Mauzy's DK3 restoration. *Staying DK3, now with coin door*

[Mauzy]

So after some wheelin' and dealin', I bought this Donkey Kong 3 cab for $100. Didn't even see it until I picked it up and oh boy! Its got all original wiring, joystick, buttons, monitor, and coin door. The coin door even still has the duct tape blocking the "straw trick" on the hinges!

The GOOD!

I bought it with the understanding the the monitor had been screwed up in a botched attempt at a cap kit. The guy capped it, then it stopped working. I brought it home, fired it up and saw some pretty color streaks. Looked at the FULL adjustment sheets still stapled to the back door to locate the horizontal hold and brought the monitor to a nice crisp picture. Guess the cap kit wasn't really botched.

Also, the controls are all original (original DK colored buttons!!) and work great. Need new switch leafs for the joystick, but great otherwise.

All of the wiring is stock 2 board Donkey Kong and nicely in place.


The BAD

No sound, probably an audio cap kit in need.

Bezel and marquee brackets rusty as well as the coin door.

Coin door is a little bent (READ ON)


The UGLY

Theres a corner missing with foot tall split up the side.

No base.

Hand size hole next to coin door under plate next to coin door. I figure the machine was broken into.



QUESTIONS!!

What type of bondo should I be using?
How should I go about fixing that hole? Its way bigger on the inside than it is on the inside. Wood patch first?


Without further ado, PICS!!










I'm gonna need A LOT of bondo...

[RayB]

Wow, the lengths some people go to to steal a few quarters. 

[WunderCade]

Mauzy

Are you gonna get rid of that DK3 stuff? I've all the DK stuff for your cab except I do not have the 2 board pcb, mine is 4 board.

[RetroACTIVE]

Don't use wood filler.  Stick with straight up bondo body filler.  Screw a piece of plexiglass on the outside and lay the cab on it's front filling it from the back, slowly filling the whole building it up.  You may add some fiberglass tape (on the inside) to add some structural support. When it's cured, remove the plexi and do a quick touch up on the front.

[Mauzy]

Mauzy

Are you gonna get rid of that DK3 stuff? I've all the DK stuff for your cab except I do not have the 2 board pcb, mine is 4 board.

Well, I'm planning on keeping the DK3 stuff for a future project. I'm hoping to have a cab for DK, DKjr, and DK3 (yes I know, I could do it all on one...). If you're getting rid of the DK stuff anyway shoot me a PM. This cab will be original DK.

Don't use wood filler.  Stick with straight up bondo body filler.  Screw a piece of plexiglass on the outside and lay the cab on it's front filling it from the back, slowly filling the whole building it up.  You may add some fiberglass tape (on the inside) to add some structural support. When it's cured, remove the plexi and do a quick touch up on the front.

Thats what I was kinda thinking, though the fiberglass tape is something I hadn't thought of. Sounds like the same process as repairing a fender on a vehicle. Would I use the same kind of bondo? I have a big can of Bondo body filler that seems to be made for use with a vehicle. Is that the same stuff you're talking about? I've never used Bondo so I plan on practicing on a smaller broken corner in the back.

[orion]

Mauzy

Are you gonna get rid of that DK3 stuff? I've all the DK stuff for your cab except I do not have the 2 board pcb, mine is 4 board.

Well, I'm planning on keeping the DK3 stuff for a future project. I'm hoping to have a cab for DK, DKjr, and DK3 (yes I know, I could do it all on one...). If you're getting rid of the DK stuff anyway shoot me a PM. This cab will be original DK.

Don't use wood filler.  Stick with straight up bondo body filler.  Screw a piece of plexiglass on the outside and lay the cab on it's front filling it from the back, slowly filling the whole building it up.  You may add some fiberglass tape (on the inside) to add some structural support. When it's cured, remove the plexi and do a quick touch up on the front.

Thats what I was kinda thinking, though the fiberglass tape is something I hadn't thought of. Sounds like the same process as repairing a fender on a vehicle. Would I use the same kind of bondo? I have a big can of Bondo body filler that seems to be made for use with a vehicle. Is that the same stuff you're talking about? I've never used Bondo so I plan on practicing on a smaller broken corner in the back.

Yes, it's the same Bondo for use on a vehicle. You can probably repair the damage on the side of the cab with it, but it will be a job to repair that fist sized hole with it. I seriously doubt it would hold up very well on that, there is only so far you can go with bondo. Seems to me the easiest thing to do with that section would be to simply replace that entire panel with new wood. You have the old piece you can use as a template, simply route a new one using a flush bit. The other option is to cut out the bad section around the hole and make a patch out of some new wood, then use the bondo to blend the old wood with the new... kinda like how you patch holes in drywall. Hope this helps.

[Mauzy]

That would work as well. I was also thinking of bondo-ing the hole, sanding it flush on the inside, and putting a wood support plate behind it that was screwed into the existing wood and glued to the area I used the bondo on.

Although, cutting a new front panel would be the easiest solution and it would give me a reason to get my dad's router and table out of the shed... hmm...

[orion]

That would work as well. I was also thinking of bondo-ing the hole, sanding it flush on the inside, and putting a wood support plate behind it that was screwed into the existing wood and glued to the area I used the bondo on.

Although, cutting a new front panel would be the easiest solution and it would give me a reason to get my dad's router and table out of the shed... hmm...

Yes if your going to use bondo like that you will certanly need to use some backing behind it, a thin piece of luan or some hardboard would work. I can tell you though that bondo can be a bit of a pain to work with, you only have a short amount of time to work it, and then it can be a bear to sand perfectly smooth. Plus you would really want to do that outside, that stuff really gives me headaches, as it smells so bad (though that could just be me). It would be a lot quicker, easier and you will get a better result if you just make a new piece, I think you would be happier in the end doing it that way.

[Mauzy]

How hard is it to remove the front panel? Is it just a matter of cutting it out of the cab?

[BUCKETHEAD]

Maybe, My project can help you a little?

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=79183.msg828059#msg828059

[RetroACTIVE]

Mauzy

Are you gonna get rid of that DK3 stuff? I've all the DK stuff for your cab except I do not have the 2 board pcb, mine is 4 board.

Well, I'm planning on keeping the DK3 stuff for a future project. I'm hoping to have a cab for DK, DKjr, and DK3 (yes I know, I could do it all on one...). If you're getting rid of the DK stuff anyway shoot me a PM. This cab will be original DK.

Don't use wood filler.  Stick with straight up bondo body filler.  Screw a piece of plexiglass on the outside and lay the cab on it's front filling it from the back, slowly filling the whole building it up.  You may add some fiberglass tape (on the inside) to add some structural support. When it's cured, remove the plexi and do a quick touch up on the front.

Thats what I was kinda thinking, though the fiberglass tape is something I hadn't thought of. Sounds like the same process as repairing a fender on a vehicle. Would I use the same kind of bondo? I have a big can of Bondo body filler that seems to be made for use with a vehicle. Is that the same stuff you're talking about? I've never used Bondo so I plan on practicing on a smaller broken corner in the back.

Yes, it's the same Bondo for use on a vehicle. You can probably repair the damage on the side of the cab with it, but it will be a job to repair that fist sized hole with it. I seriously doubt it would hold up very well on that, there is only so far you can go with bondo. Seems to me the easiest thing to do with that section would be to simply replace that entire panel with new wood. You have the old piece you can use as a template, simply route a new one using a flush bit. The other option is to cut out the bad section around the hole and make a patch out of some new wood, then use the bondo to blend the old wood with the new... kinda like how you patch holes in drywall. Hope this helps.

I've replaced entire corners with bondo... Allthough that hole looks pretty big I think bondo will work fine.  Replacing the panel is tricky, you will have little to no luck finding proper plywood.  Also if the rest of the cab is well put together you may end up creating bunch of extra work for yourself getting it apart.

[Mauzy]

Other than the back bottom panel being held on by 6 drywall screws, the cab is pretty solid. I'm leaning toward cutting out the bad section and putting in a plywood patch, then smoothing it all out with a small amount of Bondo. I know there is no easy way to do this but having a hole such as that isn't really an option.

Maybe, My project can help you a little?

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=79183.msg828059#msg828059

How did you know how far out and how to shape those corners? Did you just eyeball it? The corner thats missing on mine has the opposite side corner in perfect shape. I was kind thinking of making a jig to try to get them as close to uniform as possible.

[RetroACTIVE]

I'm sorry you have a particle board cab.. not plywood as I previously stated.

[Mauzy]

I'm sorry you have a particle board cab.. not plywood as I previously stated.

Right. Do you think I should patch with particle board or plywood? Does it really make a difference?

[RetroACTIVE]

I'm sorry you have a particle board cab.. not plywood as I previously stated.

Right. Do you think I should patch with particle board or plywood? Does it really make a difference?

Doesn't particularly matter. I think you will be surprised at how well bondo sticks.  Just knock off the loose material to get a good bond and your good to go.  I still believe extra wood is not necessary, it won't hurt. You'll just have to be sure the extra material doesn't interfere with the coin door or coin box frame.

[Mauzy]

Ok then. Here's what I'll do: I'll give just bondo a try first. If something catastrophic happens or it doesn't look right, I'll cut it out and do a wood patch and such. I have a feeling Bondo would give a nicer finish without any obvious patch bulge if I do it right. Hopefully I can get the bulk of that done this week. The only reason I shy away from Bondo is because I've never used it. I will definitely look through a few other threads for tips.

[SirPeale]

If you want something for the Bondo to grab onto, here's what I'd do:

1) Cut even more of the hole out so the edges are flat.

2) Get some dowels.  Something pretty small, of course.

3) drill holes in the hole edge the size of the dowel.

4) insert dowels into holes.

5) Start with the Bondo. 

[BUCKETHEAD]

he corner thats missing on mine has the opposite side corner in perfect shape. I was kind thinking of making a jig to try to get them as close to uniform as possible.

That is Exactly what i did.  Also with My Galaga too. It was missing a corner.

So i traced the perfect side on a thin piece of cardboard, Cut it out and made a Jig.

Works great!

[Mauzy]

Forgot to add - fixed the sound a few hours after the initial post. Somewhere along the travels of this cabinet C377 on the audio amp went missing. Replaced it and it has great sound!

[Mauzy]

Over the past week, I got the hole and corner fixed (though through getting the pics for this post I realized I forgot to round off the corner...) and I hope that by this afternoon the cab will have at least the first coat of primer on it.

Now for something I don''t need now but will soon, I need to know how THICK the original Donkey Kong control panel is WITHOUT the overlay on it (i.e. just the wood.) as I will need to build one.

ALSO in gutting the cabinet to move everything heavy into the game room, i realized the monitor has some faint DK burn. It seems that this machine is completely original DK from the factory. Excellent.


Oh. Heres some before and after of the bondo procedure.

BEFORE:


AFTER:


BEFORE:


AFTER:


Most excellent.

[RayB]

According to the subject line, you're not keeping this a DK3?? Why not?

[Mauzy]

It's a Donkey Kong cabinet. TKG-UP according to the docs on the back door. I like DK3, so I'm keeping the guts in case I stumble upon another Nintendo cabinet or wire up a board switch, but I've always been a fan of the original DK.

I haven't started buying DK parts yet though, so it may end up staying a DK3 for a while. I'm not buying any art until I have a functional board.

[RetroACTIVE]

My plywood DK control panel is 19/32" without the overlay.

Bondo came out great!  Did you add any "structure" to the missing material...or did it work well without?

[Mauzy]

Bondo came out great!  Did you add any "structure" to the missing material...or did it work well without?

Thanks. On the coin door hole I did, but after the results I've seen from this I don't believe it was necessary:



For the corner, I put together a box out of plexi-glass:

[RetroACTIVE]

Looks good, those dowels certainly don't hurt

[Mauzy]

Looks good, those dowels certainly don't hurt

Very true. More than anything, they gave a little peace of mind. That was my very first time using bondo, the corner was second.

[Mauzy]

Went and had paint matched from a small chip I took out of the hole in the front. Came out PERFECT! For any restorers in the midwest, I got my paint at Menards. I used Pittsburgh Paints Interior Latex Semi Gloss Enamel. The code will be shown below in a picture.




BTW, a gallon is WAY too much paint... I could've gotten by with a little over a quart, but it was the same for the money and I may end up picking up another DK...

Two coats primer, two coats blue. light hand sand in between with Super fine foam rollers. Moved it back to the basement so I could park in the garage. This will be it's final spot here.


Still working on the coin door.

Also, a question for y'all. How does anyone restore a machine without a Midway cocktail cab to lay all of the small parts and tools on?

[javeryh]

Looks great!  How long did you wait in between coats?  Did you get all the painting done in one day?

Also, the picture is hard to read (for the paint codes). 

[Mauzy]

I waited 24 hours between coat with a large barn fan blowing on it for a few hours after each coat. For some reason I chose the few most humid days of the year so far.

Nice catch on the readability of that code. The pics are larger when they come off the camera. Here is what it says (just for reference)

For anyone who uses this in the future: keep in mind this is for a GALLON.

Colorant            OZ   48   96   192   384
B Lamp Blac        -      6      -       -       -
C Yellow Ox        -     16     -       -       -
E P Thalo B         5     8      -       -       -

DEP 41-316

Interior/latex/semi-gl

[javeryh]

Thanks for the codes.  I'll probably use them for mine.  Did you repaint the black on the interior?  I'm thinking about removing the front panel and speaker panel to paint everything.  I still have some more bondo to apply.  I had a ton of gouges and some holes along the back that were hard to repair.  Keep up the great work! 

[Mauzy]

Well, I had to repaint the black along the front panel. All I did for that was cover all the blue in plastic and spray painted the black part. From the control panel up and into the monitor area was in perfect condition. I just used a cheap can of gloss black spray paint from Wal Mart and you can't even see the seam. I didn't touch the back of the machine at all, though in all honesty I probably should have. The most I did back there was screw the back bottom panel back onto the machine.

Are you getting your paint at Menards or do you know of a place that can match that?

[javeryh]

I'm going to see if I can get it matched.  We don't have Menards on the East Coast as far as I know.  We do have places that carry Pittsburgh Paints though.

I also haven't done much to the back and top of the cabinet I have.  I'm thinking about priming and rolling on some black paint just to make it presentable even though no one will really ever see it.  I'd have to do some bondo in both areas though since the plywood is chipped to hell along the bottom.  Mine didn't come with a back door so I have to make that anyway.  The top is black but you can totally see the plywood underneath.  It's more work but in the end I'll be happier I think.   

Did yours come with a monitor?  Mine didn't and I'm not sure what to do about it.  I want something new (no burn in) but I'm worried about fitting something in there with a horizontal mount (turned vertical, of course). 

[Mauzy]

No, you guys don't have them over there. They seem to be a midwest chain.

Yeah, mine has the original Sanyo 20 EZ in it. it even has a little original Donkey Kong burn in it, but not enough to notice with the smoked plexi on it. Any 19 inch monitor with a color inverter (if you're using an original old Nintendo board) should work if you buy the mounting brackets off of MikesArcade. Space is defintely not an issue with these cabs [though].

The back bottom panel of mine is a mess. I don't know what happened to this machine, but that panel isn't in the greatest  shape. The top is fine minus one small chip. Not enough to mess with really. Its all structurally sound (now at least...) so I think I will keep it how it is as a reminder of the age and commercial use of this machine.

[RetroACTIVE]

Regarding replacement monitors.... Horizontal or shelf mount monitors generally don't work in Nintendo cabs when they are rotated 90 degrees as the frame protrudes out the back so the door will not fit. Also I'm not sure if even the mounting holes would line up with the Nintendo brackets.

If you want a new monitor, your best bet is to get an old ez frame and fit it with the new monitor's chassis and tube.  It's been done a few times here... Markvp an I did it on my DK2 project.   With mine I also needed to degaus it once it was rotated.

[Mauzy]

Regarding replacement monitors.... Horizontal or shelf mount monitors generally don't work in Nintendo cabs when they are rotated 90 degrees as the frame protrudes out the back so the door will not fit. Also I'm not sure if even the mounting holes would line up with the Nintendo brackets.

If you want a new monitor, your best bet is to get an old ez frame and fit it with the new monitor's chassis and tube.  It's been done a few times here... Markvp an I did it on my DK2 project.   With mine I also needed to degaus it once it was rotated.

Hmm. I can see now how that would be a problem. Nice catch.

[Mauzy]

Can someone tell me how tall the black base piece on a Donkey Kong is supposed to be?  I applied the T-Molding last week and I am STILL working on the coin door. After that and the base, I will be done with the cosmetic and structural restore of this cab.

[gatordad]

Can someone tell me how tall the black base piece on a Donkey Kong is supposed to be?  I applied the T-Molding last week and I am STILL working on the coin door. After that and the base, I will be done with the cosmetic and structural restore of this cab.

I'm not sure, neither one of my nintendo cabs has an origional base. but I think it's a 1 by 4 so technically 3/4 by 3 3/4.

[Mauzy]

I made an executive decision yesterday: this machine will stay Donkey Kong 3. Theres enough DKs in the world, this one can stay how it is.

Anyway, I finally finished the coin door. In doing so, I found that the mechs have conscutive serial numbers. I love finding little stuff like that.

Still need to put a lock on the coin door.