Multi-Pac Project

[FrizzleFried]

A "non-working" Pac Man Plus was one of the 14 game lot I picked up a couple months ago. After determining the game was actually working (evidently the guy selling the machines didn't realize there is a power switch on the top of the cab) I decided to keep it and use the original boardset to run a Multi-Pac.

The first decision to make was what multi-kit to use. There are a few different Pac Man multi-kits out there. I was primarily interested in Pac Man, Ms. Pac Man and Pac Man Plus in both slow and fast mode... but the kit also had to save high scores. These parameters limited my options quite a bit and availability surely didn't help. I eventually managed to locate and purchase a Widel 96-in-1 multi-kit. I run the kit in "simple" mode which limits the games available to Pac Man, Ms. Pac Man, Pac Man Plus, Ms. Pac Man Plus (and it's fun too) both in slow and fast modes as well as a few other non-Pac games like Pengo, Eyes, Mr. TNT, etc. Please note that Super Pac Man isn't "really" Super Pac Man, but rather a doctored up version of Pac Man. The game play is quite a bit different. Also note that the Jr. Pac Man games listed for the kit are actually just Pac Man maze variations similar to Jr. Pac screens (but no scrolling at all... the hardware doesn't support it). One other thing that was a bit of a let-down for me regarding the kit is the fact that both SLOW and FAST mode games use the same high score list. I've decided to add an "F" next to each of my scores when I achieve them in FAST MODE... it's a weak "work-around" but it works for my personal scores. It would be nice for each mode to have it's own high score list OR have it automatically add a mark next to FAST MODE scores to differentiate them from NORMAL MODE scores. Overall however, the kit works great. Ms. Pac Man Plus rocks too...

The next thing I did was order parts. I needed new T-Molding, new buttons, a new centering grommet for the stick, black spray paint, a new marquee, a new control panel overlay, and a cap kit for the K4600 that came in the cab.

I also had to determine whether I was going to go "full restore" or just spiff the game up nicely, but keep the existing paint. The right side of the cab (while looking at it) was in pretty decent shape... about an 8.5/10, the front was about 8/10 but unfortunately the left side of the cab was weathered a bit. There was paint chipping (mostly black) and you could see the "grain" of the wood where strips of paint had come off. I'd give it a 6.5/10. After some consultation with the folks here at KLOV, I decided to keep the existing paint and try to touch it up a bit.

While I waited for parts I cleaned up the cabinet... it was a mess (as usual). Cleaning consisted of vacuuming, magic eraser, sweat, and cleaner. I determined that I was going to need to re-paint the monitor area black. I also determined that the marquee brackets needed repainting as did the coin door. One of the first things I did when I had the cabinet empty was to replace the metal feet with nylon feet. I then spent a couple hours restoring the paint as best as I could... overall the patch job looks decent enough... much better than the peeling paint and scrapes that is how it was originally.

When my parts arrived I replaced the almost yellow looking T-Molding with the proper semi-orangish T-molding. After removing the control panel and pulling the stick and buttons I re-painted the panel black (4 coats) and applied the new control panel overlay. All bolts got a sand-job to bring out the shine. I rebuilt the joystick by cleaning all the parts and replacing the rubber grommet with one I picked up from Bob Roberts. The difference is night and day. There was some rusting going on that got sanded down. The stick itself had a broken leaf that was replaced with leaf I picked up for one of my pins. The buttons weren't terrible, but since I already had some new white buttons, I installed them instead. I installed the Widel kit and made sure it worked... then rebuilt the monitor chassis. The screen is pretty damn burned but it's AMAZING how difficult it is to notice with the tinted plexi that a Pac Man cab uses. I had actually swapped out this monitor for a much less burned K4900 that I rebuilt, but the K4900 had some focus issues and this monitor looks damn good under plexi so I stuck with the K4600. The marquee was ordered from Mamemarquees.com... Scott busted this marquee out as well as my Capcom Multigame marquee and bezel and had them delivered in about a week and a half.

That's about it. Total time working on the cab is around 5 hours... I had to sneak 30 minutes here and 30 minutes there as my boy decided to make his grand entrance 4 weeks early. The game plays awesome and looks pretty damn good as well. I had intended to take photos of the process, but to be frank, with the limited time I had to work on it, I didn't want to waste the time taking photos. Suffice it to say the game looked like an on-route machine and had the dirt and grime to prove it. It now looks nice...i'd say 9/10 all thinks considered.

[Spyridon]

I like the marquee!

I went with the Mark Spaeth six-pac but don't like that it doesn't save high scores.  I really wish the one you have didn't use the same high scores for fast and slow.  That's the same issue I have with the Galaga enhancement kit.