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(This is the second article in the series on building a retro arcade cocktail table)
The oval arcade tabletop gives this gaming cabinet a retro-modern look and turns this design into a piece of furniture that fits in your living room or play room. The extra surface area you get with an oval shape makes it great for holding beverages and snacks, and, when you give up trying to get past the pie factory level in Donkey Kong, provides ample space for board games.
I recommend completing the oval tabletop before you begin on the cabinet base and controllers. The monitor is the largest component and governs the minimum size of the cabinet, so building the top first gives you the opportunity to adjust dimensions to make sure your monitor fits. You will need to consider how you want to turn the screen on and off, and how you’ll connect the various inputs and outputs.
Once you’ve chosen the monitor you’re going to use, you can make the oval arcade tabletop. Just remember to carefully check the viewing angles on the monitor before committing to it. Lay it on a flat surface and look at it from sitting height to confirm that it’s viewable.
Materials
- Pre-finished 3/4″ Birch Plywood
- Extruded Acrylic (Plexiglas) Panel
- Vinyl T-Molding
- Black Paint
- (optional) Craft adhesive suitable for plastic, such as E6000
- 4 metal corner brackets (“L” brackets)
Tools
- Slot-cutting Router Bit
- Rabbeting Bit
- Router
- Router Trammel (make it yourself)
- Large Compass (like this, or make it yourself)
- Circular Saw
- Rubber Mallet
Steps
- Size and cut the oval tabletop
- Cut out the hole for the monitor and acrylic panel
- Install the vinyl t-molding
1. Size and cut the oval arcade tabletop
Lay your monitor on the tabletop material and trace the monitor outline. I used ¾” pre-coated birch plywood. Within the outline, draw your screen, making sure to account for differences in the width of the monitor bezel. Ultimately, you want the center of the screen to be the center of your table.
Draw lines bisecting the screen rectangle. This defines your center point and the axis for your oval.
Using a large compass and these directions, draw your oval. The oval is composed of circles of two different sizes (see the diagram). First you establish the radius for the two smaller circles. The radius of the larger circle joins the smaller circles to form the oval. You might want to try a few different radius lengths to get a look and size you like. In this case, I wanted enough room to put a cocktail on the table without getting in the way of the screen. My oval is 39 inches on the long axis and 29 and 1/4 inches on the short axis.
Once you’re satisfied with the oval, you can cut it out with a router and trammel. The router trammel guides your router along a smooth curve with the radii you established with the compass, and you can make one that’s custom fit to your router from scrap. For each curve, I made three passes with the router, using a 1/4″ straight bit, and dropping the bit lower on each pass. Use a sander to smooth out any imperfections.
Use a 1/16″ groove bit to cut the channel for the vinyl edging. Make sure to set the bit depth so that the cut is exactly in the center of the edge. (Tip: Compare the width of your vinyl edging to the width of the tabletop. If the molding is slightly wider, then offset the router depth so that the top of the edging will be flush with the top of the table and the excess will hang over the bottom.)
2. Cut a hole in the oval for the monitor and plexiglass top
Now, make plunge cuts with a circular saw to cut out the hole for your screen. You can cut along the screen outline that’s already drawn on the tabletop, or make the rectangle slightly larger to show some of the monitor bezel. Finish the cuts with a hand saw. Test fit the hole over your monitor to make sure you like the size.
Use a router with a rabbetting bit to cut the lip for the acrylic sheet around the edge of the screen hole. Set the depth of the bit to the exact width of the acrylic (¼ inch). I waited until I completed this step before ordering the acrylic. The router leaves a natural rounded corner, which you can match when you order the acrylic. (As it turned out, my rounded corner was in between the standard roundover sizes offered, so I ordered the next larger size roundover and it looks fine).
Fill any voids in the plywood with putty and sand rough edges. Paint the edges of the cutout black to make it blend with your monitor bezel.
3. Install the vinyl t-molding around the edge of the tabletop
Use a utility knife to cut the vinyl edging to length and gently tap it in to your groove with a rubber mallet. You need to make sure to cut the edging to the exact length. If you don’t trust your measurements, cut it a little long, begin installing it and make the final cut before inserting the last couple of inches. (If you have any issues with the edging popping out of the groove, you can pull out the edging and use an adhesive like E6000 to help it stick).
You will attach the oval arcade tabletop to the cabinet with corner brackets during the final assembly, so keep them handy. But for now, you’re ready to move on to building the cabinet.
More Posts in This Series
- Retro Arcade Cocktail Table
- How to Make an Oval Arcade Tabletop
- How to Build a Trapezoid Shaped Arcade Cabinet
- How to Build Arcade Controllers for a Cocktail Table
- Arcade Configuration
