Greetings Earthings!

[Dr. Blair]

I'm happy to be a new member of this great community! I've been inspired by your marvelous work. And honestly, as a complete beginner, very intimidated! 

So, to help others like me out there, my goal as a member is as follows:

* Build from scratch a Donkey Kong replica cabinet
* Make a ton of mistakes along the way
* Document the process in a step-by-step "how to" PDF for others like me
* Humbly beg for your kind assistance!

To that end, I'll be making my first post in the Arcade Lifestyle shortly. I've always wanted to have my own Donkey Kong cabinet, and I've always wanted to be able to do woodwork. This is my chance to kill two birds with one stone.

I should also mention that I'm an American living in Tokyo and I speak Japanese. So if there's anyone who needs anything from Japan, I'd be more than happy help you get it!  (I should note that, surprisingly, classic arcade cabinets are non-existent in Japan.)

[Muerto]

Interesting! - Welcome here!
Im not surprised to hear theres (all most) no classic arcades left in Japan.., they all went plastic at some point...
Anyways, again welcome

[Dr. Blair]

Yep. They have plenty of retro console stuff here but, like you said, the cabinets have all gone plastic (New Astro City and the like). They also have some old metal games, but we're talking really old stuff (pre-80s). 

There are still quite a few places that have retro arcade games, in that they have retro rom sets in a new cabinet (there are stores in Akihabara that sell old rom sets by the pile), but the original cabinets have gone the way of the Dodo.

[DarthNuno]

Welcome to DLF/ALS', home of the most famous 'scratch built replica' master : Scr33n 
It seems that the Donkey Kong cabinet is the most wanted one! ...maybe more than Pac Man! 
Do you read Japanese by the way? It may be very useful for the Galaxian3 section ono this board, where most of the content is coming from Japanese sources 
Anyway, good luck for your project! 

[Etienne MacGyver]

Welcome here,

i is indeed that the most people like DK for some reason.

I have not done any scratch builds except for the only know to exist "Zaccaria Mini" 

https://www.dragonslairfans.com/smfor/index.php?topic=2823.0

Goodluck with the Tutorial and your build !

[Dr. Blair]

Do you read Japanese by the way? It may be very useful for the Galaxian3 section ono this board, where most of the content is coming from Japanese

Yep. Reading Japanese is a piece of cake for me. I'd be happy to help out with any translation requests. Besides, I know for sure I'll be relying on all on you guys for help!

[Blanka]

So if there's anyone who needs anything from Japan, I'd be more than happy help you get it!  

Don't say that to me. Yahoo auctions is still very hard to understand . I have one big wish that is never on Ebay, but a regular visitor on Yahoo.jp.
I was in Tokyo in 2009, and searched for arcades, and the closest I found to historic arcades was a small 5 story place named Keikan or so, near Shibuya Station.

And I do have some wishes on Japanese->English translation. I'm working on a great project documenting a rarely covered section of gaming history, and there is some Japanese to decipher.
If you like, we have a printing shop and I can always print decals, CPO's etc if you need that. We have a special printer with UV resistant inks (non water based), and anti-scratch laminate etc.

[Dr. Blair]

I have one big wish that is never on Ebay....And I do have some wishes on Japanese->English translation. I'm working on a great project documenting a rarely covered section of gaming history, and there is some Japanese to decipher. If you like, we have a printing shop and I can always print decals, CPO's etc if you need that. We have a special printer with UV resistant inks (non water based), and anti-scratch laminate etc.

If there's something that you need of of Yahoo auctions, I'd be happy to help you out. Please let me know.

Also, I'm a long way from printing up CPOs, but if there's any Japanese-English translation that you need, I'd be happy to help out!

[gyruss]

Have you been to the retro arcade in the same mall/near Joypolis? They got quite a few classics like pole position and outrun and lot's of tables.

[Dr. Blair]

No, I haven't, I don't think. I'll have to check it out.

I think you're talking about the O-daiba Joypolis. Is that the one?

Also, do you happen to live in or around Tokyo?

[gyruss]

Yes i think so, here is the address:

Joypolis
Japan〒135-0091 Tokyo, Minato, Daiba, １丁目６−１ デックス東京ビーチ3~5F
+81 3-5500-1801 ‎

When you exit the place take the elevator to the first (or second) floor, the arcade is right next to it.

And no, i visited Japan last year, would love to live there though.

[Dr. Blair]

Cool, I'll check it out as soon as I can.