Hi all, it’s been a while since I had anything really cool to post, but I think this one makes the cut.
I apologize, I originally posted this to my old compilation thread before I saw the message about making individual threads for each project. I went ahead and deleted that post to make a new one. So if anyone got a notification for the old thread, my bad! Thanks for understanding.
Virtual Pinball Machines!
I recently constructed two virtual pinball machines, one for myself, one for my folks. Both are constructed in the “Williams widebody” style, although I made some adjustments to the backglass due to the monitors and speakers I chose.
I’ve got about 25 different tables (games) loaded onto them at the moment. Most of the time so far has been invested in getting everything built, so some tweaking is still required with perspective, getting all of the proper launcher animations selected, and adding more tables. That said, everything is already looking really good and functioning well.
I’m going to mill a new lockdown bar (palm/wrist rest) out of black HDPE once it arrives. It will be a nicer finish, thinner profile, and more capable of putting up with abuse than the temporary painted MDF lockdown bar.
Due to the size of this project, the majority of the parts were done on my LowRider. However, I did use my laser cutter for the acrylic windows on the backglass and for the backing material on the fully assembled project.
I plan on making one after the Neighbors machine, making a 4 player movable station with guns and pedals. So many projects. Did you design the machine yourself or buy plans from some?
I did not buy any plans. I made the playfield to standard Williams Widebody dimensions as shown in the images below. This made it compatible with standard parts such as the widebody glass, plastic channels, and stainless side rails. But I altered the backglass dimensions to better fit the monitors I had at my disposal.
I’m actually working on a 4-player arcade pedestal too. It’s not complete, but I can show off some early shots. I’ll probably get it wired up this weekend for testing, but it still needs artwork and finish. Eventually, I’m sure it will get it’s own thread.
If you’re referring to the arcade panel, yes, there are some different layouts. But it’s all about maximizing compatibility with as many games as possible. I’m going with 7 buttons for players 1 and 2 as this arrangement covers the control layouts for most Capcom and NeoGeo games, plus works well with Mortal Combat and many other 2-player games.
Very few arcade games use more than 4 buttons for players 3 and 4, so it’s a bit of a waste to add more. I’ll also have USB connections for physical controllers if needed.
The center controls are mirrored to Player 1 with buttons 1-3, but the joystick is set to 4-way instead of 8-way for compatibility on older games (e.g. PacMan) that don’t handle 8-way joysticks gracefully.
There’s also a trackball for Golden Tee or bowling games, and a spinner…though I don’t really have any games lined up for that yet. I don’t know if my way is the best way, but after some fairly extensive research, this is what made the most sense to me.
I recently got one of the arcade1up pinball machines, really enjoying it as is but I know I’ll be modifing it or building another v-pin all together eventually now that I’ve gotten a taste of how well it works.
Incredible! I literally just told another user in my Dragon’s Lair thread about Vpins and the william’s wide body plans! COOL That there is one here! Amazing build!
Us Arcade guys should start a thread for real, didn’t know there were so many of us here!
I remember seeing the “in progress” state a long time ago. Your post was one that got me thinking about possibilities. Later, we were watching Jeopardy and one of the contestants mentioned virtual pinball machines. It sounded so cool that I had to look it up, and the rest is history.
If you are interested, I completed the arcade pedestal mentioned above in another thread.
I would have loved to build another full-sized machine with a total graphics package, but there was no way (with the screen size I wanted) that I was going to be able to get a fully-assembled machine up the stairs to my game room in one piece, and I had no desire to build it up there.
These are my two favorite projects I’ve done with help from the CNC, no question.
Thank you! And… It goes without saying, your builds are a work of art! I love that marquee! Brilliant…
I’d love to have a 4P pedestal just for loading up TMNT just as you have!!! I have the original boardset for that game so naturally my first idea was, build a replica cabinet since I have the cad files for one, but that’s a HUGE cab, and I’m not entirely sure I want to get a divorce this year so a pedestal sounds less divorce inducing.
I’m gonna head on over and have a gander at your pedestal thread
Since the v-pin talk has been ramping up wanted show mine. Started out as a arcade1up machine but has been modded a bit. Used the low rider to help cut a few parts.
Yeah, they’re 3/4 scale, but normal leg length, standalone units. They have 3 different themed models and each have 10 built in tables that fit the theme. Good for the price, but now I’m running it from my desktop PC with an umbilical of HDMI and USB cables running to the cabinet so I can play any game I want.
Nudging is included as part of the Digital Plunger Kit I used. I haven’t messed with the default settings, but you can calibrate it to be more or less sensitive.
Two axis motion sensor provides real-time x and y coordinates (joystick X and Y) for realistic nudging.
There are a few solutions that make this possible. In my v-pin setup the kl25z board I used for button input has a built in accelerometer similar to what’s in most smartphones to allow for motion detection. It works great for nudging, but many add a real tilt bob to activate the actual tilt warnings/tilt. I bought a tilt bob but have yet to install it, I’m afraid it’ll make it too hard and I’ll get mad at it
