Wizard of Wor Restoration

[FrizzleFried]

Next up for restoration: Wizard of Wor

Here's the subject:



Not a terrible start by any stretch. The cab itself is pretty darned solid so there will be no major repairs needed. 

I've already sourced a group of "untested" boardsets.  I have 3 coming.  I figure my chances are pretty good to get a working set out of a total of 4 "untested" sets.  I may get lucky and get two working sets.   I estimate I'll get these by this time next week.  For now,  the game actually fires up... you can see the star field... all voices work as normal... it will coin up and the game will play (you can hear it play)... but there are no sprites nor is maze on screen... just varying vertical lines.

As for the physical restore... I've purchased 20' of "leather" t-molding from www.t-molding.com ... I've ordered a new set of side art from www.phoenixarcade.com ... I already have a cap kit for the WG monitor.  I am trying to decide on if I am going to get a repro CPO as the one on it is in 8/10 condition at least.  I may just tape it up like I plan on taping up the front screened art on the control panel then repaint the rest black.

I have a few questions... both about paint.

(A) Does anyone have a paint code and/or name that matches WoW's off-white color?

(B) Does anyone have a paint code and/or name that matches WoW's blue specking (not nearly as important as the off-white color)?

(C) For the CPO... flat black,  semi-gloss,  satin,  gloss, or what?

[whammoed]

Is 20' of t-molding enough?  I just used 2x20' pieces on my spy hunter with very little leftover (I did route and put it along  the entire bottom though)

[FrizzleFried]

20' is plenty for most cabs... as most cabs don't have t-molding along the back and bottom.  I did actually order 40'....just because I refuse to pay more for shipping than the actual product.

[whammoed]

20' is plenty for most cabs... as most cabs don't have t-molding along the back and bottom.  I did actually order 40'....just because I refuse to pay more for shipping than the actual product.

Ah, looked like it was along the back of that one...guess not.  I would be tempted to route and run it along the back and bottom though.  Seems to offer more protection against dings and chips.

[IG-88]

I just love that game. Nice score  Any chance of you getting the measurements sent over to jakobud so maybe someone could build a repo?  I guess he's back and wanting to get some more plans together.

If it's any help, I overheard a guy talking at one of the home improvement stores a while back saying that they had a handheld gun that they could walk up to an item that was too large to carry in and get a "scan" so as too match up the paint. Never seen it happen tho.

[Ninten-doh]

I am trying to decide on if I am going to get a repro CPO as the one on it is in 8/10 condition at least.  I may just tape it up like I plan on taping up the front screened art on the control panel then repaint the rest black.

The only problem I can see with that is once the rest of the cab is a 10, that cpo grade of 8/10 might go south.  I hate when that happens with a resto, but it always does.

Looking forward to following this one.   

[Level42]

That is SO true. When you fix one bad part, the "not so bad" part that was "hidden" by the bad part directly shows and annoys
Welcome to the wonderful hobby of restoration.

[Superully]

I have a few questions... both about paint.
(A) Does anyone have a paint code and/or name that matches WoW's off-white color?
(B) Does anyone have a paint code and/or name that matches WoW's blue specking (not nearly as important as the off-white color)?

hi frizzle!
i don't have a paint code for the off-white, i took the control panel to a paint shop and had it color-matched. the white on my panel isn't as white as the paint on all the american cabs i've seen, so a color match was easy. have a look at my restoration thread over at bruno's
http://www.dragonslairfans.com/smfor/index.php?topic=900.0
as for the blue speckles: my cabinet didn't have those speckles at all, so i simply ignored them. to be honest, i think the cab looks better without!

[Level42]

It's very likely that they put a sticker with the paint code or percentages (and brand name) on the can of paint you got when you had it color matched. This is for any future orders so you don't have to bring in the sample every time.

Again, it's unlikely Frizz will have the same paint brand etc. over there. So I guess his best option is to do like you did

[Superully]

i do have a sticker on the can PLUS the color code is stored in the paint shop's computer, but there is no chance in hell that you're going to find the same german paint in the usa, so i would take my control panel to a shop and have it color matched, unless your panel is plain and simple white. i don't know why my panel is of such a different color, but the combination of panel and painted cabinet looks fabulous!

[FrizzleFried]

I took the control panel in to Home Depot and had the color matched from the "moon" in the art.   I've put a single coat of primer on and I've completed the first coat of paint.  I plan on going with 3 coats or when the paint runs out...whichever happens first (quart sized).

I will say this... the color DOES NOT match the back door... but it's close to the color I found under the side art.  That said... it is NOT 100% accurate... but I think it's going to look great none the less...

[FrizzleFried]

Alrighty... I've managed to just about complete this project.  When I initially fired up the WoW I got this screen:



The game "played" blind.  I could hear the sound effects,  I could hear the Wizard taunting me... but the graphics were jacked.  I was told it was likely either a RAM board (there are two) or the PATTERN board.  It took me purchasing 3 untested boardsets + my 1 semi-working boardset to put together a single working set.  Keep in mind there are seven boards to the set.  Come to find out it wasn't either of the RAM boards nor the PATTERN board.  It was the CPU board... I now also have a 2nd working set that only needs a single custom chip on the CPU board to be operational...

As for the cab itself... it needed a bit of work.  Nothing major as their was no structural issues... the first thing I did was remove the old side art.  This was accomplished rather easily using my nifty Harbor Freight decal remover (a heated razor blade)... it worked great!  You can see the strips where the side art came off "like butter".





Of course once the side art was off,  I had to sand down through the residual adhesive...





Once sanded,  I took the control panel down to Home Depot and had them color match the silk screened artwork on the front of it.  Luckily there was enough color in the "moon" on the front to get a good match.  I decided against adding the blue "speckle" paint for a number of reasons,  least of which is my lack of confidence in being able to do it correctly...   First I primed with a single coat of primer then I added 3 coats of paint.  Of course the old T-Molding was yanked prior (it used the leather pattern styled T-Molding) before priming and painting. 





I also used some black spray paint to repaint the inside "monitor" area of the cab.   Overall the paint job came out rather nice... I am very happy with it.

Next up was installing the side art.  I purchased side art from Phoenix Arcade.  As I was installing,  the side art seemed a lot less "tacky" than prior side art I'd installed before.  My fears were soon realized when I went out to the garage some 8 hours later to find BOTH sides had come unstuck... left was at about 40% and the right at about 60% unstuck.  After talking with Darren at Phoenix arcade I went back and really pushed down when I re-applied... pressure is the key it seems.  After spending a day going out there and going over the sides over and over again throughout the day,  it appears the artwork now wants to stay in place...





I then had some decisions to make regarding the control panel.  I knew I was going to have to mask off the front silk-screened artwork and paint around it,  but I had not decided on the actual CPO.  It seems the only place to get a Wizard of Wor CPO is through Arcadeshop.com and I am not a fan of arcadeshop.com at all and I refuse to spend a single dollar with them (this is the reason why I live with my Asteroids side art as well) so I decided to keep my current CPO which was in very good condition anyway.  That meant I had to mask it off as well.  Frankly,  the result came out MUCH better than I anticipated.  MUCH better...



Finally UPS delivered the "leather" style T-Molding I picked up from T-Molding.com... I think the T-Molding really finishes the game off nicely.  The monitor that was in it needs to be rebuilt but I had a spare WG K4900 sitting around that I dropped in.  The back door has about 4" of swelling at the bottom and as such has expanded a bit meaning I need to cut about 1/4" off the top or bottom to get the door to fit properly.  Here are some comparison "before and after" shots...








I am very pleased with the result of this restoration.  I am really enjoying the game.  I never played much back in the day,  but the voice alone makes the game worth every cent.

[Spyridon]

Man, you work fast.  Makes me wonder why it takes me a year to do a full restore?

Looks really good.  The control panel turned out nice.  Definitely don't need the repro overlay.  How noticeable is the break from new paint to old where you masked it off.  Not noticeable in the pictures but wondering what it looks like up close.

(I miss the blue specks)

[FrizzleFried]

Man, you work fast.  Makes me wonder why it takes me a year to do a full restore?

Looks really good.  The control panel turned out nice.  Definitely don't need the repro overlay.  How noticeable is the break from new paint to old where you masked it off.  Not noticeable in the pictures but wondering what it looks like up close.

(I miss the blue specks)

From 5 feet away you can't tell... up close you can see a line...faintly.  It matched up pretty darned well.  I'd even say up close in a dimly lit gameroom you'd be hard pressed to see the line even.   I also tried to blend the two paints where they meet using the "rub" method that many artists use...

I was too nervous to add the blue specks frankly.  I just KNEW I'd screw it up. 

[IG-88]

Very nice!! 

What was that nifty tool you were talking about that you got from harbor freight?

And because I value your opinion, what don't you like about arcadeshop.com? I had thought of making a purchase from them.

[ChadTower]

That's a good job.   


Looks like Frizz is good at staying on task all the way through completion.  That is not a skill I share.

[Level42]

That's a good job.  


Looks like Frizz is good at staying on task all the way through completion.  That is not a skill I share.

+1. On the other hand, I don't get so quickly bored by a cab either......  

It's a hobby and should stay like that, everyone has his own amount of time and approach. As soon as it starts to feel like work, the fun is gone IMHO

[FrizzleFried]

Very nice!! 

What was that nifty tool you were talking about that you got from harbor freight?

And because I value your opinion, what don't you like about arcadeshop.com? I had thought of making a purchase from them.

The tool is called a hot blade decal remover.  http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65057

They are cheap...and cheaply made...but work.  Just don't press down on them too hard... you really don't need to.