Identify this Cab

[romperwomb]

I got a working Trivia Whiz game for Christmas from my girlfriend (what'd you get?  )

I'm not sure what this cab was originally and was wondering if anyone can I.D. it?

It's painted blue with no artwork on the sides and where the paint is chipped it's white. 



The CP is made from what seems to be a Bootleg Donkey Kong CP Plexi.  I can't find a real Donkey Kong CP that looks like this.  They just added button holes and put another layer of plexi with blue pinstriped art on top to cover the monkey.

[SirPeale]

Show the front.

[romperwomb]

Front with CP removed:

[ChadTower]

That's not a Donkey Kong / Nintendo style coin door.

[GGKoul]

Looks like an old Williams cab.

[ChadTower]

Looks like a Midway coin door to me.

[SirPeale]

Looks like an old Williams cab.

I was thinking the same thing, but the Midway coin door threw me.  Which one then, Defender?

[ChadTower]

[SirPeale]

Nope, the shape near the bottom is different.

[ChadTower]

The shape near the bottom of his also looks like it's been in three inches of water. 

[stevejt]

It looks like a Phoenix.  Except now that I look at mine the front is straight on a Phoenix.  Here is a pic of a white one from klov.

[RayB]

  Wow what a puzzler. It definitely has a classic "familiar" shape. The top is very much like Stern cabinets (Berzerk) but Stern did not use coin doors like that, and the bottoms of their cabs were different (not to mention, many had a front door for accessing the circuit board).

Next, the shape is VERY much like Sega/Gremlin games (Astro Blaster, Frogger, Digger, etc) http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=7583 but again, they didn't use that kind of coin door.

I wouldn't call that coin door a "Midway" coin door unless it actually has their logo plaque on it. Midway just used coin doors from a seperate supplier.

I'll tell you who did make that shape of cab with that kind of coin door though... A little company that used to operate up here in Ottawa making generics.

Does the marquee have marquee brackets or is it fitted into "slots" in the wood?

~Ray B.

[paigeoliver]

SOmetimes coin doors get swapped around, it isn't COMMON, but it does happen.

[romperwomb]

Insert Quote
The shape near the bottom of his also looks like it's been in three inches of water.

Yes there does seem to be some water damage.  Anyone have pointers/site/thread on working with water damaged wood?  It looks worse in the pic then in real life...course once I start working with it, it might just turn to mummy dust...

It looks like a Phoenix. Except now that I look at mine the front is straight on a Phoenix. Here is a pic of a white one from klov.

Your right, it does look alot like Phoenix or maybe another Centuri cab.

Does the marquee have marquee brackets or is it fitted into "slots" in the wood?

It uses brackets.  I have yet to remove the marquee to see if it has slots...

[SirPeale]

I wouldn't call that coin door a "Midway" coin door unless it actually has their logo plaque on it. Midway just used coin doors from a seperate supplier.

It's the same style.  The picture isn't that great, it could have been painted over, or completely removed altogether.

[romperwomb]

I wouldn't call that coin door a "Midway" coin door unless it actually has their logo plaque on it. Midway just used coin doors from a seperate supplier.

It's the same style.  The picture isn't that great, it could have been painted over, or completely removed altogether.

A closer look at the coin door:



I'd suspect that if it is a midway door the logo was painted over.

Here is a cut-away of a Centari cab.  Close, but not the same angle and bottom.

[paigeoliver]

There are A TON of tiny variations on that cabinet. Much like the Midway cabinets. They all LOOK similar and the parts all swap, but there are definite differences between titles.

Nothing that came in the cabinet makes financial sense to restore from a painted over empty, so do with it what you like.

[romperwomb]

There are A TON of tiny variations on that cabinet. Much like the Midway cabinets. They all LOOK similar and the parts all swap, but there are definite differences between titles.

Nothing that came in the cabinet makes financial sense to restore from a painted over empty, so do with it what you like.

Permission given to MAME!  SIR, YES SIR!

Parting Shot:


Still, any pointers in regards to the water damage?

[paigeoliver]

I did one just like that, same damage even. It was a Super Moon Cresta.

I used wood filler, corner protectors and angle iron on the bottom. Painted the cab black, put colored T-Molding on it and it ended up looking like a million bucks.

[rob1234]

It may be a carnival cab.

http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=C&game_id=7286

[RayB]

It's not a Midway coin door. It's the same door manufacturer though. Midway logo plaques are made of metal and are "bolted" on. If it was painted over, you'd see a black rectangle. If it was removed, you'd see two small holes where it used to be.

By the way, were there any "hints" to the cab's origin inside? Stickers? (check bottom of cab, sometimes with age stickers dry up and fall off...). My cab (which looks like yours but is wood-grain) had a "made in canada" sticker as well as a manufacturer sticker for some company in Ottawa, Canada. The monitor, oddly enough , has Williams stickers on it.

Anyways...... As stated already, seems safe to MAME.

OH, ps: Is the control panel hinged with a piano hinge on the front? Is it wood or metal?

[ChadTower]

It's not a Midway coin door. It's the same door manufacturer though. Midway logo plaques are made of metal and are "bolted" on. If it was painted over, you'd see a black rectangle. If it was removed, you'd see two small holes where it used to be.

Those plates could easily be removed and the holes filled... though that seems pretty unlikely here.

By the way, were there any "hints" to the cab's origin inside? Stickers? (check bottom of cab, sometimes with age stickers dry up and fall off...). My cab (which looks like yours but is wood-grain) had a "made in canada" sticker as well as a manufacturer sticker for some company in Ottawa, Canada. The monitor, oddly enough , has Williams stickers on it.

I believe he has said he doesn't have physical access to the cab yet... just the pics.

[SirPeale]

It's not a Midway coin door. It's the same door manufacturer though. Midway logo plaques are made of metal and are "bolted" on. If it was painted over, you'd see a black rectangle. If it was removed, you'd see two small holes where it used to be.

Look closer, web-head!  If you note the area where the logo should be, you'll see the area is slightly shinier, and what appears to be six holes in a pattern.

[romperwomb]

By the way, were there any "hints" to the cab's origin inside? Stickers? (check bottom of cab, sometimes with age stickers dry up and fall off...). My cab (which looks like yours but is wood-grain) had a "made in canada" sticker as well as a manufacturer sticker for some company in Ottawa, Canada. The monitor, oddly enough , has Williams stickers on it.

Anyways...... As stated already, seems safe to MAME.

OH, ps: Is the control panel hinged with a piano hinge on the front? Is it wood or metal?

I haven't seen any stickers on the inside or bottom.  It does seem to have a wiring harness that's clipped and dangling.  The monitor is labled Kaga/TSK - which a google turns up that "Kaga/TSK monitors were in reality a NANAO". 

The CP is all plexi, held on by bolts and wing-nuts.  It's a real hack job of using that DK CP with the 2nd plexi held together with something sticky.

Look closer, web-head! If you note the area where the logo should be, you'll see the area is slightly shinier, and what appears to be six holes in a pattern.

I think that may be a trick of the camera glare.  I've looked quite close and don't see this area.  Where exactly is the Midway plate on these doors?  I can't seem to find an example on the web.  Pic anyone?

[SirPeale]

Pic anyone?

[romperwomb]

I've striped a bit of the conversion paint off and it appears this cab was some form of Donkey Kong bootleg. 

Here is a thread I started in the artwork forum with picture.

Was it a Crazy Kong, Monkey Donkey, Congobongo or just a weird cab for a real DK board?  Anyone?

[Crowquill]

Obviously this has been sitting idle for a while, but that cabinet appears to be identical to the one I have. Unfortunately, it's sitting at my parents' house 200 miles away right now, but comparing yours to some pictures I took a while back it looks identical with a few exceptions:

1. Mine has woodgrain laminate sides making it look almost exactly like an early Sega cab (like Frogger and Carnival). I'm guessing that it's a copy of the Sega cabs with the exception of the monitor mount being more vertical. The Monitor sits flush with the plexi on the front.

2. My control panel is metal, but the overlay and marquee are DK themed too with "Crazy Kong" stuck on the marquee in cheap vinyl stick-on letters. The artwork's much more crude than yours.

3. different coin door. Mine has the standard lit "push to reject" coin slots. The dimensions look to be about the same though.

I wish mine actually had Crazy Kong in it. It has a working "Donkey King Junior" board. That's not a typo -- just a bootleg. 

I figure that it's a good generic shape that will work well for a MAME cab. I just wish my control panel was wider than 24".