Homemade Arcade Machine

I made an arcade machine! Completed picture first. This had been a dream project of mine for the past few years but due to a lack of woodworking experience or understanding of MAME, I resigned myself to the fact that I would have to pay the thousands of dollars to have someone build my dream machine for me. Then, in July, I found the video series posted on YouTube from the "I Like To Make Stuff" channel. That guy is amazing and those videos inspired me to give it a try. Full of confidence and the woodworking knowledge I had gained 18 years ago in 10th grade woodworking class (the last time I built something) I paid $20 for his design plans, borrowed from family every tool that i would need, and set off on a 5 month adventure.

I screwed up the very first cut I made and needed to make alterations for the plans. I cut the side panels 2 inches short which had an impact on the cabinet space under the control panel. At that point I decided that I really wanted a 4 player control panel and a bigger screen. Being impulsive is not a good trait to possess when building an arcade machine.

Dimensions for the control panel and marquee. I spent a long time looking online for dimensions of a 4 player control panel but couldn't find them anywhere. Hopefully this image can help someone in the future.

I stopped taking pictures because I thought I was documenting a failing project, but then everything came together in this mock-up!

Button layout was stressful, it's crucial to the look of the machine and overall gameplay, I found lots of help for this on the MAME and R Cade sub-reddits.

Drilled holes through the plexiglass. The local TechEd teacher recommended painters tape to prevent chipping on all of my cuts through the plexiglass, it worked!

Control panel, the lines on the opposite side were mistakes in measuring, but i wish I would have designed the pattern to be cut like that.

This picture shows the shelves on the inside. The side panel is a door that hides the gaming components and extra storage space. The designs called for drawers instead of shelves, but my early failures scared me away from that. In the end I'm glad I went with shelves.

I'm lucky that everyone else in my family is handy because every tool I needed they had, including a spray paint gun. Here is my Dexter kill room for painting.

Paint job completed. I seriously underestimated how much paint I would need, having never worked with a sprayer before I didn't realize how thick it came out.

Major construction completed! It was at this point that I measured the doors and realized it wouldn't fit. Having had knee surgery a few months prior to this I called in my family to get my baby through the door. Measure your doors first.

At this point I was way over budget, so instead of buying a monitor I used a 10 year old, 32 inch flat screen monitor. Here's a picture of the back without the case or bezel. The components are glued to the back. I have a small fan behind the screen in the cabinet to keep it cool when running, this thing gets very warm without it.

Wiring complete. I'm too embarrassed to show my wire management inside. Someday I may go back and redo it, the wires are to tight in spots and I'm having issues with buttons coming unconnected. Also not shown here are the cuts from a router on the underside of the control panel. I had to use a router for the buttons and joysticks. I went with 3/4 inch plywood, that might have been overkill.

TV still works. Getting the bezel cut and applied was tricky, you can see a little of the monitor peeking through.

NBA Jam

The artwork! I went with the "I Like To Make Stuff" idea of having my family as super heroes. I went to outsource.com and posted my request for artwork. An artist by the name of John Boatwright designed everything. It came out so awesome! I can't recommend this guy enough.

Control panel artwork. Could not have been happier with how this turned out. If you want information on how to get in contact with John let me know.

The marquee is lit by colored LED lights that strobe, fade, or flicker. Such a cool feature for around $20.

Opened side door.

The machine is powered by a single light switch on the back of the cabinet.

Completed picture showing the LED lights on the machine and marquee.

Final shot. Kids playing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles the Arcade Game. This thing is so much fun.