Both of those extremely nice for mostly original games. Very hard to find them in that condition! Nice job.
And I agree, what can you really do about lockdown holes? You'll never get the wood back, you have to fill them with a bolt or filler, or live with the holes.
Did you change the Missile Command button cones to black plastic, or the T-molding on your Punch Out? Is any of the art on that PO repro? I'm sure you're aware how unlike the original the metal cones and replacement t-molding is. It seems to me that either of those things are much more significant/noticeable than the finish on the bolt heads. But obviously, you have a thing for bluing, I think that's the bottom line here.
MaximRecoil as your username, does that suggest you have also been into a gun hobby at some point?
Wade
The T-molding is original on the SPO machine. It's in decent shape (some dings, but no tears or missing sections); and yeah, I know the reproduction Nintendo T-molding that's available is "off" compared to the original stuff, in various ways; and the lack of a perfect replacement T-molding option is another reason I don't want to restore the SPO machine.
The sideart is reproduction, but silk-screened. I didn't have a choice in that matter, as it had zero sideart when I got it, and NOS PO or SPO sideart is like hen's teeth.
Most everything is original on the Missile Command, including the sideart. I haven't changed the buttons or cones from what was there when I got it, and I don't know if they are original or not. The P1 & P2 button cones are short black plastic, and the fire button cones are short silver aluminum. I've been trying to find out exactly what type of cones are supposed to be on there, but I get varying answers depending on who I ask.
I'm not dead set against reproduction stuff, as long as it is a good match to the original (which includes using the original type of process to make it, e.g., screen printing rather than inkjet for sideart); but original stuff in nice shape, and of course NOS stuff, trumps even the best reproductions IMO.
I have two problems with painted carriage bolts. One is the lack of originality; and the other is that I just don't like the way they look (or the way they handle wear and tear). I can tell they are painted, and black bolts are supposed to be blued (black oxide), or in some cases, black phosphate. No bolt manufacturer that I know of offers paint as a finish. That's what people do at home; not what bolt factories do.
"MaximRecoil" is a reference to Hiram Maxim, who invented the recoil-operated machine gun, and was from my father's hometown (about a 15 minute's drive from where I live). I've been in the gun hobby, to varying degrees, for most of my life.