What's new
By:

Arcade board PCB form factor and enclosure

XtraSmiley said:
WTF are acrylic "cases" so freaking expensive? Is it actually the cost of the material? I feel like at these prices, I should just get a laser cutter and make my own baby!
Click to expand...
You probably could. Acrylic of the crystal gear variety and in thicker selections is not super cheap, but I think you are mostly paying for the labor here. They also need to recoup some of the design/setup costs.

I see the value in these for my personal use, but I can also see others viewing them as a waste of money.
 
Looking forward to the pictures :)

The costs of acrylic has risen crazy lately, due to COVID-19 the demand for acrylic is extreme, making protection screens etc.
But it's indeed labor and return on investment that makes it expensive.
Because first of all, you have to invest in knowledge (CAD drawing, laser machine handling, purchasing, bookkeeping).
Then you buy a laser cutter machine and it would be nice if you can earn the investment back :)
And then you buy the acrylic sheets for your projects.
And you buy the masking tape, for engraving on the sheets.
And you buy the screws, standoffs, washers, feets etc. and stock enough for all kinds of designs.
All this buying is already labor hours and you'll have a lot of 'dead money' in your stock.
And producing a case, you have to prepare the design, prepare the acrylic sheet (i.e. removing plastic foil and adding masking tape for engraving logo's), prepare the machine and lasercut the design.
Preparing and printing manuals, collecting the screws/hardware, sorting all stuff, packing and few other handlings, very time consuming.
Electricity and laser cutting machine repair/maintenance is also not cheap.
Then (as a business) you have to pay income taxes for every sale you make.
And at the bottom of the line, there's not much to be earned with this 'business', I quote business, because it's more like a hobby or we would not be doing this.
 
Thchardcore said:
Natalie at Highflow got back to me and turned my stuff around super quick, so there are a bunch of new designs up on the site now.

Thanks to whoever sent in dimensions for Hyper Duel and Feveron. Probably should have done one for Irem M92 (Leo).

I am looking forward to getting my 12 cases soon.
Click to expand...

Haha that was I my bud! You're welcome! :thumbsup:
 
HighFlow said:
Looking forward to the pictures :)

The costs of acrylic has risen crazy lately, due to COVID-19 the demand for acrylic is extreme, making protection screens etc.
But it's indeed labor and return on investment that makes it expensive.
Because first of all, you have to invest in knowledge (CAD drawing, laser machine handling, purchasing, bookkeeping).
Then you buy a laser cutter machine and it would be nice if you can earn the investment back :)
And then you buy the acrylic sheets for your projects.
And you buy the masking tape, for engraving on the sheets.
And you buy the screws, standoffs, washers, feets etc. and stock enough for all kinds of designs.
All this buying is already labor hours and you'll have a lot of 'dead money' in your stock.
And producing a case, you have to prepare the design, prepare the acrylic sheet (i.e. removing plastic foil and adding masking tape for engraving logo's), prepare the machine and lasercut the design.
Preparing and printing manuals, collecting the screws/hardware, sorting all stuff, packing and few other handlings, very time consuming.
Electricity and laser cutting machine repair/maintenance is also not cheap.
Then (as a business) you have to pay income taxes for every sale you make.
And at the bottom of the line, there's not much to be earned with this 'business', I quote business, because it's more like a hobby or we would not be doing this.
Click to expand...
No doubt and I think for all of this, the price is more than fair!

That being said, I have over 400 PCBs, I think it would be cheaper for me to buy a damn machine and make my own! Of course I'm too damn lazy to do this! :P

I'll probably one day grab a few just for my prized possessions and go with those.

Thanks for doing this for the arcade PCB crowd, I hope it helps get some of that investment back!
 
Here's the assembled Highflow panel for my Capcom Sony ZN-2. One issue is the smaller screws are too long for the PCB standoffs. So there is a small gap you can see on the head of the screws above the PCB. You can't use the included next size up standoffs, either, because they are perfectly sized to give the top acrylic panel room above the rear heatsink.
Photo Feb 09, 9 56 32 AM.jpg
Photo Feb 09, 9 56 13 AM.jpg
 
kudos to HighFlow for an acrylic enclosure built the proper way (with the top panel attached directly to the bottom panel and not THROUGH the PCB).

brandon.arnold said:
One issue is the smaller screws are too long for the PCB standoffs. So there is a small gap you can see on the head of the screws above the PCB. You can't use the included next size up standoffs, either, because they are perfectly sized to give the top acrylic panel room above the rear heatsink.
Click to expand...

sounds like you just need shorter screws. Also it looks like you have the plastic washers on the PCB side, I think those normally go on the acrylic side to keep the metal from digging into and the plastic.
 
tiff_lee said:
Can vouch for the acrylic cases from Freddy at highflow I have a bunch of them, I knocked up those logos for the System 16/18/32 so they were all same size/font., also made some Namco system 11/12 logos.

That's the great thing, if he doesn't cater for something you need provide dimensions and logos and yeah he'll sort you out.

Only drawback with these enclosures is they can be a bit of a dust trap given their open design.
Click to expand...
You know why that happens? Static electricity.

Think about that just for a moment.
 
hold-up. people are building these WITHOUT using anti-static plastic?!
 
Wow, I never considered that. I looked into it and acrylic is indeed a prolific static generator, unless it is wiped down with an antistatic chemical. Someone definitely needs to do a case study on that in this forum.

Protecting the PCB from static from my body ranks pretty high as one of the reasons I want an enclosure.
 
I've been telling people for years it's a bad idea. These vertical 2 piece ones are definitely on the lower end of the problem scale, they may even be antistatic treated (I don't know), but I know that some aren't. Consider this photo I was sent today, looks great:

1644433426698.jpg

Oh.

1644433426698_lol.jpg
 
I'd replied to your version of the thread on arcade-otaku yesterday as it happens.
 
system11 said:
I've been telling people for years it's a bad idea. These vertical 2 piece ones are definitely on the lower end of the problem scale, they may even be antistatic treated (I don't know), but I know that some aren't. Consider this photo I was sent today, looks great:

1644433426698.jpg

Oh.

1644433426698_lol.jpg
Click to expand...
Lol That’s mine. Looks like I should treat it haha
 
^^^ Nah dude, this anti-static shit is over rated. These games, these PCBs, they USE electricity. I mean, power runs through them every day. They are use to it! I like to sprinkle some scented mineral oil on them while they are on, helps them smell nice and move the electricity even faster...
 
XtraSmiley said:
^^^ Nah dude, this anti-static shit is over rated. These games, these PCBs, they USE electricity. I mean, power runs through them every day. They are use to it! I like to sprinkle some scented mineral oil on them while they are on, helps them smell nice and move the electricity even faster...
Click to expand...
They use 5 volts max, static can go as high as you like.

Seen it happen once on a VF3 (a plastic / metal cabinet) my bro pressed the service switch for credits and a static spark from his finger jumped to something nearby and toasted the PCB (all whilst switched on).
 
Hammy said:
They use 5 volts max, static can go as high as you like.

Seen it happen once on a VF3 (a plastic / metal cabinet) my bro pressed the service switch for credits and a static spark from his finger jumped to something nearby and toasted the PCB (all whilst switched on).
Click to expand...
Pretty sure he was joking. But +1 to the very real threat of static. I have fried a motherboard with the static that collected from my body.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top