Devout Stealth homepad

[Maliciant]

One pad fully assembled and working, soddering, the one thing I'm experienced at... I did a pretty bad job inside the controller, my next one I believe will be much better, I suspect if anyone trips over the controller part I'll be re-doing some soddering, overall it wasn't too bad except I did the grounding really dumb.

On to how I did the radio shack buttons... I put each 2 inches apart, probably should have gone for about 2.25" so that they'd be more evenly spaced and so that it'd be easier to hit just one button with a shoe on... I used a 1/2" drill bit (same you'd use for the sensor penny spots) to drill half way through the shelving, and then flipped it over and used a 3/4 drill, you can use a 5/8" drill for this step but I ended up wanting more space to work with for screwing the nut onto the button. The nut is difficult to get started with the washer in place, generally you have to drill, if you can't get the nut on, drill a little further, there was a thin layer at the end of the button adding process.

In actual play, with shoes on I lose my place as soon as I jump so it's no shoes only for me, also because I put my radio shack buttons 2" apart it's hard to hit just one with shoes on and I'm a little afraid to hit them too hard due to the thinness of the wood. The pad is not so slick I can't wear socks, actually the sheet metal seems to grip quite a bit, maybe my feet are just extremely foul right now from pad construction... a fresh pair of socks might slide more but probably not enough to make me slip.my pad doesn't move at all, part of that is because even though I put footings on there, the bolts still get sunk into the carpet... though I haven't played any 10 footer songs on it yet... I played an 8 footer and barely passed (I'm a bit rusty I guess and playing on this pad is a VERY different deal than a soft pad which is the only other pad I've played on... I might have to hit an arcade so I can see how that works... I suspect that the lights are critical in an arcade machine to let you know if you are on target).

The sad story is no doubles, not only do I think I need to get adjusted to the pad in single as is, I didn't get quite enough time to finish the second pad, I probably needed another hour to finish bolting the last few pads onto the frame, and then maybe as much as another two hours to finish the wiring and the feet. I'm going to guess that the first pad took around 8 - 9 hours, the second pad will probably run several less (side note is that all the metal cutting and wood cutting was done as part of the first control so very little of that today). I'll be gettin that second control finished tomorrow after work I hope or at least getting it to the point where wiring to the control is all that is left which I can do from my own house. This is by far the most complicated thing I've ever built, I never had shop class in school, and beyond a dog house or two maybe I haven't built much, more important I was most likely just asisting someone else, so the time of the project is a lot due to my own inexperience. Neither pad looks bad, but neither comes close to looking as slick as the original which has really flush cuts, I'm guessing someone owns a table saw (or just did a much better job on their cuts).

Editted to add: First game on the pad at home I set a new record for a random song... and I messed up twice, once I get the feel for the pad... hello good scores.

One more... I played 4 or 5 more game mode songs, and set new records for every song I played, the control makes noise only on one arrow, it sounds silent but deadly... so you get the idea, not much noise, just some air escaping, I saw a post/note of some sort suggesting drilling a hole through the center of the sensor pad to allow air to escape more easily, I did not do that, it slipped my mind, I'd recommend doing it for others though it's not totally necessary. It seems like any mis-steps are purely my own fault, after a short time, I've adjusted to the pad I think and actually find I have more point of reference than the soft pad by far, big surprise, if the steps were recessed (I planned to but didn't and probably won't) even some of my own miss-steps would likely be picked up as a result of my foot would bend in the right direction to hit the sensor if I even half hit the pad.
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Dandelion Games

[ChilliumBromide]

Well, those aren't really the kind of pushbuttons I'm looking for, but thanks anyway, and enjoy your pad!
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I used to be active here lol

[Maliciant]

I been sick but just finally got the second controller wired up... I wired it up monday but I unfortunately wired it all backwards (and two of my sodder jobs broken probably crushing the control box down on them...). Got it re-wired today, unfortunately I only have one pad in my apartment... but hopefully tomorrow I can begin fooling with doubles play on these pads. The slickness of the sheet metal is probably going to be an issue, it looks nice and all but the more buffed out it gets from my socks the more scary it could be... I might have to look for some kind of rubber spray on substance, I hate to do it but may have to. An alternative might be glue on some sand paper strips (or any other surface that has some grip to it).

DancingTofu: Any reason you can't go with some sensor pads for X and O and then select and start use some smaller pads (I think that cut in half the sensor could be the same... cut to about 1/4 you would just put cardboard on the sides and not the top/bottom pieces). Maybe the lack of having as much 'feel' to the pad would be an issue there but you could elevate the X and O buttons to keep good distinction between arrows and non-arrows.

And a final note... every time I play a song, it's a new record, and often by a long ways, even if I mess up badly (compared to soft pad where even if I didn't mess up there was due to be a good selection of miss-steps). I'll be ordering a USB adaptor next payday so I can do the stepmania thing. DDR games are so much more fun when you're not mentally swearing at your soft pad for it's failures (I put some miles on my gamestop/pellican pad... and now it's got a new life as my second controller).
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Dandelion Games

[ChilliumBromide]

I can make pushbuttons, but they take a lot of work to make right.
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I used to be active here lol

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

So I've decided to build this pad. I have almost all of the materials I need:

Black particleboard/shelving wood - ~$14. Got it cut into the right sizes for free

MDF/Plywood - Got it cut into four arrow sizes and the base size (33"x33") for $1. Yes, I said one dollar. Canadian. Note, that means I purchased the wood and got it cut for a total of $1. Don't ask me how, I'm a little surprised myself . The quality isn't bad at all either. Very sturdy.

5 minute epoxy - ~$6. Not bad, pretty big syringe too.

Cat5 Cable - ~$1.50 for 5 feet plus a little extra. The man was very generous.

All the other materials I have at home, aside from maybe some screws. Although I couldn't find any 26ga sheet metal at Home Depot OR Rona. I found some sheet metal warehouses nearby that I will scour tomorrow.
So far this is turning out to be a pretty inexpensive homebrew, and the quality isn't even suffering at all. I will post again once I start working on it, with pics.
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[Maliciant]

If you have a Meeks handy you should check them out for the sheet metal, my brother suggested it after I had already been everywhere else (I probably could have done most all my shopping at meeks had I started there).

I've been beating on my controllers a bit lately and I notice on the controller I've used most I can see the cardboard cutouts through the sheet metal, so far no issues with controls being stuck on, I only use a single layer of cardboard so it's not like it's extra high. It's only on the left and right arrow's so far which I'm sure just indicates heavier use. Anyone else seeing this? I weight 205 - 210 lbs, I had tried shoes and no-shoes and have settled on no shoes for playing so I can feel where I'm at on the pad easier.

I spent a fair amount on the pad I made (some of it being wasted on stuff I didn't need and some of it due to my simply doing all my shopping at once right before starting the project) but I still came out at 25% the cost of a CF pad, I am sure a CF pad is a better pad in many ways, but not 4x better.
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Dandelion Games

[ChilliumBromide]

Maliciant, you might want to try putting some thin felt or foam over the cardboard strips to reduce denting.
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I used to be active here lol

[AAA_dreams]

Maliciant: What gauge steel did you use, and how long have you been using the pad? I've been using mine daily, for about an hour, since Aug. 22, I weight 270, and I'm not seeing the slightest sign of that sort of problem

[Maliciant]

26 gauge.

I don't think felt in addition to the card board would change things much, and probably would be for the worse in terms of having more space between the metal and the board (allowing it to bend easier). It hasn't caused any problems yet so I'm not going to make any changes to the pad yet as it might never be a problem. It's possible the only reason the outline is visible is there was initially too much space that allowed the metal to move too much.

Edit: I think it might be a result of tightening down the corner (bolts in my case) too much that created the extra space, I see similar pattern on the up arrow of my second pad that I unintentionally tightened down a LOT more than intended (was tightenting the wrong nut and didn't realize it).
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Dandelion Games

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

I have a slight problem. I finally found a Home Depot that will sell me some sheet metal, but it's 22 gauge. Would it be alright to use 22 gauge, or would it not bend enough to register a step? Well, I am a big guy, maybe 22 gauge will work to my advantage, and still be sturdy?
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[AAA_dreams]

If you are needing materials for your home build, here's some info you might find useful

First, 26Ga. sheet steel is .016" thick. As a fraction, it is 1/64th of an inch.

[url="http://www.mcmaster.com/"]McMaster-Carr[/url] has a lot of parts and supplies that can be used for various projects. I've used them a lot in the past. Here are some examples for products they have that you might look at if you can't find them elsewhere:

9072K12 - Blue-Finished and Polished 1095 Spring Steel .015" Thick, 12-3/8" X 2' Sheet $29.26. (this is a bit more expensive, and I've not personally used blue-finished sheet steel, so am not quite sure what it looks like)

8943K13 - Galvanized Low-Carbon Steel Sheet .016" Thick, 24" X 48" $18.03

The price is per sheet and doesn't include the cost of shipping which obviously will vary depending on where you live. I'm not sure if they ship outside the US.

Another item they have that some people have been looking for is:
1088A21 - Steel Three-Sided Corner Bracket Zinc-Plated, 2" Length of Sides, 21/32" Width $1.19each

That is the style of corner brace similar to the arcade pads. I have not seen these in person, so can't gaurantee that they are identical to the real thing, but if you are looking for them, it is a potential source for the parts.

They also carry electrical switches (buttons).

They've also got hundreds of different sizes and lengths of bolts, screws, etc.

Hopefully this will help some of you out if you are having a hard time getting parts. I know it can be a pain in the neck.

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

It's not that I'm having trouble finding the parts, I mean, I found sheet metal, I just want to know if 22gauge would be alright to use as I can't get any 26gauge. Thanks for the info though, I'll definitely look into it.

EDIT:

I looked up some gauge tables. Apparently, for sheet metal, 26ga is about 0.018 inches, and 22ga is about 0.030 inches. It's not quite double the thickness, but even then, 1/33rd of an inch can't be THAT much thicker anyways. I'm leaning very much so towards getting this 22ga.
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[ChilliumBromide]

If you want to find out if you can bend it, try bending it.

If you can't bend it noticeably with about 1/20th your body weight, don't get it.

Should be fine, but it really depends on whether it's forged or not. Forged steel bends less but it stronger.
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I used to be active here lol

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

[devout]

theres no such thing as forged sheet metal.

bending stiffness is proportional to thickness squared, so using the thicknesses you listed, the 22gauge is approx 2.8x as stiff as the 26 gauge.

if you dont mind the financial risk, buy it and see... personally i'd stick with 26, and if i couldnt find it in a store, i'd buy it from mcmaster (but be warned that they dont tell you the shipping cost until after it ships... might be expensive to ship a 24"x48" sheet... better to buy a lot of small sheets)
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the world's most refined homepad: devout stealth

Almost-finished non-Stealth homepad for sale, just add sensors! see here: http://www.ddrfreak.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=8921579#8921579

[Maliciant]

The smaller sheets have less cutting, so even without the extra shipping, it's worth it from a labor point of view (cutting is kind of a pain and it's made worse by fear of warping the metal). I don't think you have to use 26 gauge (not that I'm an expert by any means) but 22 gauge might be too stiff. Using hand strength I have to press fairly hard for a button to register... that's nothing compared to what kind of force I probably use with my legs sometimes having my body weight helping out. 22 gauge I suspect your pad would work so long as you stepped directly but it would probably miss any sloppy steps even if your sensors were recessed (mine aren't but if I were to build again I'd definitely make that happen... at some point I might still make it happen since I bought lots of washers to serve as spacers just for that but chickened out on using them).
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Dandelion Games

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

Alright, so, the pad is finished. Soldering was a doggy though. Gave me and my bud such a difficult time, especially when we had to solder to the control box. But we did it .

Oh, and I did get the 26ga steel after all .

Pics to come shortly.

EDIT WITH PICS

Here is the finished product:


And this is how we got the wires through the pad.... with trenches!


Works fine now too, I tried it on Chaos Expert. The pad itself takes some getting used to though.

A little tip though, I know the tutorial calls for 1 layer of cardboard, but I used 2 on each, and 3 on my down arrow before it could function as a step. I did use the 26ga sheet metal too.
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[Alexi Stuvok.THV]

Ok, I've run into a little problem. My up arrow can't hold a freeze... even when I press down with all my strength. I've checked the connections, and it can hold the freeze with just the ground wire, so maybe it's the cardboard layers? The up arrow is the one I had 3 layers on. Any ideas?
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[infamous360]

[Alexi Stuvok.THV]