Taxi Jukebox & Games - Construction

Construction Details - Taxi Cab Jukebox/Arcade

I'll be posting more on this at some point, but here are some details....

	The rough cabinet with some paper mockups (but with the monitor set in it).
Control Panel template (designing first on the computer and then using a paper template to "cut" was an outstanding idea I got from another builder)
	Here's what the backside ended up looking like. I didn't put a door on it because I don't ever see a case when I won't have it up next to a wall. I do have everything setup to be able to add a door if I want to.
Detail of the speakers on the top that on on each side of the monitor.
	note the custom coin mechanism. :-) I tried a full mechanism from Happ, but due to the angle of my custom panel the mech wouldn't function properly. I ended up with using just the coin slot and then mounting a trigger switch underneath. That lead to the funnel and PVC custom work into a tin can (for the authentic sound). It actually works great and sounds great (realistic) too!
Wiring
Here's the iPac wiring.

Technical Details:

Design of cabinet is completely custom using ž" MDF (two 4'x8' sheets)

Yellow T-Molding is from T-Molding.com

All controls except joystick are from Happ Controls. of note is the "top entry" coin slot

Joystick is an E-Stik from Ultimarc

Interface board is an iPac from Ultimarc

Control panel template - I wish I could remember where I found it, but someone had posted a MS Word template. I scrapped almost everything in it, but using Microsoft Word for a template worked very well.

Jukebox application is the outstanding Arcade Jukebox 8

Arcade Emulator is MAME, but a mix of versions due to the old, crappy PC.

Front End (menu system) is PartyOn!

Chekerboard Striping and Taxi Top Light are from Andy's Top Lites. I dealt with Andy himself. We had a mixup on the order and to say he made it right is an understatement. Excellent customer service.

PC is a crappy old P133 w/ 64Mb of RAM running Win95 I had collecting dust.
Update: I already upgraded to a slightly less crappy P166 w/96Mb of RAM.

Monitor was, egad!, only an old 14 inch I also had collecting dust.
Update: I upgraded to a slightly less egad 15 inch monitor.

Button lights, Tail lights and Taxi Top Lights are wired into the PC power supply (works great!)

Time: It took me about nine months, concept to reality, but the last three months were where I spent most of the time building. I spent a lot of time prior to that getting ideas and planning.

Cost: More than I thought it would be, but not bad at all. I didn't itemize it like most builders. Sorry. Outside of what is outlined above, paint, plexiglass, wiring and misc hardware were my only other costs.

Lessons Learned:

A custom design was MUCH more work than I thought it would be. I don't want to discourage anyone, the possibilities are unlimited with a custom design. It's an incredible feeling to look at that design I sketched out now that it has become reality. Just realize that you are in for a lot of work. You can get plans for arcade machines many places. Jukebox plans are starting to come out now.
Mock-ups - I used big pieces of cardboard to mock it up. It really helped me visualize it and resulted in some slight changes. I'm glad I did that.
Width - I almost made it too wide to fit through a door! That would have been a fatal error!
Put a coin mechanism in. It adds SO much to the feel of it.
Lights - the tail lights, taxi top light and button lights add a lot to the look and were not that much more work.

Questions? email me.