Space Invader Taito Table Top Restore Help Needed

[Darren01274]

Hi just got a 1979 Taito Space Invader Cocktail but I dont think the game board is space invaders it doesnt work at the min I have found
some Taito stickers with the following numbers but nothing comes up on google

It's got 3 boards the the middle one says Taito TVN00003 and the bottom Board says Taito TVN00002 Serial Number 680435

Any Ideas??

Cheers
Darren

[Darren01274]

Hi I have a cocktail cabinet I purchased of ebay, and the screen is garbled when I turn it on I get about 8 broken blocks on the screen 4 on the left
and 4 on the right. What does this mean apart from it not working I took a photo of the screen but I dont know how to upload it.

Does the broken blocks mean gameboard fault.

[saleem]

well space invaders uses a 3 board set if i aint mistaken.what you should do is go find the manual for the space invader cocktail table and look at the schems for the boards,it will tell you the part numbers/board numbers and if they are the same looks like you have space invader table top.

also this is restoration thread not one for asking technical questions if i aint mistaken.at least keep your questions to one thread instead of creating what looks like 2 already.

do a space invader table top restore and then ask there,also include as much info and pics as possible.all you do is upload to tinypic and copy the link and paste it into a post.

[Darren01274]

Hi I have this coming up on my Taito Space Invader Machine I have not decided whether to try restore it or gut it and clean it all up and fit a 60 in 1 jamma board in. I will post more pics later. I have checked and replaced all fuses.



Any thoughts on what is the fault? there is also no sound when you switch on the machine.

Chrome legs need sorting out full of rust and the metal base is also rusty. And the top is quite scratched and underlay needs replacing along with the Space Invader Game Cards. Yikes seem a lot of work lol.

[Darren01274]

Hi Saleem sorry very new here so not sure what to do. I tried to go into the posts to delete could not see how to do it so started a restore thread with the pic uploaded to tiny pic thanks for the help much appreciated!!!

[IG-88]

No help really, but you will probably have better luck getting some answers on the KLOV forums. I'd hate to see you gut it. Not a real fun game but a classic none the less. It will be a lot of work to restore but when you are done the satisfaction is well worth it!

Here is the linky:

http://forums.arcade-museum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9

These guys can sometimes be a little harsh/honest but you will find no better experts anywhere else IMO. Keep us posted on what you decide to do.

[Darren01274]

Hi thanks for the link however because I am a new member I can not post in the forum or something! grrrr very frustrating. Anyway back to the machine, any tips on how to clean all the game boards etc they are full of dust and a lot of dust and muck in the cabinet.

Also if somebody knows where the power supply is located could you point me in the right direction only had time for a quick look around today after picking it up but I only seemed to manage to find transformer and below that was a board with two 1.6amp fuses which was fine.


A photo below of some scratches and chrome legs what was chrome legs at least!

[rchadd]

yes it does sound like that.

a pic might help! (to upload click the "Addition Options" link when you create a message and browser the jpg you want to attach. if you want to attach more than one pic use the "more attachments" link)

what game pcb is it?

[rchadd]

putting in a 60 in 1 is pretty good/easy option as you can use a pc atx powersupply and a pc vga monitor, then rewire the controls to a jamma connector.

that monitor will be black and white and looks like the invaders board is not working anyway...

[Darren01274]

Could it be a Power Supply Fault?

[saleem]

you would have to get the manual for this cabinet.i told you before,to determine a lot of things you need the schems or are you a clued up person when it comes to arcade machines? cos something tells me you dont have much of a clue,not that i do myself.i have had to learn and have lots to learn as well.

to determine psu voltages you will need to know what they should be to start off with.so get the schems and learn to read them.you need the cabinet wiring diagrams,so you can determine the psu (power supply unit) the wires that connect and what current they should have.then its a case of multimetering the connections and see what readings you get.usualy it should be 5v at the connector,could be a 12v one also,so its a case of checking the psu is running correctly then determining that you get correct readings at the edge connector (thats what fits on the board) then checking ics for voltage.

so theres 3 things to check.

psu.
edge connector.
ics on the board/s.

[Darren01274]

Hi yes I have downloaded some but not sure if its space invaders 1 or 2 Taito. Taito 1 seems to fit but I thought that it didnt have overlay strips I thought that was invaders part 2. Will check the voltages tomorrow the cabinet is at my parents house the wife didnt want it in ours LOL.

What's the best and safest way to remove all the thick dust etc from the boards and inside cab, on the transformer etc.

[saleem]

space invaders part 2 is color so does not need a color overlay on the monitor.as it outputted color pic onto a color monitor.

use hoover and a soft paint brush to clean the boards up.remove the ics that are socketed and clean the sockets and the ics then put them back before moving onto the other.

your name has 01274 in it,you wouldnt be from bradford would you?

happens to be where i am from.

[rchadd]

check this out

looks the same!

http://www.dragonslairfans.com/smfor/index.php?topic=124.0

[rchadd]

everything si by the looks of it...

http://www.brentradio.com/SpaceInvaders.htm

[IG-88]

Never thought about the monitor being black and white. Not really a good use for a 60-1.

As for cleaning the boards, I'd throw them in the dishwasher before "hoovering" them. Static electricity and fragile, 30+yr old electronics don't mix.

The inside of that cab actually looks pretty good for as bad as the outside looks.

Not sure why you couldn't post on the KLOV forums, I see newbs on there all the time.

[Darren01274]

Hi Guys thanks for the replies. I never thought you could put all the boards in water thought it would ruin the roms etc. I think it's deff a Space Invaders 1 with the Colour strips just put over. The boards on that space invaders are slighlty different than mine also mine got 3 boards to it and does not have that power supply. If it had I have 2 working power supplys I could have just changed it over.

When I thought about making it into a  60 in 1 I was thinking of sticking an LCD in there like the ones on Flea Bay have. Also would have to change the joystick and add at least another button to the cabinet. I did not really want to go down that route it seems a shame to make an original cab into a 60 in 1

Hi Saleem yes I am from Bradford nice to meet somebody local on here. I really like this forum I spent ages looking through most of the restorations and projects last night that you guys have done on here well impressed.

If I get time today I am going to check them voltages and see what comes up. What's the best way to remove the ics that are socketed do they just pull out?

Fun Times lol. Also I have noticed the Coin Door and box missing and it still got the old 10p coin slot with numerous old 10p's in it.

[Darren01274]

Hi I have just tested the voltages to both the sound board and the bottom board. All the voltages are either very slightly under or over +12dc reads 12.6 and +5 reads 4.96 on meter? So power must be getting to the boards ok.

I have not yet took out the ICS and cleaned and replaced keep getting broke off at the min by the phone or the wife lol

[saleem]

the reading just being slightly under or slightly over would be acceptable.

go check an ic while the cab is powered up.the ones that have 74 at the start,could have letters before the 74 but,the number usualy starts with 74,you just need to put the multimeter probes on 1 leg in each corner,so one on the top left and one on the bottom right.see if you get reading from it.

[Darren01274]

Which board is that on?

[Darren01274]

Found them yes meter readings of them all?

[saleem]

then i seriously doubt its power related.

sometimes if you dont know what your doing its best to get them repaired by someone who does.
 

[Darren01274]

How much would new Space Invaders Boards be for this? and where could the boards be repaired and what would the aprox cost be. Is it worth repairing or just go with the 60 in 1 Jamma and LCD Screen?

[saleem]

noone can realy quote you the repair,its a case of haing someone look at them,if they know exactly what is wrong thenm they can quote you based on that,or it ends up being a case of,they fix one thing and find out the next thing in line needs repair/replace.so they bill you at the end.

as for replacement boards? you can only look around and shop,ebay,forums etc etc.

i mean,a 60in1 will cost you,the board,the wiring harness as its jamma.the lcd monitor and you will need a switching power supply i would think.i dont think the current transformer will do,unless i am wrong and it can be used.ontop of that,you will end up having to replace both sticks to 8 way ones and you will need idealy 3 buttons although you might get away with 2.

i might be able to help to a certain degree,as i have 2 magsticks and many buttons and microswitchs.if you went mame,i have a minipac and harness.

so if you need a couple of good sticks and buttons i got some for sale.

[Darren01274]

I set my other cocktail cabinet up for mame running mala frontend and the new version of mame it was the USA cocktail type. Would have kept that played really well but too big for house really. Was thinkng of making this one a mame but the 60 in 1 sounded less hassle also you can use ATX power supply with the 60 in 1 which I already have.

Bit gutted about not getting it to work -( lol

[Darren01274]

So if I go with either Mame or Multi Jamma Game Board what would you do with the rest of the cabinet. Should I get the legs re-chromed and sort out the top, the wood work and laminate is in pretty good knick apart from them scratches on one side.

I still need to sort out what to do about the coin door and need to change the locks which I already have and guess need to strip the cabinet inside bare and give it a good old clean years of dust in there!

[saleem]

sell the parts,there are many people out there that will bite your hand off to get that invader boardset.for them its just repair as it will cost them very little to get them running.then theres the harness but,just dont cut it,disconnect it at the connectors,then strip the rest down.

as for chroming.i was at cas coatings which is in eccleshill today as they shot blast my space zap's midway coin door,they do an equivelant to chroming,its a shiny silver coating.so perhaps they might be worth ringing,you can google them to get the number.they can also shot blast the legs beforehand.

like i say i got 2 magsticks,buttons and a minipac and harness,i even have a spintrak spinner.if someone offers me enough dosh they could persuade me to part with some bits.

[Darren01274]

Hi I noticed on the wiring diagram for the edge connectors it said The Power-On-Reset (top board pin 10) must be tied to earth or the game will not run! so I followed the wire all the way back to the power supply which amazingly dust free! and it went into a connector with some other leads. Anyway I decided to cut the wire and fastened it to the cab.

Now when I switch on the machine the screen is no longer garbled but I get a few thick horizontal lines on the monitor? what does this mean.

[SirPeale]

I merged all three of your threads (one project to a thread, please).  And please restore this!  60-in-1s are just not the same.

[Darren01274]

Hi I would love to restore it. But struggling at the minute not sure what else to try, apart from looking for new game boards and they seem non existent.

[rchadd]

if you want your invaders board tested and repaired have a word with andy

http://www.andysarcade.net/

maybe he can help or at leqast suggest somebody in the UK that can help you out

[rchadd]

well if you do resotore you could consider making an adaptor and use it to play 60 in 1 as well

thats what i am doing with my Galaxian - i am making 2 different control panels

[SirPeale]

The most important thing is to take your time.  If you try and rush things you'll F it up.  I speak from experience.

[Darren01274]

So what would you do with it? I contacted an arcade repair place who said they will look at it for £50 and then it may cost £200 plus if the boards can be fixed if it is a board issue. They said the machine would be worth about £500 when fully working.

[rchadd]

well andy had working space invaders boards for 80-125 quid

maybe he would make a part exchange deal for your non runner or have a go at repairing if for you at an hourly rate

give him a call

otherwise do some research online for si repair logs that report similar issue as you are seeing at the moment to give hints on where to start. does the si manuals have a troubleshooting guide?

issue with old boards will always where to get replacement chips...

sad fact is it could simplly be a matter of a short circuit or failed chip - finding the potential fault is the difficult bit

[Darren01274]

Hi where is Andy based and do you have a contact number. Also do you know anywhere to get a glass top made, the one on this one got scratches all over it.

[saleem]

why dont you contact him through his web site,he will let you know,after all you will need to send the boards to him.all i can tell you is he knows his s**t.you can get him through ebay as well,he sells board on there.

[Darren01274]

Cheers guys, is there a way of getting the scratches out of the glass or is it a new top.

[saleem]

have you tried google,i should think theres lots of tips and tricks to get rid of scratchs.trouble with a lot of table tops is they tend not to have the original glass and the replacement is or can be smaller but,getting a top cut shouldnt be a problem.

[Darren01274]

I had an idea that I would remove the glass and try strip off the paint from the underside and repaint the scratch side black. But getting the paint of might be hard work and probably easier just getting a new glass top cut lol.

[Darren01274]

Does anybody know where I can get the metal coin box with lock for this table?

[rchadd]

re finding parts to restore

you need to realize if you are going the restoration route you may not be able to locate every part you need immediately...

google search and locate traders
ebay set up searches for .co.uk  .com .de and .it sites
post message on the byoac and klov buy and sell forums
locate other people who have done similar restore and maybe they have spare parts
join the http://www.ukvac.com/

restoration will be much harder route/longer route than the strip and 60 in 1 option

it depends what you want this table for - you own pleasure or are you trying to make money out of  it...

i can get a good SI cocktail on ebay at the moment for 450 and also see ones for 800 - but how many are selling?

space invaders is okgame but personally i would like 59 other games too...

[rchadd]

the 60 in 1 is much better option than mame in my opinion ( i have done both)

the 60 in 1 is plug and play aslong as the cab is wired for jamma.

with mame you got the setup of pc, install of mame and control/monitor interfacing too, also ne AVGA graphics card if you want to use an arcade monitor.

60 in 1 also has ability of score saving and freeplay on all games

imo for 70ish quid it is the easiest/cheapest option if you want to play 60 classics on a cocktail cab 

[SirPeale]

Yes...let's just throw out a piece of history for ease of use. 

Hell with it...let's just multi the world.  I'll call Funspot up, they'll save thousands on repair costs yearly when they toss out those non-working boards and replace them with sub-par emulated knock-offs.

[rchadd]

Yes...let's just throw out a piece of history for ease of use. 

Hell with it...let's just multi the world.  I'll call Funspot up, they'll save thousands on repair costs yearly when they toss out those non-working boards and replace them with sub-par emulated knock-offs.

taito space invaders tables are not really that rare you know

a successful restoration depends on whether you have the time, money and skills to do it...

are these things to be played or just collected a trophies?

then there is the logistics of living in UK!

people in the good ol' USA are lucky enough to have basement arcades and super large garages the facilitate collecting many of the originals and undertaking such projects..and then there are the easy of finding the project machines at auctions and such like.


then there is the inflated costs of sourcing the parts in UK even if you can find them in the first place

[Darren01274]

Yeah parts seems quite hard to find I managed to find the coin door on ebay.com think it was something like $60 and about $40 postage. by the time I have finished I probably will end up spending the same if not more than what its worth. I have had the legs and metal box shot blasted and powder coated that cost me £30. I found the Tatio key for the locks that cost me £10. then the top will prob cost me £50. then there the game board repair I paid £100 for the cabinet

[saleem]

englkish table tops and plastic candy cab imitations (fobt) i am not keen on,i have woned 2 table tops,1 was a taito and i owned a fbiot i converted.

i have a generic 60in1 upright so i got my vertical jamma cab,now i am more into dedicated cabs,i have star castle,just needs the monitor sorting,i went and turned a wrong pot and lost the pic,someone can probably sort that out for me in future,i got my space zap which is being restored at the mo,its coming along nicely.i got a gremlin/sega cab i am going to put moon cresta in and i do have a midway table top i bought which is in bournemouth,i got to wait for courier to pick that up,i intend to convert it to a full blooded galaga table top.the american table top (midway) is the best one going.cos galaga cabs are hard to find here in uk,best option was to convert a midway table top to galaga.
 

[Darren01274]

What can I use to spray the glass black I was looking at Plasti-Kote Spary Paints but didnt mention it was for glass. Will any spray paint do or does it need to be special spray paint.

[rchadd]

dont bother painting the glass just make yourself an underlay

on my cocktail table i got a big sheet of black cardboard from an art shop and cutout a hole out for the monitor in the middle and put it under the glass and then trimmed around the edges

think it looks good

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=25687.0

then of course you could decorate with stickers if you wanted...either print yourself or i see someone on ebay.co.up selling repro si instruction sheets etc

[rchadd]

englkish table tops and plastic candy cab imitations (fobt) i am not keen on,i have woned 2 table tops,1 was a taito and i owned a fbiot i converted.

i have a generic 60in1 upright so i got my vertical jamma cab,now i am more into dedicated cabs,i have star castle,just needs the monitor sorting,i went and turned a wrong pot and lost the pic,someone can probably sort that out for me in future,i got my space zap which is being restored at the mo,its coming along nicely.i got a gremlin/sega cab i am going to put moon cresta in and i do have a midway table top i bought which is in bournemouth,i got to wait for courier to pick that up,i intend to convert it to a full blooded galaga table top.the american table top (midway) is the best one going.cos galaga cabs are hard to find here in uk,best option was to convert a midway table top to galaga.
 

u looking for a galaga board? i got one if you interested

[Darren01274]

Was going to make underlay I did that on my mame cocktail miday table looked great. But this glass if scratched on the otherside I removed all the paint and was thinking of sparying hte scratched side hoping it will hide the scratches so I dont have to purchase a new top

[SirPeale]

taito space invaders tables are not really that rare you know

And every time someone out there uses that argument, and wins, there's one less in the world.  Eventually there will be only a handful.  But that's okay, because once there were a lot.

Let's just hunt passenger pigeons.  There are a lot, so it'll be okay.  Oh, wait...

[saleem]

we all gotta learn and start somewhere.i did exactly the same and destroyed a classic but,thats when i realsised that these things need rescuing a lot of the times.

i got my invaders here,just recieved it today.usa midway tabletop,i was wanting to convert to galaga but,seeing as it has a wgv1001 b/w monitor (like the first chassis wg had if i aint mistaken and a pretty rare chassis) i am going to restore this bad boy to its former glory.it got a board prob,garbled screen but,i will to sort something out,metal parts to shot blast and respray and cp's to sort out,just generaly a cosmetic uplift.even got the original glass top with the printed art on it,will try to save it and restore that also.

look out for my thread in the future.

try to get the board repaired and keep it invaders or see about having the pinout changed and have it so it will play galaxians/pacman,moon cresta etc.just try not to bin the boards,if you get the machine to play something else get the boards sold to someone for future.

other than that its your table top,do what you like but,try to keep the table intact with intact cp's or remove them, and replace with custom ones but,try not to butcher it.
 

[Darren01274]

Hi Saleem.

Cabinet looking good. I decided to take out the boards may sell them as faulty or I have found somebody to repair them for a good price so might do that and keep them incase I spot a faulty
Space Invader Table.

So far I have striped the entire cabinet down, got rid of all the dust and took Legs and Metal work for shot blasting and powder coating looks great. I have put it all back together cleaned all the cabinet, going to order new glass and waiting for the 60 in 1 Jamma Board to arrive kept all buttons and joysticks for future the working original PSU etc.

[saleem]

yes man,dont make the silly mistake a lot of us make.keep the cab intact and as original as possible.if you gut it,keep it,dont butcher the wiring and keep the transformers and the monitor chassis and even the tube,these things are rare in a lot of cases.soo many people just throw stuff cos they think its faulty when it might have been a 25p resistor that needed repairing,so they start to get scarce.

i learned myself from my first outting and i never intend to make the same mistake again.

i will post my cabs pics shortly,so stay tuned.

on side note,i had way too high rest voltage on mine,i snipped the reset wire and shoved it into the gnd on the edge connector,its different though on midway,it has 3 seperate connectors.anyways from garbage screen i now got the think lines,i also hear the ship that flys across the top noise that you have to shoot for bonus and i am sure i hear the thump thump of the invaders.prob is,i got 3 knackered roms so i got to sort some out,i got 4 rom chips here spare,i got 2 on the board,so i have to find the right adaptor for my programmer to burn the rom chips.

but,its progress.
 

[Spyridon]

...waiting for the 60 in 1 Jamma Board to arrive...

See you soon in the Project Announcements section.