My home built metal DDR pad (Part IV)

[stoli]

[stoli]

Someone requested, I'm not sure who it was, that I post a picture of my pad after it got some use to see how well the mirror finish looked. There is a higher resolution of this picture on my web site if you want a slightly closer look. The pad on the left has been used daily for 2 weeks. I took 2-3 minutes to wipe it down with a clean cloth and it looks just as nice as the pad I just finished (on the right). I will say that if you used these pads with dirt and sand on the bottom of your shoes, they would probably get scratched up pretty quick. In my case, they are far enough away from the front door that most of the dirt has fallen off of the shoes before they get onto the pad.

-Stoli


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My Chrome Pad Website

[Shogun]

Some success at last! I bought a madkatz beatpad from EB games for the xbox for 30 bucks. After carefully taking it apart and getting the control box off the pad, I find out that each solder point is gigantic. You could solder a beach ball to these things they're so big. And each point is very clearly labeled. I was so glad.

Work on the metal blocks is slow going. I keep having problems with my dremel and construction is currently at a halt.

[Aflac]

Hm... how much stronger is lucite than glass? I went to Home Depot and checked out their plexiglass options, but only found Lexan and some other stuff. It said it was 20 times stronger than glass but i question the strength of that on a DDR panel, and the Lexan was much too expensive. anyone have an idea?


Stoli, do you think you could make a collection of all the materials needed for making a pad? I dont have a whole lot of money, so i have very little room to experiment or make mistakes. It would help a lot, thanks.

[superfanthony]

[SuRfReAk]

You guys are flooding stoli with questions, so I'll try to help him out a little. A list of the materials he used can be found at
www.angelfire.com/d20/ddrhomepad/
Of course, he used the mirror finish sheet metal, the tubing for the screws on the arrows, and no corner brackets. Well, I guess if you're lazy , here goes:
Mirror finish sheet metal for panels (26 gauge)
Galvanized steel sheet metal for contacts (26 gauge)
Lucite for both sides of arrows (3/32 inches thick or .093)
1" by 2" MDF Fiberboard 6 feet long for rails under panels(4 pieces, you can also use pine or other wood)
1" by 3" MDF Fiberboard for the back rail
4' by 4' Peg board, 1/4" thick
Controller/soft pad
Screws for arrows, panels, and attaching the base and border
1/2 inch Plywood 2' by 3' piece
Spray adhesive/glue
Duct tape
Wire
Solder
Foam core/mousepad
Weather Stripping, high density (1/4" thick, 1/2" wide)
Tubing for screwholes through lucite

Now, for those of you tight on money, I have a design that comes out to $148.48 for two pads (including 6% sales tax), using corner braces. If you didn't use the braces, and built it more like Stoli's, it would come out to around $123.21. Personally, I think $60 per pad is very good. Pm me (or heck, just post) if you're interested, because it's a little different technique.
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[Ravenwing]

*adds to the flood of Stoli questions* ;

I was just wondering if there was any particular reason that you went with 1 3/8" thickness for the borders, and if making them thinner (for doubles purposes) would not be good.

Thanks a lot!

EDIT: since...I really don't have much of a life, and the information was valuable to me as well, I took the liberty of reading through Stoli's instructions and noting all the materials he used, in order of appearance:

Materials:
3/4" maple plywood

1 1/4" sheet rock screws

CAT 5 Cable

Mirror Finish Stainless Steel Sheet Metal (26 gauge)

Galvanized Steel Sheet Metal (26 gauge)

contact cement

Escutcheon pins (#18 x 3/4")

aluminum tape

Luccite 3/32" thick, or .093"

1/4" & 1/8" hardboard (or 3/8" plywood)

3/4" wood screws

spray adhesive

duct tape

3/16" x 3/8" weatherstripping

Mouse pad (3/16" thick)

TR WSH NEEDLE PT. Sheet Metal Screws, Size 8 x 1 1/4"

"Super Blue Silicon Fuel Tubing"

Lubricant for tubing (i.e. dishwashing liquid...not oil)

Mad Catz Retro gamepad

Telephone wire
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We all LIVE, therefore we are all EVIL, because the two words are one and the same...
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[Houou Don't You Want Me]

surfreak - Please, please post the information about the 148.48$ for two pads design. I would really appreciate it. Thank you.

Secondly, with your 'tight on money' design, how long do you think it will last compared to say, ddrhomepad's design?

And third, can anyone explain to me with as simple a language as possible what is this sheet metal? I live in a non-english speaking country and have little knwoledge on this subject and therefor I can't understand what it is. I went to some 'construction material' and 'do it yourself' shops and they couldn't help me.


Thanks!

[Shogun]

I'm wiring up my pad at the moment. I have all the arrows wired, but I need to know of there are any other buttons that I would be using while playing DDR on a pad.

[Aflac]

[slvrshdw]

surfreak-im interested too

houou-sheet metal is just a piece of metal in a sheet ..lemme get a pic *searches*...or not ill try get get a pic on my own if no one else helps you

shogun-what system are you using...(ps2/xbox) basically 4 arrows, start, select/back, X?/A, O/B

im pretty sure on that but just check with a regular contoller with ddr to find out


i have a welder and just just wondering if anyone has done/thought of making a COMPLETELY metal pad (no wood)

is it a good idea?..i mean, if i had the money id try it now
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[Shogun]

[Aflac]

[stoli]

[stoli]

[Klott]

Hey all
Im new to the site, so a little background info:

I started playing DDR back in September, and after ditching a $20 piece of crap pad, bought myself a RedOctane2.0
After two months of heavy (both meanings of the word) use, the right button started to glitch, which really pissed me off. So after coping with it for the last few months I have decided to build my own.

I researched all the different designs, and I am building one right now that is a hybrid of Stoli's, Riptide's and DDRHomepad's
Im gonna be very consevative and try to spend the least amount of money. I'll keep u all posted and will share some details of the "hybrid" some time soon.

Peace,
KLott

[slvrshdw]

im thinking i prolly will never make a completely metal pad..i could, but im not..unless i get bored over the summer or somthing

hey stoli..it looks like you got ur name up to riptide and ddrhomepad now..nice job

klott-basically everyone merges the designs together (correct me if im wrong)

i kno i did anyway..
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[Ravenwing]

Stoli- nifty animation! ^_~ (and no problem 'bout the materials list).

yeah, that's the other possibility that I was considering...the only thing that makes me hesitate is the fact that that leaves one side with its "guts" exposed, so to speak. Not that it would hurt the visual aspect much, considering I'm just gonna use it for doubles play, but I can just imagine dust 'n grime settling in under the X button and left arrow over time. I suppose I could put some of that metallic tape to creative use...I doubt very much that covering the side of the arrow 'n X button would inhibit its functionality at all.

hmm...I suppose I could also take a strip of sheet metal that's at least 3x wider than the height of the pad, fold one third of it over the second third, and then bending the remaining, non-folded portion under the pad, tacking it to the sides of the top/bottom borders and stationary square...but I'm not sure if sheet metal can "fold" like that, having never worked with it before.

EDIT:

[stoli]

That's a good idea. If you feel the need to cover the side, I think it would work well. No problem getting the sheet metal to do that. Might be a challenge to get a nice, clean edge but definitely worth a try.

-Stoli
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My Chrome Pad Website

[Houou Don't You Want Me]

Sorry for being rude, but can anyone please answer me the sheet metal question?