The cabinet on the Doughcade is based off of Lusid's cabinet design and plans. The only different is that I used 3/4" MDF all over instead of a mix of 5/8" and 3/4". We started off tracing out all the cuts on 3 pieces of 3/4" MDF and cut everything with a cordless Ryobi circular saw and for some of the unusual cuts we used a normal jigsaw. The Ryobi saw was great because it gives you a lot of flexibility and is REALLY easy to use.

Once all the pieces were cut, we put the base together. Then the sides and the back. We used a ton of 2" exterior screws. We countersunk the holes and patched them a little later. We then put L-brackets everywhere we could to ensure stability. This worked really well. Towards the end, I decided against doing a keyboard drawer. I didn't think I would be using it that much and if I discovered that I was, I could either build one later or get a wireless keyboard.

Next, we cut the hole and installed hidden hinges for the coin door. We routed out the groove for all of the t-molding and rounded the sharp corners. I went and purchased a large piece of formica to use on the control panel. This went on with contact cement and worked out great. Once the glue was dry, Don routed the trim. Nice and clean. We then transported the cabinet to my basement for the remainder of the work. We had to take the control panel off in order to get it through the door. It was really freakin heavy, but it finally made it without any broken parts.

All that was left was a little finish work. The casters went on the bottom, and the Glass Removal Mechanism (GRM) was put in place. This was designed by Don and has worked out really well. I wanted to be able to have access to the front of the monitor easily in case some height-width settings got screwed up. The GRM is basically a 2x2 mounted behind the control panel, but inside the monitor cabinet. It acts as the base for the glass to sit on. I routed out 2 vertical slits in the back of the control panel and put 2 bolts through the slits and into the 2x2 base. The slits allow me to move the base up and down. All I have to do to remove the glass is loosen the bolts that go into the base and slide it down. I then get a small suction cup and place it on the glass and pull it out. VERY EASY!

Now for the painting... The idea was to give the cabinet a rough feel like some of the originals. So, Don came up with the idea of using texture in between the primer and black paint. Perfect! Home Depot carries this canned texture stuff that lets you determine the kind of texture you want by the size of the straw you use from the can. So, I primered the entire cabinet and applied a good coating of medium density texture. Once that was dry, I rolled on 3 coats of black semi-gloss enamel paint. I should have applied some clear coat after that, but it slipped my mind. I am finding myself doing a lot of touch up.

After all that I had a very impressive looking cabinet. The question was, could I pull off the rest?