Controls

I didn’t use Scott’s control panel layout, rather I designed a bi-level control panel with the following features:

• Two-Player, six button capability
• Trackball for Centipede, Missile Command, etc.
• Spinner for Tempest, Tron, etc.
• Coin buttons for quarter free operation (though the coin box will accept quarters and register credit)
• Raised shelf provides a flat area to accommodate integrated cup holders.

The 3″ Happ trackball is lit by a Radio Shack high-brightness LED wired to the PC power supply with a voltage limiting resistor. (Oscar Controls has a good write-up on how to do this here.)

(Caveat for anyone considering a 2-tier arrangement like mine, I played a few bowling and golf games after reading this thread. The shelf is a bit in the way for those games where you need to give the trackball a really fast, straight roll. That said, this is not a big problem for me because:

• The games most often played on my cab are 80’s classics that are not affected by the shelf.
• IF you are aware of the risk of smashing your fingers you can pretty easily use your palm and push up on the ball rather than straight.

If you are building a cab because you just can’t wait to play hours of bowling and golf games, consider another design!)