If you have just joined up I suggest you read the first part of this in depth tutorial on building your own arcade machine. You can read the first part here: Arcade Control Panel

Planning (cont…)

Last article we spoke about planning your arcade machine project ensuring you have all your parts, plans and everything is ready to go. The next thing you will need to think about is your arcade machines design. You can stick to a tradition Galaga replica or design a hybrid machine encorporating the best parts of your favourite machines. In our tutorial I have gone for a hybrid design based on free hand sketching and general arcade knowledge on measurements and scales.

Firstly we need to map out all the required pieces of MDF and other materials we will need for general construction. This is best done the old fashioned way with a pencil and some paper. I won’t give you the full measurements of the arcade we built because we winged it during construction, however the basis of our design was the 1980 arcade classic, Centipede.

Plans: http://jakobud.com/plan.php?id=5

After we had the measurements we needed to move onto figuring out how much MDF we needed. Just add up section which will then give you the final wood required. Contact your local provider to see what sheet sizes they can provide for you and simply map out the sections of the cabinet to ensure there is enough to play with. Think smart too, you don’t want to end up with half a sheet which cannot be used for anything.

Measuring & Cutting

After you have purchased your MDF simply map out the required section, you only have to do one side of the arcade, we will simply use the first one as a template for the second one.

As you can see on the right there was some slight modifications to the original centipede design instead working towards some round features on the cabinet. Under the control panel and on the top and bottom of the monitor. This rockets the arcade into the future, but still retaining the key features of the arcade.

If you choose to have a rounded look on your arcade machine you will need to router the sections to ensure you get a perfect semi circle. You can do this using a jig or if you don’t have one you can make one, this video will help you: http://www.ehow.com/video_4426187_make-circle-router.html

After you part has been completely cut out, you should end up with one side of your arcade. Stand it up and see how it is! Once you have had a little play, jumped around a bit and your excitement has worn down a bit, you can now move on to cutting out the other side. This is done by simply using the first side as a template.

You’ll need a very worthwhile router bit called a Down-Shear multi trimmer router bit, you can see it here: http://www.toolstoday.com/p-5888-down-shear-multi-trimmer-router-bit.aspx. You can do this without that bit, however I highly recommend using it as it will minimise imperfections by making the two side exactly the same.

Conclusion

Simply cut out of the remaining pieces of the arcade using a saw and have them ready for assembly. I normally work and cut as we go to ensure we get perfect measurements and no wasted materials.

Next part we will look over joining the arcade together using some cleaver joining methods, this will ensure your arcade is looking very professional and can handle being moved.

Thanks for reading and feel free to leave your comments below.

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Choosing the right materials is the most important part and since the control panel is the most used face on a machine, it needs to be durable and high quality.

I have just finished my control panel and I thought I would share the materials, steps and more on what I used to construct it.

Materials

• 3mm thick, 600 mm by 500mm plexi-glass (clear plastic)
• 28mm hole saw
• Powerful Drill
• Router with rounded bit.
• Circular saw
• Hot glue gun
• Wire Crimps
• Pack of 50 quick connectors (maybe more or less)
• Arcade buttons, Josticks, Encoder (ipac) or hacked.

Planning

Before you rush on in, you will need to think about layout. How will the buttons be positioned? How far apart and will it be comfortable?

You can find some great designs for controller layouts here are some sites to help you.

• http://www.koenigs.dk/mame/controlpanel%20full.pdf
• http://www.koenigs.dk/mame/cp.pdf
• http://www.koenigs.dk/mame/eng/draw.htm
• http://arcadecontrols.com/arcade_controlpanels.shtml
• http://www.basementarcade.com/arcade/cpom/cpo.html

My design was based off Koenigs controls, with a bit of a twist. I decided to use only plexiglass to build my control panel, this gives a nice smooth finish and also allows me to use art work and a back light under the panel.

There are some pros and cons when it comes to using MDF, metal or plexi as your control panel. MDF can be bulky, time consuming to construct and doesn’t give that nice professional finish. Metal can be quiet expensive to use but still requires a solid backing to ensure that it is sturdy and doesn’t bend and plexi-glass has a great finish however requires support bars under the panel to ensure it also does not bend. Whatever you go with you need to ensure it is going to sit well on your arcade, I prefer the plexi-glass because it gives me the greatest flexibility in the future, it was relatively cost effective and has a nice smoooooooooth finish and it looks very sexy with a back light…

I divided my control panel in half and mapped out the controls on one side, after finishing the layout on that half, using my tape measure I mirrored it exactly on the other side. This gives a perfect control layout with equal space apart on each side. Positioning the buttons is up to the user, be sure to give enough space where the wrist sits so it does not hang off the edge. Allow 38mm for buttons and a standard button space of 38mm from the center of each button, anything bigger can give painful hand cramps when playing mortal kombat… trust me losing to cramps sucks..

Construction

I first divided my sheet of plexiglass accordingly to my arcade machine (width or 600mm and a depth of 240mm). Cutting them with a circular saw I was left with three bits, 2 x 600mm by 240mm sheets and a small left over bit. (I’ll use this for my coin slot!)

I started to counter-sink my joystick screws to ensure a flush finish on the first layer, this allows me to place another sheet of plexi on top and place some art in between the sheets. Clamping the two sheets together I started by drilling small pilot holes then moved on to drill my buttons out, making sure to go slow to ensure the friction would not melt the plastic. After all the hols have been cut out, use some fine sandpaper to clean the edges of the holes.

Place the two sheets together and slide the buttons into place to ensure a snug fit, there may be some movement but this shouldn’t be a concern. You may get some tight areas where the buttons are touching and some buttons touch, the extra space comes in handy to wiggle them around a tighten them on.

Some people have issues with a sharp edge, if you have a router handy you can bevel the edge to give a smooth finish. Be careful when using the router on plastic, it requires a slow setting and a steady hand.

Stay tuned for the next part where I will show you wiring and how to organize your wires.

You can check out more photos here

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