Star Wars Cockpit Arcade Project

Example of an original:


Current Progress on the Project:


So, where do I start? I've always been fascinated by amazing, unique and groundbreaking arcade machines. Star Wars, R360, Afterburner Deluxe to name a few. The latter two I'll probably never own due to their size and scarcity. The Star Wars I probably won't own either, saving up 7/8 grand for one isn't realistic in this climate with the way things are lately, even if I did get that sorta money together at some stage, I don't think I could justify spending that on a Star Wars now. So with that being said, I started looking into options, and there's a lot of measurements and drawing out there for a Star Wars Arcade Cockpit. I started piecing things together and found that this might be realistic. With lockdown seeming like it's never-ending, I said why not and dove right in. I said I'd do this thread as a sorta build log too on the project.

I never really did a serious woodwork project before and even using power tools my experience is very limited. So I wasn't sure how this would all turn out. I knew from research that this cabinet was going to be very heavy and would need a really good structure and support base. So there were many challenging moments during this project, particularly with assembly and doing it on my own. Having screws not showing on the sides was tricky, as this was the way with the original design. And also making them discrete in other areas

Bezel: One of the most challenging parts of this was also the Bezel. I knew with good woodwork skills one could be crafted, but due to my unconfidence and inexperience, I decided to 3D print a lot of it. Thankfully it turned out really well, even having to print it in multiple pieces due to its sizes. Still another bit of detail to add, along with creating the Control Panel. Parts are out there but out of my budget for this, would have been another 500+ for them it seems now which seems mad.






Cabinet. I also had the cabinet plans CNC'd by a local company. Word of warning to people, some of the ones online are not 100% accurate and will need some modifications before sending to the CNC, I did some modifications and it arrived fine, a few missing pieces it seems but I bought some spare wood and a jigsaw so that sorted that. I used some measurements online to work it out and piece it together when it arrived. It's like buying something from IKEA without instructions. It's also in MDF over the original plywood, seems to be a better option now.



Electronics. So I had a dilemma here. Either go with original electronics or newer parts and emulate it/ FPGA. Right now original electronics will cost me an extra 1k plus, along with the difficulty in finding them and potentially dealing with troublesome WG6100s or the 25" Ampliphones. So I decided to buy the new GRS Repro Star Wars Yoke which gives the best of both worse, so it plugs into USB while having the possibility of using with an original board should I decide to swap it out in the future. Or even replace it with FPGA if that board ever comes. It's a really nice Yoke too and even more durable than the original apparently. It looks and feels exactly like an original which is fantastic.



So what's left to do:
Finish assembly, roof and marquee part, CP + Bezel Installation.
Coin Door Installation (I 3D printed it, might by a proper one soon)
Finish Electronics
3D Print Extra Bezel Detail
CRT Installation
Create Control Panel (tricky as the original is different to the upright)
Apply Art (ordered and waiting on delivery)
Prime + Paint the remainder
Repro'ing back glass/polycarbonate

There are probably a few more bits and pieces, but I reckon I'm about 70% there in the grand scheme of things. A lot of the time spent on this was planning and researching. Although the cabinet assembly has been 50hrs+ already, I can see why only few repros have been done before.

Thanks everyone for your support on the project, it's been enjoyable with some ups and downs along the way but is coming along better than expected.