and the Cutting begins!....

My Dad came round in the early afternoon to help me start cutting the sides of the Arcade Cabinet. I had the template already drawn out on one piece of MDF, so all we had to do was fire up the jig-saw and go!

The first obstacle we came across was an elementary one - what should we use to actually place the wood on for cutting? I didn’t have a work bench or DIY table and didn’t fancy shelling out for one. Solution? - The coffee table! (Covered/protected in many layers of plastic, of course!)



We took the coffee table outside the flat as I did not fancy MDF particles clogging up the air inside with the little one about.



The Jig seemed easy enough to operate, although there was an initial confusion as to which correct blade (supplied) to use on the 3/4" MDF.



Initially we used a very fast cutting blade, which although went through the wood with easy, the fast movement of the blade made things very difficult to see and thus difficult to control, resulting in a few uneven cuts.



We then tried a slower blade, which although tested out patience a little, it DID seem to work a treat. More accurate cuts were made, and we even went back and refined some of the earlier flawed cuts. All in all results were satisfactory and left us in a good position for sanding.





As you can see,to achieve an accurate cut of the second piece of wood that is identical in mesaurement to the first, we used a simple 'tracing' technique







So here you see something that actually resembles an Arcade Machine! This is highly exciting. Hard part is over! All that is left now is to cut simple rectangular measurements of wood (B&Q can do this for free) that will form the back, top and base of the Arcade Cabinet!





Now I’m off to reward myself by going to watch 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'!

Watch this space!!