Pete Made This

Almost there. I figured I’d rig the thing up just to get a...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:41:00 -0500

Almost there. I figured I’d rig the thing up just to get a better look at it.

I still have to create a base to house the electronics inside the control panel and route out the plexi overlay for that. I’ll make a rounded top as well and put in some support boards to hold the sides together. I’m thinking I’ll bolt the side panels to the base so as not to strip the MDF too badly if I ever need to disassemble and move this thing.

Then just sanding, paint, and hardware install…

Here’s a close-up of the chamfered side panel. Turned out...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:39:03 -0500

Here’s a close-up of the chamfered side panel. Turned out great.

Here’s the cabinet base. I’ve left the back open for...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:36:48 -0500

Here’s the cabinet base. I’ve left the back open for easy access to the cabinet internals - I’m building an AMD Phenom II X6 Black Edition 3.2GHz-based PC for this project, integrating a mid-level GeForce GTX 460 GPU. Should be able to run just about everything without any problems.

A bottle of glue and a few clamps is all it took to fuse two of...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:32:48 -0500

A bottle of glue and a few clamps is all it took to fuse two of the side pieces together. Later on I’ll use a chamfer bit along the front edges of the side panels to give it that Vewlix cabinet look.

Since I’m not working in my own garage, and it’s...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:30:25 -0500

Since I’m not working in my own garage, and it’s full of other people’s things, I had to create a Dexter-esque kill room to contain all of the MDF dust.

Next up was building the sides for the cabinet. I traced one...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 15:25:10 -0500

Next up was building the sides for the cabinet. I traced one side piece on a piece of MDF and then used a circular saw to cut it out (using a jigsaw for that inner section).

I’ll need four of these total, fusing two-each together to make a 1.5” side panel. The hole in the center is to slide in a 32” LCD TV or monitor in the future. For now, I’m going to install a 27” LED ASUS monitor that’s great for gaming.

After the mishap with my “plexi-template” I went...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 15:21:47 -0500

After the mishap with my “plexi-template” I went ahead and just used a jigsaw to cut the rounded corners. I should have had more confidence in my jigsaw skills to begin with. After a little bit of sanding, it turned out perfectly.

I got lucky in being able to save this piece.

So, to get the “perfect rounded edges” on my control...

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 15:19:31 -0500

So, to get the “perfect rounded edges” on my control panel, I thought it’d be a great idea to take some excess plexi-glass and rig it up as a template for routing out the corners with my tracer bit…

And… that was a terrible idea. The plexi flexed pretty badly and I almost ruined the control panel top.

Welp, I’m on my way with the control panel. I spent part...

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 19:54:45 -0400

Welp, I’m on my way with the control panel. I spent part of the weekend routing out the control panel to fit all of my arcade components. I made a few mistakes, but nothing serious (all the mistakes will be covered up in the end anyway). I still have to round off the edges of the panel, but it’s otherwise done.

Next up is routing out the plexiglass to put over the panel.

You can view the current photoset on my flickr page here.

By trade, I’m a web developer (or designer, or ux...

Fri, 01 Oct 2010 15:28:18 -0400

By trade, I’m a web developer (or designer, or ux something or other…), so my days generally consist of creating virtual stuffs for the internet and beyond. I just recently finished building a site for a new web series/review site called Pixels & Popcorn. There’s a lot of neat stuff going on behind the scenes with the site, but I’m proud enough of how the thing looks.

Now I just need to get some sort of portfolio put together and some business cards made. It’s only been 3+ years.

Prototype arcade stick to test the fit and feel for the real...

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 20:50:11 -0400

Prototype arcade stick to test the fit and feel for the real thing. Picked up the MDF an Plexi-glass today for my 4-player arcade machine control panel. I’ll post the designs later this week.

"Once, we were makers. Now most of us are users."

Sun, 26 Sep 2010 13:53:37 -0400

“Once, we were makers. Now most of us are users.”

- The Lost Tribes of RadioShack. Read the article here.

Spent part of the day today painting and applying wood oil to...

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 13:50:28 -0400

Spent part of the day today painting and applying wood oil to this IKEA butcher block / kitchen stand. The next step is to either cut 1/4” plexi or have some 1/4” glass cut to place over the shelving and protect the paint from scraping off every time I take something off of it.

Leaning towards glass - just need to decide if I want it to be clear or frosted.

Objectified is the latest documentary from Gary Hustwit (the man...

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 22:54:13 -0400

Objectified is the latest documentary from Gary Hustwit (the man behind the 2007 doc Helvetica). The films focus is on industrial and product design, and the innovative people working in those fields today.

A lot of really great project ideas in this. Can’t wait to make my own toothbrush handle.

Objectified (and Helvetica) are available on Netflix Watch It Now… now.

Just finished up my diy entertainment center to fit all of my...

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:32:00 -0400

Just finished up my diy entertainment center to fit all of my newly purchased components. Made with oak plywood and solid red oak. Stained with Minwax Red Mahogany and finished with Minwax Tung Oil.

Custom designed by me to fit all components and records. Also has this neat sliding-drawer at the recommendation of Mike.

Check out the complete set of photos on flickr.

Components list:
Pioneer AVX-1020-K A/V Reciever
Pioneer PL-990 Record Player
Polk Audio CS2 Center Speaker
Polk Audio Monitor 60 Front Speakers
Polk Audio Monitor 30 Surround Speakers
Polk Audio PSW111 Subwoofer
Panasonic TH-42PZ800U 42” Plasma
Sony PlayStation 3