** WARNING **

The following post contains images of neglect.

Those of a nervous disposition should read no further.

More Pac-Man joy

Many years ago I chipped in to the first ever UK Kickstarter, the Picade from Pimoroni, so old it was powered by a RaspberryPi Model B; I decided to dig it out of the cupboard of forgotten tech, dust it off and start refurbishing it.

Bits and pieces used

  • RaspberryPi 3
  • Pac-Man imagery by @Wheelhorse from this mega-thread and vinyl printed by a local printer
  • Illuminated buttons and joystick ball However I probably ordered too many buttons…
  • Picade loom (Edit: no longer stocked) The sturdier wiring on the new loom is a lot less fragile than the original KickStarter loom
  • On/Off Shim A couple of reasons to add one of these nifty boards, more details further down
  • Momentary Push Switch Then main reason to add one of these was to simplify the powering-down process. I also needed one to fit a pre-drilled hole in the rear of the cabinet
  • Shiny Trim (Edit: no longer stocked)
    For bling !
  • 6mm and 12mm cable tidy because I like tidy
  • Wire and crimps for wiring harnesses because I needed to make some adjustments to where the power went to
  • Patience, and I mean lots of patience

Take one dusty, neglected Picade in need of refurbishing

It’s looking a little forlorn but elbow grease and chemicals will help; it’s time for a transformation.

An original Pimoroni Picade looking dusty and forlorn. It clearly needs refurbishing. A Dusty Front View of a Picade

Not exactly a good advertisement for my dusting skills but it does show that an update is long overdue.

The rear interior. Wires are everywhere and very dusty. Some even look mouldy. A Dusty Rear View of a Picade

Oh look, an ancient RaspberryPi Model B but in an original Pimoroni Pibow.

I’m going to take this opportunity to upgrade that too but first everything needs disassembling.

Another view of the rear interior. Wires are everywhere and very dusty. Some even look mouldy. Another Dusty Rear View of a Picade

Also, I’m sure there were creatures living in there.

It’s amazing how much dust actually collects in there even though it has been living in a cupboard.

A close up view of the rear interior. Wires are everywhere and very dusty. Some even look mouldy. A Dusty Inside View of a Picade

You can also see the ghostly outlines of long dead cables.

(And a possible dead creature carcass next to the middle screw terminal on the left.)

The rear interior showing the original purple Picade PCB. Wires are everywhere and very dusty. There may be evidence of dead creatures in here. Another Dusty Inside View of a Picade

First ablutions

Shiny, you can almost see your reflection in there (but not quite).

However, it’s amazing what hot soapy water, some sugar soap and WD40 can do.

The rear interior after its first clean. The MDF is shining. Clean Inside View of a Picade

I even took the Pibow apart and cleaned that otherwise it would have looked incongruous.

However, it turns out that was a pointless exercise as the new RaspberryPi wouldn’t fit into the old Pibow.

The rear interior after its first clean. The MDF is shining. The Pi is visible in its multicoloured case. Clean Rear View

At this point everything still worked.

The screen was lit and the Pi was booting.

But there was still that strange buzzing sound.

So I decided to reflash RetroPie .

Still no joy, still buzzing.

So I decided to update and flash the firmware, MacGyver style.

The underneath of the front of the Picade showing how the buttons are all wired up. A veritable rats nest of wiring. Raspi Rats Nest

Oops.

Of course I borked the firmware.

So, time to disassemble completely, clean again, and give my Picade a fresh coat of LED and vinyl love.

Second ablutions

After complete disassembly, much sugar-soap and WD40 the MDF was looking in better shape.

A disassembled Picade cabinet after cleaning. The MDF is shiny. Clean MDF Parts

Cutting the Pac-Man vinyl for the case

I had decided to vinyl wrap the Picade.

That however, was a mixed blessing.

The Pac-Man wrap looked fantastic but cutting all of the pieces by hand was a chore.

The Pac-Man logo on the vinyl for the side of the Picade cabinet. It has been roughly trimmed but needs a more precise trim to finish it. Pac-Man Vinyl Side View

It looks fantastic but I can’t emphasise enough how much of a chore this was.

The Pac-Man logo on the vinyl for the front of the Picade cabinet. It has been roughly trimmed but needs a more precise trim to finish it. Vinyl Pac-Man Bezel and Controls

If I ever do this again, I’d opt for contour cutting to save a few hours.

(But that would have driven up the cost quite dramatically.)

The Pac-Man logo on the vinyl for the side of the Picade cabinet. It has been roughly trimmed but needs a more precise trim to finish it. It is shown next to the MDF pice it is to cover. Vinyl & MDF Pac-Man Side View

Reassembly

I reassembled the carcass without a hitch.

I’m not sure about cutting out the crenels though.

I’m undecided whether I like this look or not.

The partially reassembled Picade cabinet, The sides bottom and front have been bolted back together. Starting Cabinet Reassembly

The marquee is looking good (more about this later).

The partially reassembled Picade cabinet. The marquee along the top has been reinstalled and the Pac-Man logo has been put between the perspex sheets.. Starting Marquee Reassembly

I even managed to not break the screen whilst disassembling, cleaning and reassembling.

A completely reassembled Picade cabinet. Reassembled Cabinet

Adding an ‘On-Off Shim’ to the RaspberryPi

There are a couple of reasons I added an ‘On/Off Shim’:

  • A neat button that performs a clean shutdown.
  • A way of running the 5V power and ground looms to the LED buttons.

Wiring up the RaspberryPi On/Off shim that will be an externally mounted On/Off button. On/Off Shim

Also, ‘Hot Glue’ is related to ‘WD40’ and ‘Gaffer Tape’, right?

Hot gluing the button connecting the RaspberryPi On/Off shim to the interior of the rear cabinet door. On/Off Shim in Place

Button wiring – part 1

Wiring up the LED power and ground looms first.

Also, it’s a good job the anode was painted or else I’d never have figured out how to wire the four terminals up.

For reference:

This is a ‘Picade Maxi’, so has 8 buttons on top.

  • 6 x Blue buttons for the arcade controls.
  • 2 x red buttons for the volume controls.

Wiring up the new buttons. No more rats nest as these are kept tidy with cable tidies. Tidy Button Wiring

Picade first boot!

Not doing any more wiring unless the damn thing boots !

I’m keen to start playing some Pac-Man but I really need to make sure that it boots OK.

First boot showing the RetroPie logo. It works! First Boot !

Button wiring – part 2

Connecting up the buttons to the Picade control board.

A close up of the wired up buttons. Button Wiring Close Up

Picade cable tidy

The cable tidy proved to be a mixed blessing.

Whilst it kept everything tidy it also introduced a slight amount of resistance to the bound wires.

That meant that I had to take a bit of care when affixing the console to the cabinet to ensure that the tidied bundles of wires were positioned correctly and not pressing on the underside of the illuminated buttons as this inhibited the button action.

The wired up buttons are now connected to the new blue Picade PCB and the joystick. Everything is tidy. Console Wiring

Testing the buttons

Those wires hanging over the top of the cabinet are where the +/-5V from the ‘On/Off Shim’ has been broken out into three separate strands.

  • One strand is for the the eight buttons on the top of the console.
  • One strand is for the side and front buttons if they are ever swapped for LED buttons.
  • The third strand is to potentially power an illuminated marquee if I ever get around to that.

Checking that all the buttons light up. Button Test

Breaking out the power

(Before being wired up and squished into the cabinet.)

I deleiberately added extra power strands as I plan in the future to add even more LED goodness.

A view of the cabinet from the rear now that it has been assembled. Testing the On/Off shim works whilst everything is in place. On/Off Shim In Rear Door

Everything works, so change it

All booting and working.

So, time to tinker.

Booting the cabinet with the console fully assembled showing the buttons illuminated. Boot With Buttons Lit

Picade button swapping

I swapped out the yellow buttons for LED ones.

(Actually, I broke one of the yellow lugs that hold the button in place.)

So, all I needed to do was make a positive daisy-chain and a ground daisy-chain.

Then wire those to the already broken out +/-5V from the ‘On/Off Shim’.

You can just about make out the daisy-chain, covered in cable-tidy before it heads off under the screen to the Shim.

Swapping out the front buttons for illuminated yellow ones. Changing To Yellow Lit Buttons

Picade rear wiring

Lots of tidy cables here, it took a bit of time but I think it was worth it.

A rear view of the wiring with the Picade cabinet door open. Wiring View From The Rear

I just about manage to fit all of that extra plastic in.

Even though it looks pretty, I wouldn’t do it again because:

  • It was time consuming.
  • It added unnecessary resistance to the loops of wires.

A close up view of the wiring with the Picade cabinet door open. Its a bit packed in there. Another Wiring View From The Rear

Finishing up

I went through updating the firmware ; without breaking anything this time.

I managed to sort out the sound.

And that was pretty much it, everything else worked straight away, out of the box.

The finished Picade with unlit buttons

Looks good now that it’s all finished and the trim is in place.

Not sure how long the trim will stay stuck for though, it doesn’t seem super sticky.

(Edit: I had to eventually superglue the trim in place as it lifted over time.)

Finished, wired up, and ready to boot. The cabinet sitting on a desk looking resplendent. Completed Unlit Front View

I made a conscious decision to leave the black buttons in place.

They just look right next to the yellow vinyl.

Side view of the refurbished Picade

A side view of the finished cabinet, yellow Pac-Man vinyl in place. Completed Unlit Side View

Space-Invaders detail on the refurbished Picade

I do love the ‘Space Invader’ detail on the rear.

A rear view of the finished cabinet, ventilation holes in the shape of a Space Invader visible. Completed Unlit Rear View

It looks good from the back with the ‘Invader’ lit.

A rear view of the finished cabinet, ventilation holes in the shape of a Space Invader more visible now that the machine has booted . Completed Lit Rear View

Some of those Picade buttons don’t look OK

The button stickers are lifting slightly.

I know these buttons are a few millimeters less in diameter than the originals.

They are also slightly more convex.

Etching, instead of stickers may be in order.

A view from above of the finished front console. The buttons are unlit. Completed Unlit Console View

The lifting stickers are not too noticeable once the power is on.

A view from above of the finished front console. The buttons are lit. Completed Lit Console View

The yellow illuminated buttons next to the graphics by @Wheelhorse look fantastic.

A front view of the finished front console. The buttons are lit. Completed Lit Console Front View

Gratuitous Picade glamour shots after the overhaul

Still unsure about those cutaways.

If I had to revamp this thing again I’d think about covering the crenelations but that might remove some of the ‘home-made’ charm so I’m not sure.

A side view of the finished console. Completed Lit Side View

All work was overseen by Professor Screwed.

The completed cabinet shown from the front, all buttons illuminated and Pac-Man playing on the display. Completed Lit Front View

Another shot of the front.

The completed cabinet shown from the front, all buttons illuminated and RetroPie booting. Another Completed Lit Front View

And yet another…

The completed cabinet shown from the front, all buttons illuminated and Pac-Man playing on the display. A laptop covered in stickers sits in the foreground. Yet Another Completed Lit Front View

It is a bit of a transformation but took quite a bit of time.

But it does actually work properly now !

The completed cabinet shown from the side, all buttons illuminated and Pac-Man playing on the display. Completed Lit Side View

Next steps

Load it full of games and then play Pac-Man obviously.

Play even more than ‘Pac-Man’ on it !!!

Things I’d do differently

Cough up the extra cash and get the vinyl contour cut next time

My poor knife skills are not too noticeable, however I know the mistakes are there.

A close-up of the side vents. The vinyl has been cut out poorly though it does give it a used look. Completed Bad Knife Skills

Cut with more care

The image insert needs to extend to the end of the marquee and then it would be a perfect fit.

My mistake, but not a biggie and if I add lights up there it’ll need to be opaque anyway.

A close-up of the perspex marquee holding the Pac-Man logo. It is slightly too short and will be replaced with a correctly sized one eventually. Completed Marquee Short Banner

Not use unnecessary cable tidy

No matter however tidy it all looks.

Don’t buy cheap tools from Amazon

They are a false economy however quickly they get delivered.

(I’m looking at you crimping tool.)

Future Picade mods

Because nothing is every truly finished.

Illuminated Marquee.

I’ll probably run the remaining +/-5V from the Shim to a set of lights behind the marquee but for now I’m done tinkering.

Mote.

I will find a use for those Mote strips I have in a box somewhere and then there will be even more LED goodness.

Etched buttons.

The stickers will come off, probably sooner rather than later, so I think I’m going to etch them.

Fininshed (?)

I thinks that’s all for now but you never know when inspiration will strike!