Vewlix Tournament Edition Worklog 07
Building the Rounded Top
The first thing I did was create a pattern out of thick paper for my rounded corner. The template had an outside radius of 3-7/8″ and an inside radius of 2-3/8″. That means the straight part on the top and bottom of the curve was 1-1/2″ wide.
Using the template I created:
- (2) Front and back pieces that included the rounded corners and ran the front width of the cabinet.
- (6) Corner-only pieces, 3 on each side, to fill in the thickness of the top marquee.
- (2) 24-1/4″ x 2-1/4″ rectangular boards to fit between the front and the back pieces to create the top of the marquee.
In the image above, you can see the 2 front and back pieces that are the full width of the cabinet created from 1 solid piece of 3/4″ MDF.
I assembled the marquee by:
- Laying the back piece on the ground
- Gluing the Corner-only pieces one by one to stack 3 on each side
- Gluing and screwing the top rectangular pieces together
- Gluing and screwing the assembled top rectangular piece to the back between the stacked Corner-only pieces
- Gluing and screwing the front piece to the Corner-only and assembled top rectangular pieces
I added some black track material that I found in the screen door area of Home Depot to the underside of the marquee and the MDF board that separates the monitor and marquee sections of the cabinet.
I used the same paper template as a guide (the smaller radius only) to cut the rounded corners on to a piece of properly sized acrylic. To help blend the black track, I painted a black border on the back of the acrylic before painting the rest of the back with red. I used Pactra (Testors) brand polycarbonate spray paint that is normally used on the inside of remote control car bodies because it adheres well to acrylic and has flex-additives so it will not flake off.
The last step of building the rounded top for the marquee is finishing:
- Sand the rounded corners as best as you can so that they are blended into one piece
- Fill any low spots with joint compound and let it dry
- Once the joint compound is dry, carefully sand away the excess
You should be left with a piece that looks as if it were made from one solid piece of wood — at least when painted. I did not bother to sand or fill the inside part of the rounded top because it was going to be hidden by the marquee acrylic.
Since I made a few of these bad boys, I had time to tweak the design slightly and find it might help those like me without patients for cutting acrylic. it also eliminates the need for a top track.
Check these pictures of the top.
http://s645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/mavenaz/?albumview=grid
I made my front an back like Donovan. Then I cut the six rounded spacers. I attached the rounded spaces to the back piece with screws and glue.
After this, I routed the top spacers so that after I glued the top, the acrylic could slide in as the top is dropped down onto the machine.
The best way to do this is to take your 29″ piece of acrylic and lay it on the top spacers and mark how much to route out.
Then, I routed the front piece to make sure I got it right before glueing it to the rest of the top.
This eliminated frustrations of cutting the acrylic and allows you to get away with dirty cuts.
This is an optional method.
Thanks for everything Donovan!
I have posted more photos of my top mounting solution.
Thanks again Donovan!