I Love pinball so much being brought up on it in the 80s when only pinball and arcade games mattered as i got older i wanted either of them, but as i couldnt afford a machine i build a digital 1 instead check it out here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32ox8uRJp58

and as being an 80s kid i loved arcade games so i build a mame machine to with the digital pinball, check it out here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGgOBogVAbY&t=1s

Welcome Simbamame!

You are in the right place. All of us here have a passion for pinball.

George

Welcome Simbamame!

I have seen your YouTube videos previously... in fact - I think I may have seen pretty much all of the 'virtual pinball' table videos out there , as I too will hopefully be able to begin my virtual pinball table in the not too distant future; I have most of the electronic / PC parts..., to enjoy some of the amazing virtual pinball tables created using Future Pinball & BAM.

Hopefully you will find this a friendly and helpful forum.

Gin

Welcome!

I haven't even started my build yet, just starting to gather parts and get the PC part of it down, so when it's built I can just drop everything in and go! I will definitely be referring to your videos. Thanks!

The problem with wood that is MDF, is that this type of wood suck a lot water so painting it suck the paint; for this you should use some kind of "before-paint" that make the wood suck less the paint. A very good thing about MDF wood is that it is easy to cut and carve into. Brief it is a good wood to mold as wanted.

For painting i suggest more plywood but "uniform", not the one that have a lot of pieces of wood into one wood panel. Because when you cut it there is quite possible that some pieces of wood deform and want to get out of the panel.

Did you know that the correct size for the "true arcade buttons", is some circle holes of the size of 1&1/8 inch. I know because in the past i have created an arcade cab with real arcade buttons. Here is a youtube video of my old mame arcade fully fonctionnal with coin mechanism at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPhasuyFxys

I have put 4 speakers, since my audio card was dolby surround. Two speakers at the top corners of the screen, and two speakers that also changed color depending of the sound it play's. An old mouse between the color speakers that acted as a trackball for some games that need a trackball, like some bowling game and others.

The menu was made with the software "Mamewah" i have made the design and the programming of it. Also made a zone that list the games, and when the user is on some list it first show the image for 3 seconds of the game; followed by a video showing a preview of the selected game. You can also use the software to create interface for playing FP games.

I have created a free guide with the permissions and authorizations of the guy that created the software Mamewah, because of copyrights and to respect the author. Here is the direct link (since these day's the server where my webpages are is down), you can find the Mamewah guide for Futurepinball at: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ewY7stZtLzJBMn_iJ-Z3ngVhvDOZMGfu

I suggest also to you that you try to find and have the "I-Pac 4" or "I-Pac 2" that is from (Ultimarc), wich is some circuit that you can connect arcade buttons to. It can be used for many games. Its a circuit that can communicate with your computer, telling wich button has been pressed. Like when you play some game that you can say, press for button "A", press for button "B", press for "Left Direction", "Right Direction (Joystick) and so on.

If you are curious and because my server is down. You can find my PDF plan of the wood that i have put some holes into for the buttons at:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ydpMWwwHKWZGTzSLgWX3HkNz9sfKmstb

Here is also the plan of how i wired the "I-Pac 4" to the buttons:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1yD6oaJt2wrJ9BTeMU0q-Q5EJcxyQiIMq

Here is a video that show what it look like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUVZMLcX8Vg

Here is a video that show the buttons linked to the "I-Pac 4" circuit, you will also notice that the joystick is 4 directions (But) with some metal stripes that turn it to a 8 ways direction joystick.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0a7sOBi-wmg

On this video you see how i'm putting the joystick and how that is stay fixed. You also see better the little metal stripes that make connect 2 directions at the same time. This make a 4 directions joysticks turn into a 8 way joysticks. I "dont suggest" at all the 4 directions joystick (without the metal stripes).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6xWVV-awHs

I hope these infos help you?

Me also i am building an FP cabinet. But it will take my self some times because of my ways of life.

I have buyed a wood panel of the size of 24 inch by 48 inch. Into it i have simply "cut-out" a rectangle of the size of 17 inch by 28&3/4 inch. This rectangle is centered on the width, but it is from 4 inch from the border lenght; so the end of the rectangle hole reach 21 inch. Also the width (24 inch) is done as 3&1/2 inch then the hole of 17 inch, then an other 3&1/2 inch wich make the "24 inch" width.

It is for putting into my 32 inch panoramic tv screen into. But you have decided to put it as an angle, me i have decided to put it into the wood panel as some surface. What i mean by that is that this 24 inch by 48 inch wood panel will be used as some desk cover, that i would carve into the 32 inch panoramic tv screen; then i already have a 24 inch by 48 inch transparent hard plastic that will cover this hole wood panel (same size). So i will see trough this hard plastic of 2 mm thickness the wood panel that have into the tv screen.

Because the tv screen is at 4 inch of the border, so if you calculate that (48 inch) length; there is 4 inch from the border, after the hole of 28&3/4 inch (wich make 32&3/4 inch). This leave at the end of the other border of the wood panel near 16 inch. This space will be used to put some computer monitor for the (score board) of FP. So the playfield for the tv screen.

Since it is covered with the hard transparent plastic of 24 inch by 48 inch for protecting the wood and tv screen into, it will be used also as some desk furniture for other things. Because the wood panel wont be in angle. So this desk will be used for many things, as some ordinary desk, used to play some Mame arcade into the tv screen into, used to simply watch some tv also or movie into since it's a tv; but also the tv screen will be used for the playfield of Futurepinball games.

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Oh, ive forgot to put an image here of the plan of this wood panel.

So like that you can more easy visualize the thing im planing.


Have a nice day.

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