Short answer: Most arcade builds use 1/8 in. clear acrylic for the control panel cover, laid over printed artwork and drilled for 30 mm (about 1.18 in.) buttons and the joystick shaft. Marquees are usually 1/8 in. clear with a printed backer, or white translucent for direct lettering, and bezels are 1/8 in. black with a window cut out for the screen.
Which arcade parts make sense in acrylic
A cabinet has three places where acrylic does a job nothing else does as well:
- Control panel cover. A clear sheet over printed control panel art protects the print from palms, drinks, and button mashing. It sits on top of the wood or metal panel and shares its holes.
- Marquee panel. The lit sign at the top of the cabinet. Clear acrylic sandwiches a printed translite; white translucent spreads the light from an LED strip behind it.
- Monitor bezel. A black panel with a window that hides the edges of a flat screen and makes it look like it belongs in the cabinet.
Acrylic also works for coin door windows, instruction card covers, and side-art protectors on bar-top and pedestal builds.
Sizes and thickness
| Part | Typical size | Thickness and color |
|---|---|---|
| 1-player control panel cover | 16 × 10 in. | 1/8 in. clear |
| 2-player control panel cover | 28 to 32 × 10 to 12 in. | 1/8 in. clear |
| Full-size marquee | About 26 × 8 in. | 1/8 in. clear or white translucent |
| Bar-top marquee | About 20 × 6 in. | 1/8 in. clear or white translucent |
| Monitor bezel | Your cabinet opening | 1/8 or 3/16 in. black |
Go to 3/16 in. for a control panel cover only if your panel is thin or flexes; thicker plastic means the buttons need longer threads to reach their nuts. Standard snap-in buttons are made for panels up to about 3/16 in. total, so check your hardware against the combined panel and cover thickness.
Button and joystick holes
Most arcade pushbuttons are 30 mm or 24 mm. We cut 30 mm buttons at 1.125 to 1.18 in. depending on whether yours snap in or screw in, and 24 mm buttons at about 0.95 in. The joystick needs a shaft hole, usually 0.75 to 1 in., plus four small holes if you mount the stick from the top. Give us the exact hardware and we'll size the holes.
Because we laser cut the cover, every hole lands exactly where your layout says. That matters: if you drill the cover and the panel separately, even a 1/32 in. drift on a button hole makes it bind. The best approach is to send one drawing and have us cut both the acrylic cover and a template for the wood panel. Drilling acrylic yourself works too, but big holes near an edge are where most home-drilled covers crack.
Tip: keep every button hole at least 1/2 in. from the edge of the cover and from the next hole. Thin bridges between holes are the first thing to crack when a player slaps the panel.
Finishing touches
- Edges. Laser-cut edges come out glossy. For a cover that overhangs a bevel, ask for polished edges or a radiused front edge so it's comfortable for wrists.
- Engraved art. Instead of a printed underlay, we can reverse engrave a logo or button labels into the back of the cover.
- Even marquee light. A marquee lit from behind looks best with the LEDs 2 to 3 in. back and a white translucent or frosted diffuser. See LED light diffusers.
How to order
If your cabinet follows a published plan, export the control panel layout as DXF or SVG and upload the drawing. A plain marquee or bezel rectangle can be priced directly in the instant quote.
Questions
Will the control panel cover scratch?
It will pick up fine marks over years of play, mostly around the joystick. Light scratches polish out, and a cover is cheap to replace compared to reprinting the art underneath.
Should I use polycarbonate instead?
For a home or bar-top cabinet, acrylic is clearer and easier to keep looking new. For a cabinet in a public venue where people pound on the panel, polycarbonate's toughness is worth it.