Star Tech Journal

SWITCH LOCATION
Power switch: Which "standard location"
were you referring to? Top - like Bally; Back
- like Atari; Front - like Taito, or something
different?
MONITOR TILT
You didn't mention this at all. What angle
would you prefer? Most players, that I spoke
to, like the Williams Defender design most
and the Bally Midway Pac-Man "Head-in-
the-cave" design least of all!
.
CABINET FINISH
We can finish the box with any available
finish including a custom finish under de-
velopment (harder and glossier than Atari
ever dreamed of) or anything else -includ-
ng sealed screen printing for those special
locations!
Custom designs are available as well as
duplication of popular designs or repair of
current equipment. I am new to building
cabinets for games because of cost or con-
venience, had always used existing cabinets
for conversion. But now that I have an expert
source·forwoodworking, I feel many vendors
will benefit from the availability of a first
quality generic cabinet at a price less than
that of the "Big Boys".
From: Evan Wessel
To:
Mike Cowen
Here are some more thoughts about our
cabinet design. Even if you don't actually
build them, we may give the manufacturers
some feedback.
DESIGN EXAMPLES
For simple design in a compact cabinet, see
Atari's Rolling Thunder. Pure efficiency and
almost perfect. I also like the appearance of
Data East videos and Konami's Contra keep-
ing my other fine points in mind.
SWITCH PREFERENCE
I prefer the power switch in the top front
right of the cabinet but I'm not sure if that's
everyone's favored location. Please use a 6
amp (at 120 Volt) on/off switch. I'm tired of
replacing underrated power switches.
OPTIMUM MONITOR TILT
Monitor tilt should be optimized for glare
reduction, but some Bally games with nearly
upside down picture tubes may have had
reduced life. I heard that burned phosphor
fell into the picture tube necks and caused
problems.
CUSTOM FINISH
I like formic a finishes, but it's difficult to
repair chips and gouges or to repaint. A
super hard red or blue finish would be nice.
Try to match a Krylon spraypaint color and
touch-up will be easy. How about the opera-
tor or arcade name screened on the sides?
Not too good for resale, but think of the
advertising potential!
Hey, why not sell the cabinet as a kit?
Shipping would be a snap and we've all put
bookcases together, haven't we?
(For more information on this subject, see "AMOA In-
dustry Standardization" on page 76 in this issue.)
Murphy's Law# 106