Arcade Collecting > Restorations & repair
Pac Man 'Mini' cab project.
Pacman83:
OK, time to bond the new base onto the cab.
I've used a high grade ply 'sandwich' of 2 sheets to allow for both strength and the inclusion later of either adjustable feet or castors.
The original base of the cab was pretty uneven in places, so I had to make sure that all 4 corners were level before the new base could be fitted. The cab would only rock like a table with a 'dodgy' leg.
This seems the best option for me. The thought of knocking the 'old' base out and putting a new one in, then fill in the bottom edges doesn't seem the best solution. This cab needed a new base to sit on, the old one was simply retired. I understand that it will be about 0.8" higher than before, but hey, it's close enough and way better than before. ;)
The base will be bolted in all 4 corners as well with large washers attached both sides. Countersunk as well. The base will be finished off before the filler is applied, probably slightly chamfered to the bottom and painted matt black.
Pilot holes were drilled to support the new base whilst the Evo Woodglue sets. This glue is just fantastic and is actually stronger that the wood itself. One has to be careful though. Once this stuff has set, forget about repositioning anything, so it's 'right first time'.
I decided to place it upright as there is over 40kg on the new base to set it completely flat. Next job ...... Woodfiller the rough edges and sort the hole out.
Pacman83:
The base is nearly sanded down completely now. The result has been positive I feel and it'll look so much better when the laminate is applied and the T mounding is sorted. The hole was finished with glass fibre and woodfilled to finish. The new base was then treated and hardener applied. It really is SO solid and probably stronger than new ! Don't forget though, the base is far from finished as the final smooth coat has to be applied once the remainder of the base coat is sanded with 1500 paper.
I did some work on the power board this afternoon. I used the rotten original one as a template for positioning the pilot holes. The 4 bolts used for grounding were drilled straight through and countersunk. I removed the surface rust from the transformers and the connections with the trusty Dremmel and polished what needed to be done. There are new zinc coated hex nuts throughout.
All of the contacts & solder has been cleaned using PCB Alchohol cleaner and they've come up well. The casings of the transformers were also given a coat of enamel spray.
Pacman83:
Used the afternoon to continue the prep work on the cab.
Just to think, there was a fist sized hole bottom right ! It has vanished and is lovely and smooth.
The base has had 4 coach bolts fitted and I fitted temporary feet until I sort some leg levellers in steel.
I have primed the 'worked' areas in grey, then in satin black.
The rough wood at the back of the cab surrounding the vents for the transformers has come up pretty good. Took ages to sand and prep though !
Even though some areas (such as the rear) aren't really visible, I wanted to make sure it was done as the rest of the cab has had a lot of attention to it. I also sprayed the interior with 'satin' spray and it looks new.
The top of the cab has come up like glass and I'm very pleased with it. also the speaker grille area looks as good. The preparation on this project really is everything. Well worth the effort.
This coming week the steel parts are off to the sandblaster & Powdercoaters, then to pick up the laminate for the sides and front ......
Spyridon:
This is impressive! Nice work.
Pacman83:
Next job that's now complete is the steel from the cab. :)
The huge majority of it was good for blasting, treating and powder coating but there were 2 pieces from the CP that were VERY bad. It was probably an option to get these re-manufactured, but I wanted to save every single original bit I could, so, it was going to be a lot of preparation with these. :dizzy:
The rust had eaten away in some areas so badly that the only option here was automotive steel 'filler' followed by the laborious task of using 4 grades (260,600,800,1250) of wet & dry on the complete CP and the 2 other rusty parts. The Powdercoaters let me know straight away that these 3 parts had to be done by hand. ;)
You'll see by the pictures the stages they went through. There were 3 coats of primer followed by 3 coats of 'matt' paint. The result has been good though. As a reminder to just how bad the CP was, look at the first posting ... ;)
The front artwork was supplied by Monkey online and his work (as mentioned here before) is simply superb ! He even sent me a spare !!
Next job, LAMINATING !!! :badmood:
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