Almost an Epic Game Pickup!

[paigeoliver]

Responded to a craigslist ad last night right before I went to bed. Woke up this morning to a reply, found out the guy was 120 miles away, but that he still had the main thing I was interested in and I had dealt with him before, so I felt ok about making the drive.

Ended up coming home with a truckload.

[Nephasth]

Man, if you'd put half the energy into looking for a job as you do looking for arcade games, you'd probably have a pretty decent job by now.

[Le Chuck]

Man, if you'd put half the energy into looking for a job as you do looking for arcade games, you'd probably have a pretty decent job by now.

Oh snap! 

[paigeoliver]

The problem is that my daughter was born after I lost my job. So now I need to find a job that pays more than my wife's because someone needs to watch the baby and that makes it a little tougher because it seems like no one wants to pay more than $10 an hour for jobs that were paying nearly twice that a few years back.

Man, if you'd put half the energy into looking for a job as you do looking for arcade games, you'd probably have a pretty decent job by now.

[brad808]

You have any recent pics of your gaming area?

[yotsuya]

So what was your main pick up? The Sinistar?

[Well Fed Games]

Nice haul. Which of those was the "main thing" you made the trip for? That Demo Derby is pretty sweet!

edit: beat to it by Yotsuya.

[paigeoliver]

I went for the Demo Derby, it was incomplete, but I had another incomplete one in my shed, and they match up to make a complete one.

The Sinistar and Space Zap got added in because I saw the Space Zap, knew my best friend wanted one of those so I called him and he talked to the seller and before I knew it he had bought both of them. If I had more free cash to spend on the hobby I would have bought those two myself.

The Space Firebird was tossed into the deal because the Demo Derby turned out to be missing the monitor but the seller had thought it had one, so I just asked if I could take one of the japanese cocktails off the pile to make up for it and this one was on top (he had like 15 or 20 japanese cocktails all against one wall stacked 2 and 3 high).

Nice haul. Which of those was the "main thing" you made the trip for? That Demo Derby is pretty sweet!

edit: beat to it by Yotsuya.

[paigeoliver]

I can take a few, although I still have some broken stuff in the gameroom and some stuff with marquee lights out, etc. Would love to get everything 100 percent.

You have any recent pics of your gaming area?

[GernBlanston]

Seems that this was indeed an epic pickup.  Why listed as "almost" epic?

Just...amazing. Would like to see the gaming area too.

[paigeoliver]

Well it is almost Epic because the two really choice pieces in the pickup (The Demo Derby and the Sinistar) got split between my friend and myself. If I had bought them both it would have been Epic.  I could have swung buying them both myself, but then I would have had to sell something else really fast to balance the game funds (my game hobby mostly pays for itself via monitor repairs/exchanges and the occasional game or part sale).

Seems that this was indeed an epic pickup.  Why listed as "almost" epic?

Just...amazing. Would like to see the gaming area too.

[ChadTower]

Oh man.  Space Zap is one of my favorite games.  I'm envious of that one!  I would LOVE to have a Space Zap.

[paigeoliver]

You have any recent pics of your gaming area?

Ok, here come the game room pictures as requested. Pretty much every game in the gameroom has a recapped monitor, except for the couple that just didn't need it.

All of this stuff is available for sale if the price is right (although the price would have to be very right for my favorites).

Not pictured are the project games that aren't in my gameroom, those are; Space Invaders Deluxe (empty cabinet), TMNT 4 Player, Midnight Marauders (empty cabinet), Pole Position II, Missile Command cocktail, Demo Derby Island, Sarge Island, Space Firebird Cocktail, Moon Base cocktail. Head On and Hustle.


Cabal restoration project and Robotron jRok Multiwilliams project. I have everything to finish the Cabal (including NOS sideart). I don't have any of the art bits for the multiwilliams yet, although I do have the jRok board and I have drilled the panel.


Fisherman's Bait is running the Fisherman's Bait 2 software. This only recently made it into the gameroom from storage, I have only played it a couple times. The other one is the very rare dedicated Samurai Shodown II Neo Geo cabinet. It is currently running a 161 game multicart, however the original Samurai Shodown II cart is sitting inside the machine (the multicart has it on there anyway).


City Connection. This is a conversion in what was originally a Sega vector cabinet. It is the only known City Connection machine known to exist (the boards are out there but are super rare). I plan on adding control panel overlay and sideart later.  Back in the corner with spare monitors on top is a Pole Position cockpit. This is fulling working 100 percent and has had all the power modifications done to it. I also have 7 parts boardsets, so I should be able to keep it going for a while. It still needs some cosmetic restoration work. Next in line is Midway Clowns. This works 100 percent, but needs a lot of restoration work. The only thing I did to it since I got it was to get the boardset working and repair the monitor. Then we come to Capcom Bowling. This is in a Dynamo Z-Back cabinet. It has a recapped Happ monitor, and a rebuilt trackball. I have NOS sideart for it, but I have not applied it. This machine could also still use some cosmetic work.


My main mame cabinet made from all new components (other than the coin door) D9200 monitor (in a TV case, long story), Happ P360s with Robotron handles for player 1, player 2 gets supers, happ trackball, some sort of spinner and an ergo button layout that I hate. I was not the original builder of this cabinet, but I did rewire it, install the monitor, PC and coin door and change out all the controls. It features a lot of those "Mame cabinet mistakes" that I always try to discourage people from making. Next in line is Robotron Plus, which is a complete restore/conversion installed in one of the cabinets Stern had left over when they closed their video division. It is powered by a 19 in 1 Jamma board with some titles turned off.


Greyhound's Video Trivia. This is in a Nichibutsu Crazy Climber Deluxe cabinet (unfortunately the parts to unconvert it are evenly split between terribly expensive and completely unavailable). I have two motherboards for this and 3 or 4 sets of the rom cards that hold the questions. This has been surprisingly popular at parties. Next in line is a Die Hard. I removed (but kept) the marquee box in order to fit it where it is located right now. My Die Hard motherboard gives a cart error so right now I rotate jamma boards in it. At the moment it has a Neo Geo motherboard with a Cyber Lip cart.


Here it is, William's first game, way before Defender and less common than Splat! it is Pro Tennis. This works but could use new pots in the controls and the TV set could use servicing (has a significant warmup time and the vertical hold usually has to be adjusted anew each time it warms up). I have slowly been working on the restoration of this when I get bored. Slightly visible off to the right is my test bench/big mess that exploded.


Here we have a Jamma cabaret. This plays, but it isn't quite finished as it needs an overlay, bezel art and a speaker grill. It has Break Thru installed. Next in line is a scratch built 60 in 1 cabaret designed with a low panel for sit down play. It still needs an overlay and a below the panel marquee. That little lion thing is just a wooden toy that happens to be sitting there, it isn't part of the machine.


Here is Cinematronic's Naughty Boy.


Tron cabaret with an incorrect marquee and dust all over it along with Double Up, a 1981 poker machine.

[brad808]

Awesome man thanks for the pics. Quite the collection you have there. I just like cab porn is all.

Robotron plus? First time I've seen that. Just a custom marquee with more games?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[tightwad]

Getting off topic but what are the classic errors in the MAME machine that you warn against?

[yotsuya]

Getting off topic but what are the classic errors in the MAME machine that you warn against?

I bet his joysticks are angled!!! 

[paigeoliver]

Too many controls, curved button layout and the multiple front bump ins that make the coin door impossible to reach and make it a possible flip over hazard.

Getting off topic but what are the classic errors in the MAME machine that you warn against?

[paigeoliver]

All the art on that is custom, marquee, overlay, bezel, and sideart. The artwork steals from the upright, cabaret and cocktail versions, and all is customized to fit this particular cabinet and the red color I painted it.

Yes, Robotron Plus just means it has Robotron PLUS More Games.

Same reason my old Pac-Man mame cabinet that I sold years ago had a Pac-Man Plus marquee.

Awesome man thanks for the pics. Quite the collection you have there. I just like cab porn is all.

Robotron plus? First time I've seen that. Just a custom marquee with more games?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[tightwad]

Too many controls, curved button layout and the multiple front bump ins that make the coin door impossible to reach and make it a possible flip over hazard.

Getting off topic but what are the classic errors in the MAME machine that you warn against?

Thanks....I hadn't thought it had too many buttons although I don't play any games needing 7...

Why don't you like the curved layout of the buttons?  This seems fairly standard in builds I see and in original games as well.

[paigeoliver]

It is easy to get lost on the curved button layout particularly when you have to press a rarely pressed button (like hyperspace or shields) with little time to think about it.

Too many controls, curved button layout and the multiple front bump ins that make the coin door impossible to reach and make it a possible flip over hazard.

Getting off topic but what are the classic errors in the MAME machine that you warn against?

Thanks....I hadn't thought it had too many buttons although I don't play any games needing 7...

Why don't you like the curved layout of the buttons?  This seems fairly standard in builds I see and in original games as well.

[yotsuya]

It is easy to get lost on the curved button layout particularly when you have to press a rarely pressed button (like hyperspace or shields) with little time to think about it.

I'd respectfully disagree. I didn't discover the curved layout until a few years ago, but I find it to feel more natural. Then again, mine isn't as curved as yours appears to be, so that might be the issue...

[paigeoliver]

I don't really have much of a problem playing Streetfighter or Mortal Kombat on it (although I still find the straight layout a little easier), it is just when I am playing a game with a seldom used  button that I always get lost and can't find the thing. That never used to happen when I had the straight layout.

Because of this you will find my machine often has some odd control mappings, like in Asteroids I have fire, thrust and then 5 hyperspace buttons.

It is easy to get lost on the curved button layout particularly when you have to press a rarely pressed button (like hyperspace or shields) with little time to think about it.

I'd respectfully disagree. I didn't discover the curved layout until a few years ago, but I find it to feel more natural. Then again, mine isn't as curved as yours appears to be, so that might be the issue...