I have been looking to have a MAME cabinet for a few years now. Now and again, I would search Craigslist and such looking for an old broken Arcade Cabinet to convert. I finally managed to aquire this by sheer luck.
Just was in the right place at the right time. Unworking machine partially gutted and the owner needed the space it was taking up. I only paid $25 for it plus I gave him an extra $15 as he delivered it to my house (only a mile or so away). He knew that the game didnt work (and they took the board out a long time ago anyway) but he didnt know if the 27" monitor worked or not. I havent tried testing it yet but either way it is a steal. Awesome if it works but should still be cheaper to get it fixed then the cost of a new LCD.
The control panel is fairly clean with only one button hole which I have already taken into account in my CP overlay design. I decided to go with a Mortal Kombat II theme (sorry for being unoriginal) but one of my all time fav Arcade game. The cabinet is in great shape. Just needs to be wiped down touch painted in a couple of spots.
No artwork on the sides (one less thing to scrape off and touch up). I will definitely add something down the road. Not sure if I will go with the original Raiden as I never quite cared for the washed out look but I will figure something out. My goal is to get a working machine first and then work out the final details later. My first step is the get the monitor working, then the control panel hooked upped. My control panel artwork is already almost done and I will have the Marquee done at the same time. I work a lot this time of year so dont know how much I am going to be able to work on it and update this thread but it wouldnt be much of a hobby if it could be done overnight.