.

[ChanceKJ]

.

[Louis Tully]

.

[yotsuya]

Buy, because that's how I roll now.

[DeLuSioNal29]

It depends.  If it were made of the rarer original plywood I'd be more apt to referb it.  But if it was made from particle board, I'd probably just build my own.

That said, the answer really depends on what condition the original is in.

D

[harveybirdman]

I haven't built much of anything so I'm hardly qualified to comment...

However I would rather have a clean non smoke smelling piece of art that I created, especially since where I live no iconic cabinet in any condition exchanges hands for less that 400 bucks.

[Malenko]

considering I have never seen one for sale locally, I'm inclined to say build one.

[JDFan]

Depends -- If you build your own are you going to use new parts or source originals (ie. Joystick, Buttons, etc.) and are you using an original PCB in both cases or emulating in the build ? (thus destroying one of the originals in order to build a new one) - and is the original you source parts from in restorable shape or pretty much dead already with some useable parts. (ie. are you sourcing parts from somewhere like Arcade Boneyard that destroys the original in good shape to sell off the parts ?)

[Generic Eric]

considering I have never seen one for sale locally, I'm inclined to say build one.

I haven't even seen an actual game in years.  If I found one I could afford,  I'd take measurements from it to clone it, to mame it.  As for the original,  I'd fix it up as well as I could afford to sell for profit.

[jennifer]

      Buy one, Template it and the build 1 or 5 of them (fun fact with that cab, you can have a Popeye too!!)

[elvis]

Both build and refurb are fun.  It comes down to whether or not you can find one to refurb.

I'm scratch-building a Moon Patrol at the moment simply because I can't find one locally.  Still having heaps of fun though.

[jdbailey1206]

Here in the Mitten cabs seem to be very scarce.  I don't know if I'm not looking in the right places or if they really just don't exist in my neck of the woods.  That being said I would have to lean more towards building.  I would love to have a cab already built and just do cosmetic work to it.  That to me would be quicker than having to go through all the headache of getting the right materials, then the dimensions and finally getting to work on buiding it.  But there is an immense sense of satisfaction when you are finally done building. 

In the end I'm on the fence.  More time would be nice if I just had a fixable cab but building something from the ground up makes me want to bring it in the house and yell "Grab a magnet and stick this ---smurfette--- on the fridge!  Its a work of art!"

[yotsuya]

Now that I have a little more time...

I like to obtain dedicated cabs because, like Louis Tully, I'm intrigued by the history of the cab. I also take tremendous pride in resurrecting a dead or gutted (or in the case of the Ms. Pac I did for my sister, one foot in the dumpster) cabinet that just needs some TLC. That's where I get my sense of satisfaction - bringing something back that, at one time, was a source of entertainment for someone at a bowling alley, laundromat, or pizza place. So I'm firmly in the restore camp. I have a zombie Nintendo cab I'm working on, two Pac cocktails that need a lot of work, and so on and so forth. 

[pbj]

Homemade cabinets are always going to look homemade.  God luck finding a Donkey Kong cabinet in 2014 that hasn't been 'restored' to hell and back or is more suited for a landfill, though.

[yotsuya]

Homemade cabinets are always going to look homemade.  God luck finding a Donkey Kong cabinet in 2014 that hasn't been 'restored' to hell and back or is more suited for a landfill, though.

Here's what the DK I got looked like... It was rough. It looked like some one chipped off the paint on the sides and painted it DK orange with house latex. But I'm a sucker for restoring these things to what they were. In this case, it's going to be repainted blue and made a Vs. Unisystem.

[pbj]

Enjoy your money pit.  $900 later it'll be worth $250.

 

[yotsuya]

Enjoy your money pit.  $900 later it'll be worth $250.

 

I don't build them to sell them, chingon.

I got the cab for free. Paint will be $50. I got a monitor for $15 on CL. $40 shipped for a complete Vs. Control panel. I have the computer. Coin door with mechs was $75. $5 for the Minimus AVR. Maybe I'll need to drop $100 at the most for incidentals. I'm still ahead.

[pbj]

Ah, sorry, thought you were 'restoring' it, not slapping in the cheapest rusty crap you can find.  Oh well, I like a nice patina.

[jdbailey1206]

Enjoy your money pit.  $900 later it'll be worth $250.

 

Spoken like a true KLOVian.     I don't think anyone is here to make money.  We're all here to play with our joysticks.

[yotsuya]

Ah, sorry, thought you were 'restoring' it, not slapping in the cheapest rusty crap you can find.  Oh well, I like a nice patina.

What are you talking about? I do restore it, I'm just smart about how I do it and I shop around for deals. I guess you didn't see my Mr + Ms. Pac restore/build. Must have occurred when you were off running from the law. 

[Nephasth]

PBJ is seeming more and more crotchety.

[yotsuya]

PBJ is seeming more and more crotchety.

A diet of Jalapeno booze and free beefsticks from Amazon will do that to you. 

[Hoopz]

free beefsticks from Amazon will do that to you. 

Link?

[yotsuya]

Enjoy your money pit.  $900 later it'll be worth $250.

 

One thing I want to add, because PinballJames brings up a good point. I don't restore with worth/value in mind. I restore it with ME in mind. I bought a thrashed to all hell Missile Command that had been converted to a Shinobi for $50. It sat in a shed for a year before I could do anything with it. I ended up buying a new repro control panel, a second CP just to get the buttons and track ball assembly, side art, trackball refurb kit, a $50 MC thrashed-to----steaming pile of meadow muffin--- cocktail just to get the boardset (I still have the cocktail, btw), a wiring harness, a capkit for the monitor, a new set of screened glass and bronze plexi.... there's no what I could get for it what I put in to it. And you know what, I don't give a ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---. I LOVE Missile Command (not to Roy Shildt levels, but still). I enjoyed the restoration process, and to me, the personal value in resurrecting it far outweighs the perceived monetary resale value. I'm not a flipper, nor will I ever be.

[pbj]

free beefsticks from Amazon will do that to you. 

Link?

Haha.  LOL no.  I wouldn't tell god himself how I'm getting those Amazon grift cards.

Enjoy your money pit.  $900 later it'll be worth $250.

 

One thing I want to add, because PinballJames brings up a good point.

So brave.

[Malenko]

I've never bought a cab under the impression I could fix it up for profit.  I've only ever bought a cab to restore for someone else 1 time, and I did it at cost (the yet another Galaga Restore) and its unlikely Id ever do it again.

[Generic Eric]

I dunno.  I already chimed in once, but at this stage; Cab building in 2nd millennium, this is ART not a bulk manufactured process.  That is why I like the unique styled cabinets and re-themes.

[Vigo]

I think the line is kinda blurred what qualifies as a repro vs a refurb. What is using all original hardware and putting it in a fresh built cabinet? Is that any less original than an original cab shell with "classic style" joysticks and a 60 in 1 board? Honestly, I think most builds are at least frankenstein'ed together to a degree.

[yotsuya]

I dunno.  I already chimed in once, but at this stage; Cab building in 2nd millennium, this is ART not a bulk manufactured process.  That is why I like the unique styled cabinets and re-themes.

Interesting - I take the opposite viewpoint. I prefer my cabs to look like something that could have been in an actual arcade in the 80s. I think the art comes in making them blend seamlessly with real machines. Sometimes I think some of the unique stuff qualifies more as gaming furniture than an arcade cabinet.

Not saying you're wrong (nor are the builders), just pointing out what colors my perspective. 

[Generic Eric]

I dunno.  I already chimed in once, but at this stage; Cab building in 2nd millennium, this is ART not a bulk manufactured process.  That is why I like the unique styled cabinets and re-themes.

I think the art comes in making them blend seamlessly with real machines.

I like this.  +1

[yotsuya]

I dunno.  I already chimed in once, but at this stage; Cab building in 2nd millennium, this is ART not a bulk manufactured process.  That is why I like the unique styled cabinets and re-themes.

I think the art comes in making them blend seamlessly with real machines.

I like this.  +1

I totally agree with you on this evolving into an art, brother. That's the place in my mind where my feedback and opinions come from.

[Vigo]

I just like when a cab is a statement piece. My tastes lean toward classics, but if you build a cab that makes me stop and pause, in my mind it is a success.

In the 80's, game designers were constantly doing the same thing as us - creating cabs that would make people stop in their tracks and want to drop a quarter in. Kinda why I would never be above a tasteful "Gimmick". Just because it hasn't been employed in a classic arcade cab doesn't mean that it was taboo, it just wasn't attempted. Tasteful is the key.

[yotsuya]

I just like when a cab is a statement piece. My tastes lean toward classics, but if you build a cab that makes me stop and pause, in my mind it is a success.

In the 80's, game designers were constantly doing the same thing as us - creating cabs that would make people stop in their tracks and want to drop a quarter in. Kinda why I would never be above a tasteful "Gimmick". Just because it hasn't been employed in a classic arcade cab doesn't mean that it was taboo, it just wasn't attempted. Tasteful is the key.

Completely agree. The way Blip! integrates the LCD marquee is tastefully done. The way Dave has intergrated widescreen monitors is tastefully done. The key is in the design.

[jdbailey1206]

We are like a bunch of Hot Rod enthusiasts.  No one is here to make a trailer queen.  We are here to make something from the ground up, pieced together from what we can find.  It's not about making something verbatim from what it once was.  We are here to create a reliable working machine that we have fun with.  Is it perfect?  No.  It probably never will be.  That's why this website is called Build Your Own Arcade Controls.  Not Restore A Found Arcade Cabinet.

[yotsuya]

We are like a bunch of Hot Rod enthusiasts.  No one is here to make a trailer queen.  We are here to make something from the ground up, pieced together from what we can find.  It's not about making something verbatim from what it once was.  We are here to create a reliable working machine that we have fun with.  Is it perfect?  No.  It probably never will be.  That's why this website is called Build Your Own Arcade Controls.  Not Restore A Found Arcade Cabinet.

See, I think BYO becomes a gateway to collecting originals. You can find 100 guys on KLOV who started with a MAME cab but moved on. Hell, some started with MAME, then got into originals, then moved on to Pins. I'm sure BYO was part of the site's founding mission, but there are plenty of excellent restores on display here. The skills I learned from building my own have certainly helped me with restores.

[Malenko]

Not Restore A Found Arcade Cabinet.

Whats the restoration section for then?

I'm on my 9th restore.

[jdbailey1206]

For all you restoration weirdos.   

[yotsuya]

For all you restoration weirdos.   

Well, considering the main www.arcadecontrols.com site hasn't been updated in over 4 years (look it up), I figure this site has evolved too... 

[Generic Eric]

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[jennifer]

      I"ve  got a few "Trailer Queens", Under tarps and haven't seen daylight for... Well, a long, long time.