When [Douglas Welcome] found a disposed Kalart Craig 16 mm Projecto-Editor on the curb, he knew it was destined for retro-greatness. This vintage looking device was once used to view and cut 16 mm film strips, and still in mint condition, it was just too cool to pass up. With help of a similarly historic Raspberry Pi 1 Model B, and a little LCD screen, [Douglas] now turned the little box into an awesome retro arcade game console
[Douglas] removed the original optics and lamp from the Projecto and replaced the ground glass screen with a color LCD from a rearview monitor. Where once a little light bulb illuminated 16 mm film, now a 12 mm Broadcom SOC emulates retro games. A USB hub adds some ports to the back of the newborn console for attaching a WiFi dongle and the mandatory USB NES controller replica. [Douglas] also added speakers and an amplifier from scavenged parts, as well as a nice vintage-style power switch and volume knob. The little step-down converter from a cigarette-lighter-socket USB charger powers the Pi from a 12 V power supply.
Naturally, our favorite excuse for carrying home old junk is that it might one day make an awesome enclosure for a project, but the [Douglas’s] RetroProjecto is kind of classy and reminds us that a visit to a flea market is overdue. Check out the video below, where [Douglas] walks you through his build!
Cool! Looks like a Fallout thingie!
Retro would have a big joystick. Not a Nintendo Nubbin for lefties.
Love those old crinkle finishes, hammer tone as well.
Thanks for the love! Guess I’ll have to work on getting that joystick to keep it period authentic.
That’s cool Douglas – I have some Atari parts if you need them
Why people leave the LCD bezel exposed? it hurt my OCD, just put some black opaque tape on it or paint it but the aluminium is distracting…
Thanks for the tip! That was actually one aspect I wrestled with and tried to salvage the black bezel that came with the display but alas, my unsteady hands…
Great build, but why wasn’t the original projection system used to project the picture?
It would be *really* cool with a projected LCD screen :-)
That would have been pretty cool, but the original projection was pretty rudimentary and took up most of the innards. I did want to use the original glass, but it was frosty enough that it didn’t lend to a great image.
That said, one of those mini projectors you can buy for your phone might have been really cool!
Heh, that’s a lot like one I made: http://cassettepunk.com/large-projects/pcsr/
Love it! Sending you a message soon. I have some questions…