Wall Mounted Pachinko Frames

[Jaelus]

So I think I've read just about every frame mounting thread on here, but I'm looking for some advice.

I'm getting ready to mount my 3 fever pachinkos for starters, and then I'll look at mounting my classic pachinkos. I've got a Star Wars and an Indiana Jones in a Sankyo Lumina frame, and a Robocop in a Monako/Okumura Nightware frame. All three of these games have DaveRob dongles and ball lifters, so I can keep them self contained on the wall without having to deal with ball management.

The pachinkos, ready for wall mounting:
20231225_200259.jpg

With the ball lifters, the clearance is a bit more than without, but based on my measurements, 1" x 10" lumber (really .75" x 9.25") will give me sufficient clearance.

As I do not need to worry about a lower tray or ball feeder up top, I can get by with a very simple frame. I have a 1" x 6" (really .75" x 5.5") board to cut for a French cleat.

My questions are as follows:

1. Is it stronger to have the top of the frame full width with vertical screws driven into the end wood of the sides, or is it stronger to have full height sides with horizontal screws driven into the end wood of the top and bottom.

Here's an illustration of what I'm talking about. The left example has a full width top and bottom with vertical screws into the sides. The right example has full height sides with horizonal screws into the top and bottom. With the cleat at the top screwed to the sides and top it will help distribute the weight and strengthen the frame, but a lot of weight is going to be supported by the top of the frame, so I want it to be as strong as possible.

(Shown to scale)
frames.png

2. Will a 1" x 6" (really .75" x 5.5") cut in half at a 45 degree angle be sufficiently strong for a French cleat? The cleat will be mounted on 2 studs with 2 screws per stud, and also screwed to both the top and sides of the frame.

3. What screws are best for the frame? I want them to be sufficiently strong but not too large as to weaken the wood. I was considering #10 2.5" flat head wood screws that could be countersunk and filled.

4. I am also considering a second piece of wood at the bottom of the frame to strengthen the frame, similar to the cleat at top, except it will just be there for strength. Is this necessary? It will reduce the clearance for the ball lifters by .75".

Thank you in advance for any comments. I'd like to avoid any unseen pitfalls in this project.

[lotsoballs]

I wouldn’t use either of those methods for the cabinet screws. Best way I’ve found is using a Kreg pocket hole jig; if you screw it together from the inside there’s no unsightly screws to countersink and fill which is a huge time waster and unnecessary. With this jig, and if you use it properly, you get perfect corners with no measuring of screw holes (because it does that for you perfectly every time) greatly speeding things up!

You can assemble a cabinet with the Kreg jig in about 15 mins.

They make special screws for the exact thickness of the wood and type of wood (hard or softwood)

Kreg KPHJ320 Pocket-Hole Jig 320 - Small, Durable Jig for Tight Spaces - Create Perfect, Rock-Solid Joints - Easily Adjustable Drill Guides - For Materials 1/2" to 1 1/2" Thick https://a.co/d/7tpLBEA





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[rockston]

Your second example (on the right) is stronger and plenty strong for the purpose. The sheer strength of a screw is stronger than it's thread grip.
You could always add another narrow cleat on the bottom under that member. No one (or at least no one important) is going to fault you for
any screws showing.

[Jaelus]

Thanks all, I had a woodworking friend who had a pocket hole jig and I ended up drilling them that way.

[Jaelus]

Here's the assembled frame with pocket screws and French cleat. I'm going to secure the other side of the cleat to the wall with 2 lag screws in each stud.

20240101_212504_resized.jpg20240101_222102_resized.jpg

Next steps:

I bought some small corner brackets that I'm going to use to position and secure the pachinko within the frame. These will also serve as a backstop so that when you put the pachinko into the frame and push it back it will be in the right position. Then I'm going to secure an additional board to keep the ball lifter and transformer level, and mark where I need to screw in supports for the ball lifter tube.

Once I've done that I can mark a spot for the volume control. I added a dual potentiometer for the audio with a good length of wire and a 1.5" shaft. I'm going to mount this to a small plate, drill a hole for the shaft on one side of the top of the frame, and mount the plate inside the cab. This way the volume control is on the top of the frame. I want this to be consistent for all the frames, so I'm thinking generally pointing up above the top right speaker where it's not in the way of the ball lifter.

After I have the hole drilled for the volume pot, then I will take out the hardware I used to mock it up and will sand and stain the wood. The screw holes will be there so I can put everything back after the stain sets, and then it will be ready for hanging.

[lotsoballs]

Looks good! The pocket hole method is the way to go; looks more professional than wood filler or exposed screws. Not to mention way easier!

Here’s my Star Wars wall mounted

This one was made prior to my Kreg jig ownership though.

[rockston]

Here's the assembled frame with pocket screws and French cleat. I'm going to secure the other side of the cleat to the wall with 2 lag screws in each stud.

20240101_212504_resized.jpg20240101_222102_resized.jpg

Next steps:

I bought some small corner brackets that I'm going to use to position and secure the pachinko within the frame. These will also serve as a backstop so that when you put the pachinko into the frame and push it back it will be in the right position. Then I'm going to secure an additional board to keep the ball lifter and transformer level, and mark where I need to screw in supports for the ball lifter tube.

Once I've done that I can mark a spot for the volume control. I added a dual potentiometer for the audio with a good length of wire and a 1.5" shaft. I'm going to mount this to a small plate, drill a hole for the shaft on one side of the top of the frame, and mount the plate inside the cab. This way the volume control is on the top of the frame. I want this to be consistent for all the frames, so I'm thinking generally pointing up above the top right speaker where it's not in the way of the ball lifter.

After I have the hole drilled for the volume pot, then I will take out the hardware I used to mock it up and will sand and stain the wood. The screw holes will be there so I can put everything back after the stain sets, and then it will be ready for hanging.

How are you planning on emptying the lower tray without using both hands when you get a bonus?

[Jaelus]

How are you planning on emptying the lower tray without using both hands when you get a bonus?

I have plenty of pachinko ball trays. But each pachinko I just start out with a full hopper. That's all the balls in that system. If it needs to pay out more I'll have to open the door and dump them back in to the hopper as needed.

[lotsoballs]

I have plenty of pachinko ball trays. But each pachinko I just start out with a full hopper. That's all the balls in that system. If it needs to pay out more I'll have to open the door and dump them back in to the hopper as needed.

Best solution to that problem is design a built in ball catcher tray shelf; 2000 balls fills up pretty quick; and it’s quite heavy to be holding it by hand. Definitely a worthwhile addition and costs next to nothing to add if you design it from the start that way.

My wall mount cabinet version 2 solves this issue.