Gameboy Color Coffee table underway! (updated first post)

[jay_red]

More progress today with the A and B buttons well underway. I applied the same idea as the D-pad, but since the buttons dont rock back and forth to activate the switch, but rather need to press straight down I had to use 4 springs with the switch in the center.

So I glued 2 circles together to make the button, in this pic you can see that this is only the first layer, I counter sunk the screw heads, and glued on the top half, this allowed me to keep the surface smooth and free from the head of the bolt.




This is with the 2 pieces glued together:


Top View:


They are a little hard to activate the switch (which might actually turn out to be a good thing) but you only need to press it down a couple of mm's to get the switch to activate.

With this, my controls are all sorted out, I am taking the easy way out with start and select by using standard arcade buttons. Hopefully i can get to cutting into the table in the next couple of days!

[jay_red]

wasnt able to get too much done this weekend, but I was able to get the buttons and d-pad mounting figured out.

A and B buttons mounted, the holes look rough, but they will be covered, and not be noticeable once its finished.


Here is a closeup, the height is easily adjustable, and I will dial it in once the table is complete.


Underside, you should be able to get a decent idea of how I did it.


Got the d-pad mounted the same way, I plan on using the "disc" method that I mentioned earlier, but will keep the print out like it is here so it will look correct. I will go for cutting the "+" into the lexan.

[jay_red]

Well, the hard part is over! I have successfully created a gameboy coffee table that looks kick ass. I was able to get the buttons and d-pad cut out of the 3 layers (table, print out, lexan) with no huge issues, and after a little work tonight, I carefully removed the protective layers on the lexan, no going back now!

Here is the table top, just placed on the table, there is a bunch of stuff inside (yes some controllers found their way into there haha.


You can see the buttons coming out of the table here, I can adjust them to any height. I still need to paint the d-pad black. Start and select are fake, I will be putting arcade buttons on the side of the table for those functions.


another angle:


How it looks from the couch:


Now I just need to tackle wiring up the buttons (just doing an easy pad hack on a controller) get the monitor mounted in place, and figure out how to get the gamecube in there (its about 3/4 inch too tall with the game boy player attached) I should be able to knock this out this weekend and have it good to go!

[oxymoron]

Are you going to put a screenshot for the glass part?

[SpoonyBard]

This looks great! Good job man! I like the idea of height adjustable buttons. Are you using the built-in speakers on the tv? Might be cool to relocate them to where the speaker would be on the gameboy (and may slim down the TV you were planning on using enough to fit it in the table?)

[jay_red]

Are you going to put a screenshot for the glass part?

This is going to be fully functional, i have a monitor that goes there.

[fastbilly1]

and figure out how to get the gamecube in there (its about 3/4 inch too tall with the game boy player attached) I should be able to knock this out this weekend and have it good to go!

Put it in sideways. That should give you enough headroom.

[winds]

Put it in sideways. That should give you enough headroom.

I left this thread open in a tab on that exact post. I came back today, opened the tab, and read that totally out of context.

[TheSegaSaturnGuy]

I was thinking. Since viewing the screen from the couch would be somewhat bothersome. What if you cut the bottom legs and added hinges to them so that you can lower the table down a bit when playing for better viewing? Just a thought lol.

[CRTGAMER]

I was thinking. Since viewing the screen from the couch would be somewhat bothersome. What if you cut the bottom legs and added hinges to them so that you can lower the table down a bit when playing for better viewing? Just a thought lol.

That is interesting, makes sense for playing from the couch. However, if I am reading jay's guide correctly, the Gameboy interface is already on a hinged board that pivots up to the couch as seen in the OP.

Now you got me thinking of something different too, a unique though limited use mod. Anyone who has been in Japan for any length of time will be familiar with Kotatsu "heater tables", we had one when I was a kid. An electric heater mounted under the table that kept the feet real toasty during the winter months. Imagine combining the heater table into a home brew cocktail cab or the Gameboy Table, certainly would be different. I wonder if such a thing was ever made in the Japanese market? Just don't cook the electronics.

On a Japan train, there is a heater under that "table cloth" futon: