I'm close to having the pad fully operational which is exciting indeed!
I decided instead of shelling out money to hire or buy tools I could use the laser-cutter at work to make the rest of the necessary parts, this removed a lot of the frustration/complications and got the project rolling faster again.
Some of the laser cut parts. 6mm MDF for corner bracket holders and 3mm acrylic to replace the brackets over the sensors.
The laser-cutter in action.
Some completed corner bracket holders drying, the laser can only cut up to 6mm thick MDF so I glued 3 layers together to create each one. For any future pads these will be made from 18mm plywood for strength.
An overall view of what is happening at the current time. 3 arrows are all complete and assembled, with only 1 left to finish.
I figured out how to remove the connector from the sensors so now I can wire them in easily and still use the connector in the future if I wish. You can also see the pads I created on the bottom of the arrow panel in lieu of brackets over the sensors, they are 3mm acrylic covered with felt so they won't grip and damage the sensors, there's also a few layers of power cards underneath for raising.
A close up of the completed corner bracket holder and corner pad, I've used bolt inserts so I can use the proper DDR screws that come with the brackets, also it will last a lot longer than using wood screws.
This prototype will be up and running in the very near future, I'll post a video when it is ready so stay tuned.
