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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
1020.  Posted: Sat Sep 13, 2003 3:32 pm Post subject: Cat 5 Cable - How much needed? |
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I hope my questions get answered this time.
1. How much Cat5 cable do I need? Should I buy the 25 foot or the 50 foot? (Note I accidently bought the 50 foot but I was wondering if I could take it back, get the 25 foot and save some money).
2. Is .125 thick Lexan panels ok to use (I suppose it'll end up as .25 when you put two together)?
3. What do I use to cut the sheet metal into 12x12" squares with?
Thanx to anyone who answers. |
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Weston
Trick Member
Joined: 17 Feb 2003
Location: Minnesota |
| 1021. Posted: Sat Sep 13, 2003 4:39 pm Post subject: Re: Cat 5 Cable - How much needed? |
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| XenoBach wrote: | I hope my questions get answered this time.
1. How much Cat5 cable do I need? Should I buy the 25 foot or the 50 foot? (Note I accidently bought the 50 foot but I was wondering if I could take it back, get the 25 foot and save some money).
2. Is .125 thick Lexan panels ok to use (I suppose it'll end up as .25 when you put two together)?
3. What do I use to cut the sheet metal into 12x12" squares with?
Thanx to anyone who answers. |
1. 25 feet is more than enough.
2. Um... in the DDRHomepad design? You'll have 1/16 of an inch thicker panels than in the standard design. I don't think it'll matter much. It's possible you may have to make an adjustment to the thickness of the weatherstripping and foam core slightly. Lexan is great stuff to use though, and if that's all you can find, use it.
3. Tin snips. Be patient, cut carefully, and measure twice. |
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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
| 1022. Posted: Sat Sep 13, 2003 8:28 pm Post subject: Re: Cat 5 Cable - How much needed? |
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| Weston wrote: |
1. 25 feet is more than enough.
2. Um... in the DDRHomepad design? You'll have 1/16 of an inch thicker panels than in the standard design. I don't think it'll matter much. It's possible you may have to make an adjustment to the thickness of the weatherstripping and foam core slightly. Lexan is great stuff to use though, and if that's all you can find, use it.
3. Tin snips. Be patient, cut carefully, and measure twice. |
Thanx alot. I'm sorry about the confusion about whose design I'm using. I automatically assumed everyone read my last post.
I'm using Riptides design if that makes any diffrence. But I suppose your advice still applies. Thanx again. |
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KrakenGuy
Trick Member
Joined: 03 Feb 2002
Location: Edmonton |
| 1023. Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 12:31 pm Post subject: |
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| Don't use Lexan, its sooo hard to cut, you have to have such a steady hand and a really fine blade. Over and out. |
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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
| 1024. Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 3:31 pm Post subject: |
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| KrakenGuy wrote: | | Don't use Lexan, its sooo hard to cut, you have to have such a steady hand and a really fine blade. Over and out. |
I'm getting it from this place that said they'll cut it for me. I haven't asked about the corner cuts yet but I'll see tommorow. Maybe they have some special tool or device to cut that sucker.
Thanx anyways. I'll keep that in mind if they dont want to do the corner cuts. |
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riptide
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Aug 2002
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| 1025. Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 11:54 pm Post subject: |
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| cool wrote: | | Hey riptide are you gonna ever update your videos to go with your new contact design, assuming there is one? It's been over half a year since you promised to update them within "a month hopefully." |
Sorry, I've been working a night shift, and it's been rough on me.
I've got a new image/description up on my page under the supports/switches section. It shows how it's put together, but I haven't been able to update the vids yet. The concept isn't all that hard, and it shouldn't be difficult to put together.
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cool
Trick Member
Joined: 03 Sep 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA |
| 1026. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 2:12 am Post subject: |
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Can someone explain to me how the new riptide designed contacts are suppose to work?
And also, is the wiring that weaves around each washer suppose to come directly from the controller? I soldered a controller for a DDRHomepad design and now I want to tear it out and re-use it for a riptide pad, but I'm afraid that the wires coming from the controller won't be long enough.
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Hi my name is cool but yours isn't. |
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shuiend
Trick Member
Joined: 07 Aug 2003
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| 1027. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 2:24 am Post subject: |
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| I have more or less finished my metal pad and all i can say is it looks and feels really nice. My only problem is that soldering the pad to the controller. I am using riptides design but he said he stole that section from ddrhomepad so i went there to check out howto do it. He says u have to drill into the controller and then put the wire through. I have an official ps controller and i dont know if i still have to do that. I am also not sure which little copper connector are the grounds on it. I understand the up down and wat not just not the grounds. Could someone please tell me which ones are grounds. I have looked through the pages and have not found a real detailed description of the sony controller. |
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riptide
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Aug 2002
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| 1028. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 3:04 am Post subject: |
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| cool wrote: | Can someone explain to me how the new riptide designed contacts are suppose to work?
And also, is the wiring that weaves around each washer suppose to come directly from the controller? I soldered a controller for a DDRHomepad design and now I want to tear it out and re-use it for a riptide pad, but I'm afraid that the wires coming from the controller won't be long enough. |
check out http://www.digitaltorque.com/mydancepad/?display=4%20-%20supports%20and%20switches%2F64006.jpg
If that doesn't solve your problem, ask a more specific question, and I'll see if I can answer better.
The controller should be fine to use for either design. If you don't have enough length, you can always connect additional wire to make it longer.... twist the ends together and solder... wrap with electric tape.
| shuiend wrote: | | I have more or less finished my metal pad and all i can say is it looks and feels really nice. My only problem is that soldering the pad to the controller. I am using riptides design but he said he stole that section from ddrhomepad so i went there to check out howto do it. He says u have to drill into the controller and then put the wire through. I have an official ps controller and i dont know if i still have to do that. I am also not sure which little copper connector are the grounds on it. I understand the up down and wat not just not the grounds. Could someone please tell me which ones are grounds. I have looked through the pages and have not found a real detailed description of the sony controller. |
I haven't drilled my controllers... you should be able to just solder to the contacts. I don't know what the sony controllers look like, and they may have multiple board designs for their controllers, so the best way for us to tell you where to solder is by posting a clear picture of the board. I recommend putting the board on a flatbed scanner if you have one... they give pretty clear pictures.
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cool
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Joined: 03 Sep 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA |
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riptide
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Aug 2002
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| 1030. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 12:01 pm Post subject: |
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| cool wrote: | Alright, lemme see if I can word my question better 
From my understanding, you strip the length of wire at regular intervals, then put the stripped part under the mending bracket, then screw it down? How does this work without either of the two screws piercing the length of wire under the bracket?
And I add washers to the whole thing, do I "drape" the wire over the washer? Is the contact design the same thing as this one by snof:
http://people.ucsc.edu/~depkelly/DDRPad/arrow_well.jpg
I looked at your picture but I really couldn't visualize in my head how the contact was put together. Hopefully you can understand my question.
EDIT: One last question. Does the pad design differ in any other way significantly from the one filmed on the vids besides the contact design? |
ok, each mending bracket has two ends supported by washers. What I did was cut the wire to the length that it will reach over the closest set of washers, and I would have leftover wire. Then I'd put one end of the wire under one end of the mending bracket and one under the other end... tighten down the mending bracket, and start with the loose wire end and go to the bracket after the next with it(the adjacent/next bracket should be the opposing wire... in other words, if we're doing the live wire now, the adjacent/next bracket would be ground, so we go to the one after it with the loose wire we have from the current mending brace). I hope that was clear...
The design doesn't differ in any other way than the contacts from the videos.
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shuiend
Trick Member
Joined: 07 Aug 2003
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| 1031. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 12:15 pm Post subject: |
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| Ok i now know which wires to solder to where on my controller but soldering them is a doggy. For the ground though i have a question. Can i hook all for wires together and run them to any 1 ground point?Or do i have to do all of them to the correct ground point for up,down,left, and right? |
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Snof
Trick Member
Joined: 09 Jun 2003
Location: UCSC |
| 1032. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 1:31 pm Post subject: |
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| shuiend wrote: | | Ok i now know which wires to solder to where on my controller but soldering them is a doggy. For the ground though i have a question. Can i hook all for wires together and run them to any 1 ground point?Or do i have to do all of them to the correct ground point for up,down,left, and right? |
All grounds are the same, you can connect all the ground wires to the same ground if you like. |
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Zagreus
Basic Member
Joined: 11 Sep 2003
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| 1033. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 4:28 pm Post subject: |
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Another quick question. Tomorrow I will most likely end up getting the materials needed to build the pad. However, the only steel I have found is a 3' by 3' galvanized steel like before but this one is 20 gauge instead of 30 gauge. Would it work or would I have to drive out and about to find 22 dead on?
Edit: Something else I almost forgot to ask, what size should the Stanley Braces be. I'm going from the Riptide Design and I'm seeing them at 2' and 3'. |
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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
| 1034. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:43 pm Post subject: |
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| Zagreus wrote: | Another quick question. Tomorrow I will most likely end up getting the materials needed to build the pad. However, the only steel I have found is a 3' by 3' galvanized steel like before but this one is 20 gauge instead of 30 gauge. Would it work or would I have to drive out and about to find 22 dead on?
Edit: Something else I almost forgot to ask, what size should the Stanley Braces be. I'm going from the Riptide Design and I'm seeing them at 2' and 3'. |
Well I think 20 would be alright, a little harder to cut I'm sure. But it'll be better than 30 guage. The 22 isn't really all that important IMO since I've seen some with 26 guage and so on. I recently got a 26 guage (today actually) and it looks sweet (lots of scuffs though..grr)
Also the Stanley Braces are 2".
I also have to get something off my chest...unrelated to Zagreus. Why is it soooo expensive!? Heh, I can't believe I'm spending so much on this. Part of me thinks they're ripping me off. 20 dollars labor cost to cut the Lexan?! 15 dollars a day to rent a tool. Sigh. My college fund..
I hope it kicks A when I'm done with it. |
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Zagreus
Basic Member
Joined: 11 Sep 2003
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| 1035. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:47 pm Post subject: |
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| I know how you feel on this one. I don't have all the tools needed, and I was going to use the screws to pick up contact, but after seeing the mending bracket info I'm looking into that option. However, for cost reasons I might end up going with the screws for now and change it later on. |
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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
| 1036. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:57 pm Post subject: Serious |
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| Zagreus wrote: | | I know how you feel on this one. I don't have all the tools needed, and I was going to use the screws to pick up contact, but after seeing the mending bracket info I'm looking into that option. However, for cost reasons I might end up going with the screws for now and change it later on. |
Yeah serious, I was thinking about and decided on the same thing. I seriously cant afford to go with the mending bracket design right now. Although I assume that I can just modify it later (on my next pay check or something) to use it.
I was thinking about selling some games to pay for the cost of the game (DDRMAX2) so I can take some cost off of the pad but they really screw you at GameStop with that stuff.
So I suppose I'll just keep the pad basics and improve it later on. Although I am still concerned about the noise issue, but I can't remember what people said about how to remedy it (I dont wanna go through all those posts again...hurt my eyes). |
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cool
Trick Member
Joined: 03 Sep 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA |
| 1037. Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:58 pm Post subject: |
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| riptide wrote: |
ok, each mending bracket has two ends supported by washers. What I did was cut the wire to the length that it will reach over the closest set of washers, and I would have leftover wire. Then I'd put one end of the wire under one end of the mending bracket and one under the other end... tighten down the mending bracket, and start with the loose wire end and go to the bracket after the next with it(the adjacent/next bracket should be the opposing wire... in other words, if we're doing the live wire now, the adjacent/next bracket would be ground, so we go to the one after it with the loose wire we have from the current mending brace). I hope that was clear...
The design doesn't differ in any other way than the contacts from the videos. |
Ok thanks a lot riptide. That helped immensely, although I am wondering, with enough movement, won't the wire eventually slip out from under the mending bracket?
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Hi my name is cool but yours isn't. |
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shuiend
Trick Member
Joined: 07 Aug 2003
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| 1038. Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2003 10:41 am Post subject: |
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| Ok i am now adding the sheet metal to the bottom of my four buttons. My problem is when i cut the sheet metal it is not flat. What is the best way to flatten it? I tried the rubber mallet on it but that does not seem to work to well. any other ideas would be great. |
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XenoBach
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2002
Location: Greeley |
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