Well I built my first virtual pinball

[jnl1105]

Well as it says, everything is  working fine   but i have couple of questions, 

 

1st is cann you orient the main screen as  a portrait and  then do the rotate in the screen setup aswhen I use it as a computer it  I have to get up and physically orient myself

2nd how do I remap the flippers and ingame buttons to correspond with the buttons on my PXN fightbox (till my buttons get in)

[jnl1105]

Here are pictures of it. The play screen can be pivoted up or about 6". The top screen can be pivoted 90 degrees so its portrait also. Its on a rolling frame  so it can be moved and if I am in my wheelchair I can get under the table... I can even add 1 more display off of the computer just for anything else. I started at about 11:00 yesterday afternoon and was playing in under 8 hrs. so I think I did OK

 

now to get the console rooms working in it and figure out how to remap the pinball games keys so I can use my fightbox

 

 

 

[jnl1105]

Well I thought I was nearly done but apparently not. 

 

Added some "submarine" lights that work in sync with the flippers

 

Made the back panel rotate easier from portrait to landscape much easier

showed a couple of the speakers and how they are mounted as well as the 3 amps I am running for separate control (and I had them and wasn't using them) I need to either strip them of their cases or find a nice little 5.1 that allow some fad and adjustment or put one of my 60-70's tuner amps in it.....

 

I need to add some LED lights to the under carriage and I might take the manually adjustable play screen tilt out and put in a little linear actuator....

 

I need to figure out how to integrate the mame games for old consoles into the interface or just settle on a different interface (I do need help trying to get tetrarch setup for use in pop-it)

 

There is a picture of the solenoids I used and mounted for the feedback being open frame with the coils suspended they even get that little "spring bounce" if you are a slapper...

 

I have to decide on the name joystick and buttons setup... I rally think I want 2 player with a spoonbill in the center so probably have to make it myself out of an interface kit or something, any advice appreciated

 

I am building the plunger today for it so we will see how that goes .... Thinking if you pull it all the way back it will fire the ball drop and then the forward to extent will make the cut in the design....

 

 

 

 

 

right flipper activated and turns on the light

[jnl1105]

I forgot I had this but my wife reminded me so I added it this morning... an original pinball glass

[jnl1105]

Ok you know how I was alluding to being nearly done...... well remember that gift manual tilt adjuster for the  playtable wellll. I didn't really consider having to actually do it which I found was more often then I thought as the unit when seated was perfect at maximum tilt and when standing it was better lower. I played on it for hrs last night and was adjusting its based on the table or when I had to get up as my back was hurting and needed to Lean on something... what better way to pass the time then a some pinball.....

 

so I had a brain burst and remember I had a linear actuator that only had 3" of travel and maybe could lift a fly's wing so I checked and saw I needed the table mounted about at a 2" greater angle anyways so I removed my adjustable tilt arm (swiffer adjustable length handle mop handle) so removed that and set the table and the lowest point and ran it up and down off of a spare 12vdc power supply by swapping the wires and it worked perfectly.

 

so I gathered what I had laying around (remember bab (broke a## B*&^*) and takes 2 weeks to get anything),  found an antique double pole mechanical switch and my favorite pushbutton ever made (yes that is a real thing). So I grabbed my last pair of  of DPDT relays  but couldn't find any bases so I decided here comes the smell of rosin.....  I started laying out the 12vdc circuit  and was about to hit the power and hoops these are only 24vdc....... So now this is looking like an arts and crafts project (as its beauty is in the eye of beholder) so I started thinking do I have 24vdc anywhere under there and nope and then I noticed I still had a new adjjjuuuuussstable  buck and boost dc transformer so in goes 12vdc to it and the dry contacts on the relays and 24vdc from the transformer  and pulled out the hot glue gun (because remember this is an arts and crafts project)  to glue it all together fired it up with this circiut and low and behold the power at my fingertips..... 3" was in my grasp without having to try to adjust it....

 

 

Proof is in the photos below

 

 

[jnl1105]

Hey remember me... well I decided I need to do more lol... so I drank some pondering juice (man soda LOL) and decided after a several hr playing session that I needed a "more realistic" game experience, No I don't mean sticky arcade room floor or watered down soda and 3 times the price...... SO I decided I need a plunger interface, not the Taco Bell kind, and decided dive in the box of must use on cherished project items, which happens to the switch and button from the table angle portion of the show.... and then came the fun of  thinking of how to operate a ball drop and launch er in the unit with some of the same feel or as close as I could so this is the version of the mechanism