Author Topic: Star Castle Cabinet repair project -=finished=- (Read 3848 times)

crsdawg · « **on:** May 25, 2006, 10:14:18 pm »

I've had this little project on backburner for awhile and finally found some time to take it on. should be a short and fun job.

last year i found a star castle, working game in a rough cabinet. well a couple months back i bought another non-working sc in a better but not perfect cab. this is the rock-ola version that someone decided to practice kick-boxing on. as seen in these pics:

i originally planned to just take what was there, brace it, bondo the cracks and sand, but after taking a good look i changed my mind. it would have been difficult to get it solid without a bunch of ugly braces on the backside. i know you wouldn't see them, but damint i'd know they were there....every time i'd fire up the game i'd be thinking about the half ass repair.

so, instead of the quick fix, i decided to cut out the cracked area and put in a piece of good wood to replace the bad. i lined up my cuts with the hole for the coin door so all i would need is a rectangular patch panal.

this pic shows my first and second patch panels. the first time i did this i just cut a rectangle and when mounted there was a little gap between it and the inner side of the cab. the second one i made a little bit wider and routered out a knotch in the edge so it would mount into the cabinets slot, like the original, with no gap. the first one looked pretty good and it sucks to have to do stuff twice, but in the long run i'll be glad.

here's how it fits in the slot. i don't know why i didn't do this in the first place, brain fart i guess:

after installing the new piece and replacing the corner brace i bondo'd up the seams. in this pic the seams are bondo'd but the holes where i screwed into the bracing hasn't been yet:

finished with the bondo and most of the sanding:

and here's where i'm at right now:

tomorrow i'm hoping to finish up. sand the glazing compound off the seams, paint, and if there's time install the parts from the working game.

Cancer Jeff · « **Reply #1 on:** May 25, 2006, 11:44:47 pm »

nice little project. i would have gone the lazy mans route and just glue it up, maybe even duct tape. as long as i can play it.

deadkenndys1105 · « **Reply #2 on:** May 25, 2006, 11:54:14 pm »

Wow other than that umm karate cabinet part is there anything else wrong with it like sound or the monitor. Its looking good already.

theCoder · « **Reply #3 on:** May 26, 2006, 12:02:36 am »

Sweet. Star Castle is on my very short list of old school games, along with Rip Off (both by Cinematronics). Nice job on the repair. You are planning on restoring it with the original controls aren't you?

crsdawg · « **Reply #4 on:** May 26, 2006, 12:55:51 am »

both the rock-ola and my other working cabinet are complete.

here's a pic of the rough game that this one is replacing:

when i bought this i was thrilled to have a sc since it was/is one of my favorite games, and it's a pretty rare bird in working condition. as soon as i saw it i knew i'd have to find a better condition cab tho.

i've pulled parts out of both games while working on the repair and to get a headstart on the electronics swap, that's why the cabinet is bare inside. makes it easier to get in there and do the work.

once the repair is finished and the paint dry, i'll put the rock-ola cab back together and use the working pcb, psu and monitor from the other.

Quote

i would have gone the lazy mans route and just glue it up, maybe even duct tape. as long as i can play it.

i tried hard to be lazy and just do the quick fix, but something inside just wouldn't let me. i think i've got some weird gene that keeps me from half assing things. let me tell ya, it sure makes my life difficult sometimes.

although if i was really hardcore i would have replaced the whole front instead of just patching it. this was my initial plan until i realized you'd have to dissassemble the entire cabinet to install the new front into those slots. i wasn't prepared to turn this project into a career, so i went with the patch panel instead.

nostrebor · « **Reply #5 on:** May 26, 2006, 09:00:09 am »

Looks like the patch worked out just fine. No need to replace the whole front if you didn't have to.

psychopanda · « **Reply #6 on:** May 26, 2006, 11:07:13 am »

Nice find(s). Star Castle is one of my all time faves. It's such a fun game.

What type of Bondo did you use? For some reason yours looks darker, but maybe it's just the picture. I just started using this stuff and I bought the 'automotive' type versus the 'general use'.

crsdawg · « **Reply #7 on:** May 26, 2006, 11:32:32 am »

Quote

What type of Bondo did you use?

i've been using automotive bondo(i think bondo is actually the brand name).

the darkness or lightness really is dependant on how much activator you mix in with the actual bondo, which starts out a light grey color. once mixed, it turns a redish pink and will dry a light pink. you've got to be careful not to put in too much activator or it will cure to fast and you will not have enough time to apply it. too little will cause your cure time to take forever, which is very annoying. i usually mix it a bit on the rich side and apply it fast.

you might also be seeing the red glazing compound which is just the finish coat of sorts for fillers. it comes out and cures red. as long as you get the first coat of bondo sanded nice and smooth it's not something that is all that necesary, unless your spraying on your paint(which i'm not). i just put it on there for good measure.

psychopanda · « **Reply #8 on:** May 26, 2006, 03:12:00 pm »

Thanks crsdawg.

Yeah, I noticed that the Bondo filler turns gummy after about two minutes and quickly becomes unworkable.

crsdawg · « **Reply #9 on:** May 28, 2006, 03:52:53 pm »

here's where i'm at now. got some sanding and the first coat of paint done. hopefully i can get the restoration finished today and start putting it back together.

on a side note, i had a visitor while i was waiting for the paint to dry. i'm not sure if he wanted to help out or just get a few games of tempest in before i went home.

just like any freeloader, he expected(and got) a ride to his (new) home out near a rural lake north of town.

you'd think i'd at least get a thank you, right? nope, just some hissing and tail rattling. which i took as the snake version of giving me the finger. that's gratitude for ya. next time i get out the machete.

SirPeale · « **Reply #10 on:** May 28, 2006, 07:20:49 pm »

What kind of snake is that?

crsdawg · « **Reply #11 on:** May 28, 2006, 08:46:15 pm »

i'm pretty sure it's a black rat snake. they are pretty common in the ozarks, although this is the first i've seen in town. this one was a big guy, 4-5 feet.

funny thing, where my game storage and shop are located there's a cat that catches garter snakes all the time. she found this one and wanted nothing to do with it, heh heh. i bet the snake weighed more than she does(not a big cat).

reptilehead · « **Reply #12 on:** May 29, 2006, 12:29:13 am »

Yup thats a rat snake alright, and to be honest a beautiful example of one to boot! Theyre not uncommon, but (in the pet world) they're not really what you'd call a "friendly snake" that attitude he copped on you was very typical of a rat. What you didn't mention is how many times he tried to take a chunk out of you, looks like ol' sparky there was about to go for the throat!

On a side note, he probably heard you were going to give him 400 free credits on mappy!

crsdawg · « **Reply #13 on:** May 29, 2006, 02:11:10 pm »

Quote

What you didn't mention is how many times he tried to take a chunk out of you, looks like ol' sparky there was about to go for the throat!

yep, he was pretty po'd when i picked him up. i bet he struck at me a dozen times or more(no hits) before i delivered him to his new home.

nostrebor · « **Reply #14 on:** May 30, 2006, 10:01:59 am »

Quote from: crsdawg on May 29, 2006, 02:11:10 pm

Quote
What you didn't mention is how many times he tried to take a chunk out of you, looks like ol' sparky there was about to go for the throat!

yep, he was pretty po'd when i picked him up. i bet he struck at me a dozen times or more(no hits) before i delivered him to his new home.

We found a 5' plus version at the lake this weekend. He was determined to get into the tent next to our campsite! GOOD TIMES!

I like having these guys around the house. They keep the mice and the poisonous snakes away. Very territorial snakes once they move into your barn or shed.

crsdawg · « **Reply #15 on:** June 02, 2006, 07:48:12 pm »

finally finished this project. i expected it to take a couple days and ended up taking over a week, typical.

here are some shots of the finished product and my next and much delayed project:

leapinlew · « **Reply #16 on:** June 02, 2006, 11:06:12 pm »

wtf black rat snake?!

I'd move... well, I'd move after fainted and then picked myself up off the floor.

Havok · « **Reply #17 on:** June 05, 2006, 01:45:52 pm »

Hey - what pin is that in the last pic? Looks like a naughty bit on backglass...

crsdawg · « **Reply #18 on:** June 05, 2006, 10:40:36 pm »

ah, you have a good eye. that's my project zaccaria farfalla w/ the european backglass insert. they had to make a different design for u.s. sold games since that one was considered to revealing.

here's some more pics of a similar machine on ipb:

http://ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=824&picno=6148

it's a fun game, and for sale if anyone is interested. it's in the middle of getting a shop job and will probably be on ebay within the week.

Havok · « **Reply #19 on:** June 06, 2006, 08:26:30 am »

Nice - that's too funny the difference between the Italian version and the US one: I like the Italian one better. Let us know when it goes up on ebay...

psychopanda · « **Reply #20 on:** June 06, 2006, 10:53:48 am »

I'd post here, but I'm still worried that snake will get me!

He wasn't in your cabinet was he?

The Star Castle looks great. I'm so envious.

crsdawg · « **Reply #21 on:** June 06, 2006, 11:45:45 am »

Quote

Nice - that's too funny the difference between the Italian version and the US one: I like the Italian one better. Let us know when it goes up on ebay...

i agree. i think the american one is pretty lame. i'll put a post up on bst when it's on ebay.

Quote

He wasn't in your cabinet was he?

The Star Castle looks great. I'm so envious

nope, he was just outside the door to the shop.

thanks, i'm very happy with how it turned out.

MameMaster! · « **Reply #22 on:** June 09, 2006, 12:19:43 pm »

wow that's a great little project.

I really like the way you fixed up that wood piece.

Great job!


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