Need helping restoring msPac man side art.

[angryadmin]

 I recently acquired a ms pacman machine, in great shape except the side art, it is the original factory paint(Before midway started using stickers.). Should I simply replace the sideart with stickers (ala twobits.com) or would it be doable to re paint it? suggestions??

NH

[SuperGunGuru]

Check out www.appolo.com. They did a nice job touching up the paint on a Ms Pac. You could also go the repro atwork route. I guess it all depends on how well you can paint and how patient you are. It'd take time to touch up the paint on the cabinet, but it could be fun and well worth it. Good luck on the restore.

[AlanS17]

I'm gonna be touching up the paint on a ms pacman here soon, too. I think the hardest part will be color matching. If the sideart is at least intact, you can trace what's already there. The problem is that colors fade. You cab might not even be the same color on both sides. Plus those ms pacman machines were kind of small and one player - perfect for leaning on and leaning your hand on the side as you played. So you'll often find that the left side is in worse condition because these right-handed players were leaning on it with their left hands.

[angryadmin]

 Are there any major disadvantages to replacing the side art with the sticker side art? Will it hurt it's value?  What monitor should I look for to replace the factory one?

[AlanS17]

Just replace the monitor with a good one. It's one of the most standard pieces on that machine, and one of the most likely to go bad. It won't hurt the value to replace it with just about any other decent standard res monitor out there.

As for the sideart, the repro vinyl is crazy expensive. If you go that route you'll probably be spending at least $300 just for full artwork. Using the repro artwork might hurt the value in the eyes of a true collector, but it will make little or no difference to the average hobbyist or Joe Shmo that wants a pretty Ms Pacman in his house.

If the paint on your cab is so bad that you can't make out an image anymore, I'd go with the repro sideart. Otherwise, if you still have an image (even if it's bad), then you have a guide to paint with. It would be like one of those old paint-by-numbers thingers (in theory).