The is box is under construction, and is being made as a gift for a local church youth group. When I went case shopping this time around, pickings were pretty slim, but I did find a sturdy no-name golf game as a leaping off point. I decided that this case would make a reasonably good Galaga machine, because that is one of the few machines still “out there” enough that a teenager would have seen one in the flesh.

      The case as a unique feature that made it perfect for a winter project…the control panel is entirely removable! The case looks as if it were made to become any of a number of arcade games, just by pulling out the circuit board from its home on the control panel insert and replacing it. Well, fine by me! There looks like there is plenty of room for what I want to install in it, and I was able to begin work now rather than wait for fair weather.

      I started by tracking down artwork on the Internet, and worked up a nice custom marquee based on the classic one. There was available art for the bezel, shown below with an insert of what the original game would have looked like. I adapted some fan art for the control panel, and spent many hours planning out just what had to fit where to make the control panel work in the original footprint of the golf game layout. The coin case is one of the newer tall, thin ones, so I am going to have some design work ahead of me when I finish up the control panel!

     The trackball is the last of my clear ones, and I hope to find the right kind of LED flashlight to light the ball from behind with a cool glow. I wish they still made them that way!

     One nice thing, along the way I found out that my button supplier also makes a “mini-button” that is only a little smaller in diameter, but is only an inch deep. This will solve SO many troubles I have with finding space to make the pinball flippers fit on the sides of one of these boxes! Some times the smartest thing you can do is just keep your eyes open for what to do next time!

     I will update this page when I have some advancements on the Galaga case. I am working on a machine for my neighbor’s kids next, and will post any info on that project as it develops, but what about YOU? I am still loooking to have my house painted, my kitchen floor re-tiled, and some other home improvement projects, so keep aware…at Yestercade, “We Barter the Boxes!”

     Click on PacMan to go back to the main Arcade!