Second day was assembly!! Whoo hoo! First order of business was to measure out and mark where all of the 2x2 supports would be attached. I figured that the kickboard was 3" and the casters I got should be mounted 2 1/4" recessed. So I measured in 2 1/4" and clamped in the first 2x2 support. This was assuming that the floor board would rest on top of the 2x2 support and the top of the kickplate would be flush with the floorboard.
My wife didn't want to help with the construction. So, I needed to be creative in order to get this thing together myself. I used my Black & Decker workbench on its side to hold up one side while I worked on it. Clever eh?

The 2x2 needed to be just the right length so that I could put the 3/4" thick MDF across the front and back, and still have 3/4" of space on each side. I decided to leave 3/4" spacing all the way around the side panels. I think this gives the cabinet a more authentic look.
The side measured 2'10" across at the bottom edge. Take 3/4" off for the kicker on both sides (1 1/2" total) and another 3/4" off for the spacing on both sides (another 1 1/2") and the 2x2 needed to be 2'7" long.

Here you can see the kickplate being installed. I pre-drilled the holes, should I say, I pre-drilled ALL holes in this project. I put one screw in the front into the 2x2, and 2 screws on each side to hold the kickplate in place.

This is the top of the cabinet. You can see where I measured in 3/4" for the spacing, then another 3/4" where the MDF would be, then clamped and attached the 2x2's. For attaching the 2x2's I pre-drilled the holes from the outside of the cabinet and counter-sinked the holes. I used drywall screws to go through the outside into the 2x2. It holds REALLY well this way. I put screws in about every 2-3" on the supports.

After attaching the speaker panel, the top panel, and the floor panels, it was time to bring this bad-boy upright... and of course, pose for the first "real" shot of the cabinet. It was about this time when my wife says, "Wow, it's a LOT bigger than I thought it was going to be!" This was also about the time that I frantically measured the width of the cabinet and the width of my sliding-glass door... Whew! Just fits.

Attaching the back door was more trouble than I imagined. The hinges I had first bought at Home Depot would not work. Since I was recessing everything 3/4", a standard hinge would not work. After much debate, I wound up using cabinet hinges, but they needed to be mounted 1" from the side of the cabinet. Good thing for scrap wood. This is what the hinge looks like from the inside. Works great.

If you want to talk about "hidden costs" when building a MAME cabinet, here is one great example. Of course, you need a flourescent lamp behind your marquee. So I'm at the local Home Depot and the cheapest flourescent kit they have is $9.99. Ok, not bad in itself, but the bulb was over $5 and I had to buy a lamp-cord-replacement-kit to wire it so that it would plug into a normal outlet. I don't know if I could have found these pieces anywhere cheaper, but total cost was about $20. Just for a freggin light! Bummer.

Finally, a little bit of engineering at work here. This is a standard window-sash latch. I installed a 2x2 on each side of the cabinet on the inside, and on the underside of the control panel. The control panel fits snugly into place, and the latches hold it down. Works like a charm. Ya know what this means??? Interchangable control panels baby! If I ever decide to build a 4-player control panel, my cabinet will be ready to go.

Updated 12/1/2002: After a LONG time I have decided to add this picture of the final drawer. Whoo hoo. ;) I painted the inside of the drawer black to match the cabinet, and used a black Dell keyboard and mouse. Just a note, the keyboard barelyfits in the drawer. I'm lucky, because I didn't measure for the keyboard clearance when I thought about adding the drawer, I just assumed it would fit... WHEW!