Donkey Kong Jr Cabinet question

[Gamecab]

Hi All,

Recently I picked up a Donkey Kong Jr cabinet for $150 from a guy who was selling it on ebay, and happened to be local.  The only thing that was wrong with the cabinet was the fact that the monitor did not work, but a new fuse and 35 cents later I had a working game.  Now, I really want to restore the cabinet.

The cabinet has a lot of spots that appear to be chipped but this is not a laminate that I have ever seen before.  This laminate is paper thin and is glued to the plywood.  Would anyone know what the nintendo cabinets (Donkey Kong and Jr) were laminated with? and could anyone suggest a replacement for it?

Thanks
Charlie  

[mp2526]

I have a Donkey Kong cabinet and I would like to know the answer to this as well.  From what I have gathered from searching on the web is that most people sand and then paint over the existing laminate.  I don't know myself how well this looks or how well it will hold up.

[paigeoliver]

repainted Nintendo cabinets come out just fine, search around and I am sure you will find a website with 700 pictures of someone painting one.

[spidermonkey]

Weren't Nintendo cabs covered in melemine ? Nintendo had a reputation for cutting corners in the construction of their cabs.  Melemine is alot cheaper then say a formica style laminate. They also stapled their cabinets together rather then using screws or nails. I'm not sure if they were made with MDF,partical or wafer/chip board but I know that they used 5/8" panels instead of the industry standard of 3/4". The bottom line... whatever they used to cover their cabs you can bet it was used because it cost less. Melemine is *very* thin stuff so I wouldn't be surprized if thats what you're dealing with. I could definately be wrong though.

[paigeoliver]

Nintendo cabs are plywood actually. MDF was NOT popular on original cabs. Most original cabs were particle board or plywood.

[tshizzle.com]

I had one, just sanded it on down, patched holes/cracks, primed it up.  Came out perfect

[mp2526]

repainted Nintendo cabinets come out just fine, search around and I am sure you will find a website with 700 pictures of someone painting one.

yep, just like I said, thats pretty much what I discovered when I searched.  But it was hard to tell how they really turned out with the pics that are out there and how well the paint held up (Not peeling off and what not)

[Gamecab]

I had one, just sanded it on down, patched holes/cracks, primed it up.  Came out perfect

Did you use an Oil or Latex based paint?  I'm going to get the color matched this weekend.

Thanks for your help
Charlie

[pcates]

I had one, just sanded it on down, patched holes/cracks, primed it up.  Came out perfect

Did you use an Oil or Latex based paint?  I'm going to get the color matched this weekend.

Thanks for your help
Charlie

I used the oil based paint for my Donkey Kong, and I can not tell the difference between the sides that were painted and the front which was not. Also, do not buy the cheapest one they have, it will be worth it to spend a few extra dollars and get the best paint they have.
Good luck...

[tshizzle.com]

Well I didnt need to color match it as I was just painting it black, but I used an oil-based primer and paint.