MK Cabinet

[HaRuMaN]

Is a MK cabinet with working 25 inch monitor but without the actual game boards worth $100?

If I got it, I wouldn't restore it, just MAME the hell out of it...    

[DarkKobold]

If the 25" monitor works, it is a steal and a half. I can't find a 25er for that cheap. Anywhere.

[HaRuMaN]

Cool...  that's what I was thinking.  I think I'll have to go check it out then.

[pointdablame]

I spent 100 on my MK cab with a working monitor. It had a Tekken boardset in it also (tekken 3 i think?)  The cab needs a bit of repair, but it works and I can't wait to get enough time to work on it.

If its in any kind of decent shape, I'd get it.  It's a hell of a deal.

[Goz]

The key would be if the monitor worked or if the cabinet style is exactly what you want.

MK cabs are pretty nice especially from the standpoint that if you aren't going to use the origal CP, that there typically wouldnt be any cuts involved in using a custom CP in a box.

[Howard_Casto]

Is a MK cabinet with working 25 inch monitor but without the actual game boards worth $100?

If I got it, I wouldn't restore it, just MAME the hell out of it...    

Don't ever ask for help form me then.  Or look at me.  Or think of looking at me.  Or come near me ect....

If it's a real mk1 cab with the dedicated sideart then it's extremely
valuable to mortal kombat collectors as it was the cab most often butchered into an mk2 cab.


So before you mame that cab, think about what Arcade Jesus would do.  Arcade Jesus mamed for our arcade sins so that we wouldn't have to.    


(Note:  Anyone offended by that last comment lacks a sense of humor and should lighten up. )

[SirPeale]

If it's a real mk1 cab with the dedicated sideart then it's extremely valuable to mortal kombat collectors as it was the cab most often butchered into an mk2 cab.

He's right.  But if it's not a dedicated (say, a Dynamo) go to town.

[Sephroth57]

definately a great buy if the monitor works, also dont listen to these "purists", MAME the hell out of it. unless its like a pacman or some super rare classic who cares its a wooden box =P  the way i see it, unless they have something they want to give you in trade for it then they have no place to tell you not to do anything.

also this isnt directly targeted at the people who replied in this post, they were both non agressive in their opinions. I just hate people who are like threatening you to not do what you want with your own property.

[SirPeale]

I'd rather see him MAME a PacMan.  There are thousands of them.  MK, OTOH, not so much.

If it was a dedicated one (which I'm fairly sure it's not, they are quite rare) he could sell it @ profit, and buy a generic 25" cab.

[pointdablame]

There's a great argument for restoring cabs though, so don't just say MAME away.  Like any other hobby, a lot of people like to have something the same way it was when they first saw it, or how it was originally meant to be.

MAME it if you want, but also consider it may be rare or worth a lot to someone. Plus, its not that hard to build your own cab if you just wanna put a huge CP and a weird design together.  

I'll be MAME'ing my Xmen cab, but I'll also be repairing the sideart, etc so that it looks just like it would have originally. So you can MAME without destroying, remember that.

[Sephroth57]

its actually not that easy to build your own cab, especially if you dont have the tools required. if you buy them thats more money youre spending, if you use tools that are ok but not what you should use it takes more time and makes it harder. and some people just arent good with wood working. really the time/effort used to build your own cab i think is worth 50$ to pick up a empty cab, plus sometimes you get a monitor that works.

[paigeoliver]

Dedicated MK1 cabinets are pretty rare, chances are really good that it is a conversion based on several things.

#1. This cabinet was usually converted, often multiple times.

#2. Being sold without the PCB. You are only going to get a cabinet minus PCB from either a collector or someone in the coin op industry. Home buyers don't take parts out before they sell them. If it was a dedicated cabinet, then the owner would likely just buy a boardset so he could get $400 for it instead of $100. Also related is buying a stripped cabinet. The only people who totally strip games are big time collectors and coin op industry guys. If they (who do this all day long, or do it for a living), didn't think the game was worth restoring when it was mostly complete, then it certainly isn't worth restoring now.

#3. Mortal Kombats, Street Fighters, and Tekkens are all often referred to by the name without the number by sellers. The mainstream collecting world (which is the main market for resellers of this stuff) doesn't care too much about these games, and thus the sellers don't tend to be as meticulous about them as they are early 80s games. So it may very well be a 2, 3, 4, or might not even be a Mortal Kombat in the first place.

#4. The size of the monitor doesn't really say much of anything when it comes to big name 90s games. Most classic cabinets will actually take a 25" monitor, and big conversion money earners like Mortal Kombat and Streetfighter would often get larger replacement monitors put in their old worn out cabinets.

Unfortunately the game PROBABLY also has a dead monitor for one good reason. If it had a working one the seller could pop in ANY Jamma board and sell the game for $200-250 EASY, or pop in the correct one and get $400. And anyone who would own a game that didn't have a board in it would know this.