Tips for building your own arcade control panel

  1. "Classic" arcade games used leaf-switch joysticks, which have a different feel from the more durable modern microswitch type. I put one of each in my control panel, because I like the leaf-switch while my daughter likes the microswitch. If you want to go with the leaf-switch, be warned that they can be hard to find. Try calling your local arcade distributor or post on rec.games.video.arcade.marketplace - you can probably buy some mail-order (be specific about what you want - I ended up getting some really cruddy 4-way leaf-switches when what I really wanted was a WICO 8-way leaf-switch). You could also use leaf-switch pushbuttons, but nobody I talked to thinks this is worthwhile - the microswitch types are fine.
  2. Lanzer's guide to building the joystick casing talks about using a circular saw to cut your wood. I really think he means to use a table saw, not a handheld circular saw. I found it almost impossible to make long straight cuts with a handheld circular saw, and making a cut with a 5-degree angle for his "model 2" casing was nearly impossible as well. My advice is to do the best you can, but make sure you stay outside the lines, then use a disc sander to sand the parts so they fit together well.
  3. My experience with the spinner taught me that I'd need to get inside the box fairly often to mess with the electronics, so instead of screwing the bottom on I added hinges and a cabinet latch, to make it easy to open and close.
  4. I used water-based varnish when finishing the wood, as it has less fumes, and cleanup is really easy (just soap and water). If you do this, don't use steel wool to sand the surface, as little bits will get into the varnish and rust. Use wet-dry sandpaper like Lanzer suggests.
  5. I put two joysticks in my control panel, and hooked them to a Y-cable to connect to the PC. I also bought gamecards with auto-fire features that could be turned on and off - it's useful for some games. I never use them, though, because it was easier just to hack the MAME source code to support auto-fire.
  6. Rather than soldering your wires directly to the joysticks/gamepads, buy some quick connect terminals and a crimping tool. If you screw up, or need to disconnect/reconnect wires, this will make things much easier.
  7. If you find it hard to find weights to put in your control panel, try a dive shop (where they sell weights for scuba diving). My control panel was big enough that I didn't need weights - I put little rubber feet on the bottom, and it never moves at all, even during fierce bouts with Robotron.