the restoration continues ... with the cab disassembly!in order to start the real restoration work, i have to disassemble the cabinet first, because some ugly modifications from hell have been done to this game!
let's start by removing everything - beginning with the wiring (if you can call it like that)
i'm keeping parts like the potentiometer - wave goodbye to the rest
here's what was lying around on the bottom of the cab, the previous owners must have dropped everything they couldn't use anymore inside instead of tossing it away!
i also found some nice pieces inside, i especially love that key!
as i've said before, the front panel has been hacked to make a different (non-original) coin door fit
looking closely, you can clearly see where the original coin door was and where the additional cuts have been made
in order to cover up the old cut-out for the coin door, they inserted a small piece of wood
as you can imagine, the original front panel can not be salvaged - which means i will have to cut a new one. for that, i have to remove the old one first, starting with some screws!
however, i soon realize that i can't remove all the screws (and therefore the front panel) without getting the handmade wooden coin box out first. isn't it a thing of beauty?
i'm using brute force to hammer it out!
the two panels which held the coin box in place - obviously another cabinet was used to create those.
i know which game they came from, do you?
coin box removed - what a piece of crap!!!
i still don't understand the function of those two metal pieces
with the coin box removed, i can now also reach the lower screws. as you can see, the front panel is starting to come off ...
with the crappy parts removed, this is beginning to look more original!
here's another pop quiz for the experts: on the right side someone drilled a huuuge hole in the cabinet and screwed in a round piece of plastic. this is the second time i've seen something like that, but the function of it still eludes me! does anyone have an answer?
view from the inside
and removed! as you can see, i'm left with a giant hole in the cabinet's side!
of course,
HE is also around "helping out"
the back panel is also worn, screwed in (which it isn't supposed to be, which means someone had taken it off prior) and dirty. there's only one solution: removal!
and guess what i find inside
(note the giant hole from that brown "thingy" on the right)
cat carefully removed
i love details like this ...
... and that! (note the
famous troubleshooting sticker which will be replaced by a new complete one)
four heavy-duty wheels have been screwed ("rammed" would be the better word) into the bottom of the cabinet to make moving it around easier
but as you can see, the cabinet's bottom suffered some serious damage from that action (splintered distorted wood)
here's another example! looks like someone tried to do some damage control by filling spaces up with glue
i had to disassemble the cabinet even further to get all the wheel screws out, but eventually i succeeded!
and here's where i stand
right now (real time): cabinet partially disassembled, damaged parts waiting to be restored / reconstructed!
to be continued ...
