'm sure it's in there somewhere.

This final picture of my arcade cabinet for today is just a shot of what will eventually be the top. As mentioned previously, there will be a piece of tempered smoked glass that will go on top and be held down by some clips. The glass will go over the monitor cut out as well as the cutouts on the left and right so it will basically be rectangular in shape (with rounded corners). The most important part of this project (other than the games actually working) is the artwork which will cover the top entirely. Click on the Ms. Pac-man example I posted below to see exactly what I mean. If the artist I've asked agrees to draw me some custom Star Wars art for the top like I described in my last post, this thing will totally kick ass.

Click for an example of a cocktail overlay graphic.

Stay tuned - I hope to post more pictures soon!!

I am going to be posting more pictures soon showing off the t-molding and staining of the cabinet. It is coming along nicely. One bit of news is that I've finally decided on a name for my creation:

Knights of the Arcade Table

The idea I have pictured in my head is a Star Wars theme. I would like a drawing of several Jedis (Knights, get it?) for the top of the cabinet around the monitor with their lightsabers drawn. I'm a huge geek but I don't think naming the thing and giving it a Star Wars theme makes me any more of a geek than building my own arcade machine does in the first place. It's like I've maxed out my geekiness or something. I'm reaching out to a very talented artist (who shall remain nameless until he agrees to do it) to draw the artwork. Hopefully he will accept the job!!

More to come....

Here are some more pictures of my work in progress. It's nothing new, really - just a couple of different angles.

The first picture here is a straight on view of the third control panel. Eventually there will be two joysticks, a 2-1/4" trackball and 12 action buttons (6 per player) here for controlling the horizontal games. You can also see the coin door cutout below the long control panel.

The second picture is a shot of the player one control panel. There is going to be one joystick, 3 action buttons and a spinner here (for games like Arkanoid). Underneath the player one control panel I am going to have to drill two large holes - one for a computer fan and the other for a speaker. I have black grills that will cover the holes and match the rest of the cabinet. The fans are an absolute necessity due to the electrical components (computer and monitor, especially) being so compact in there.

In the close-up shown in the third picture, if you look closely you can see the groove on the end pieces where the t-molding is going to go. The t-molding gives the piece a nice neat finished look instead of the rough edges left by the saw.

The final shot is a close-up of the interior of the cabinet where the computer, all the wiring and the monitor will be placed once I get around to it. It will probably be a rat's nest of wires since I've never done something like this before and I really don't know what I'm doing. The back panel of the cabinet is missing because this is where you gain access to all of the internal components. There is a piano hinge that connects the missing panel to the bottom front panel in the last picture. The top of the table (not pictured anywhere) connects to the missing panel and holds the monitor. The top, the monitor and the missing panel all swivel on the piano hinge when I need to get inside for maintenance (hopefully never!).

Well, as you can see I've got a picture to share with more to come in a few days. This is the 80% assembled, unfinished cabinet. Since this picture was taken, I've stained the entire thing a dark shade of blue and added the plastic trim (called t-molding) and installed the coin door. That's right - this sucker is going to be able to accept real quarters or tokens when it is all finished - just like a real arcade machine does. Of course I'll have it set to free play but the option is there.

I've also started the assembly of the control panels which will house all of the the joysticks and buttons. This project has three separate control panels - 2 on the short sides for vertical games (like Pac-man) and one 2-player long one for playing horizontal games (like Street Fighter II). The difference between a horizontal game and a vertical game is the way it is oriented on the screen. Your normal picture tube television displays everything in 4:3 mode or horizontally. If you were to turn the TV on its side it would now be positioned to display games in vertical mode. There are many different games out there that come in both varieties.

Overall it's not looking too bad so far but once I get some new pictures posted here you will really be able to see something neat. I'm aiming to post new pictures by Monday. Stay tuned!

Hello all. I've never used a blog before and up until a few weeks ago I didn't even know what one was so I apologize in advance if this one sucks. This is going to be a place for me to post pictures and detail the progress of building my own arcade machine. I might use it for something else down the road though - you never know.

Anyway, about a 18 months ago I was wasting time surfing the web and I came across www.arcadecontrols.com which is a great website dedicated to arcade enthusiasts who have actually taken the time to design and build their own arcade machines. As soon as I saw what people had been doing I knew I had to build one myself. I spent countless hours in arcades growing up in the 80s and it would be so cool to be able to play all those old games again in my own house.

Over the next few months, I learned all about how these things worked. You could build you own, buy an old one and restore it or have someone build you one (there are tons of companies I never knew about who cater to arcade machines and the like). There are a million different joysticks, spinners, trackballs, pushbuttons, steering wheels etc. and a million ways to lay it all out. You also have to decide what you want to play the games on - a monitor or TV? It can be overwhelming at first. I think the best approach is to figure out which games you want to be able to play and design it to accommodate that. Inside the cabinet, most people use a computer and a program called MAME, which is used to play the games. That's the (very) basics I guess. What I like most about this hobby (aside from the finished product) is that it is completely up to the builder to decide how it looks - there are a lot of unique cabinets out there!

After doing a TON of research and basically reading everything I could I decided on building a cocktail cabinet. I thought about building an upright but there's just no room in my house for one - maybe when I get a bigger house I'll have a dedicated game room with all sorts of fun stuff in there but for now the cocktail will have to do.

I'll post more details along with some construction photos later on...