Tutorials and How to's - What would you like to see?

[rotheblog]

If you could have a visual tutorial and writeup done on any arcade related topic, what would it be?  It doesn't have to be specific to monitors, but it can.  Something you have been searching for on the internet but can't find at all, or can only find in segments with information left out.  Maybe it's how to manufacture reproduction parts, maybe it's something specific to your favorite game ever - Food Fight, Defender or even Cloak and Dagger.

I am curious to hear what people are searching for.

[Lutus]

1.  Tube swaps.

2.  How to scan artwork, vector, and then where and how to get it silk screened on tempered glass/sideart sticker etc...

3.  Troubleshooting gameboard PCB with logic probe's and multimeter.


That's just a few that I can think of off the top of my head.

[Ken Layton]

There are already tube swap tutorials:

http://www.rcilink.com/arcade/TubeSwap.htm

http://chux0r.org/20EZ.php

http://coinop.org/repair/Monitor_Tubeswap.aspx

[Lutus]

Show's what I know!!!

Thanks KEN.

And now, after rereading the first post, I thought he said VIDEO tutorials.   

[DJ Infinity]

A modern how to on wiring up power to a JAMMA harness. The one on the real Bob  Roberts has some things a vendor buddy of mine says aren't necessary (I.E. isolation transformers etc.) I would also like to be able to zoom in on the picture to get a closer look on what I need to do to make this work.  Basically "JAMMA For Dummies"

[Kevin Mullins]

The one on the real Bob  Roberts has some things a vendor buddy of mine says aren't necessary (I.E. isolation transformers etc.)

That all depends on what make/model monitor you are using.

I would always recommend wiring one in.
That way you never have to second guess whether the monitor you are putting in needs one or not..... it's already there.

[DJ Infinity]

It's a Monivision monitor and it plugs directly into a socket 

[Kevin Mullins]

It's a Monivision monitor and it plugs directly into a socket 

Yours does, but what about the rest of the world's monitors ? 
(especially older arcade monitors)

[SavannahLion]

I don't really have a lot of ideas for actual, useful, tutorials, but here's a few things I guess.

I'd like to see more information consolidated. For instance. A searchable cross referencing database for all IC's on PCB's (or at least IC's that experience common failures) with their comparable replacements (especially modern replacements) and installation notes (eg RAM chips that use 12v and 5v sources being replaced with equivalent chips that need only a 5v source). In the same vein, the database should also store datasheets for these IC's so additional cross references can be made due to the rapid changes prevalent in the IC industry. I know there are websites that have generalized information, but I'm not aware of any source specific to arcade machines. It's such a massive undertaking, I suppose it's just a pipe dream. 

Painting, laminating, etc. I'd like to see two different articles on this. One is your basic color coating business. I see a lot of really crap paint jobs out there and I see very few good paint jobs and I see a few that are just too good. (Honestly, I have never seen a cabinet in the wild that had a glass smooth paint job... ever). And as we all know, there's been a couple with that God awful marble paper. I see a lot of people with information on how they painted their cabinet, but I haven't seen an in depth article comparing the different techniques side by side. Ideally, the article should be open ended to allow additional techniques as they arise. Another article should deal with the colors chosen, color matching and the why of it. I'm sorry, but I'm getting a tad tired of seeing black with [insert color here] trim cabinets. Black is a popular color, I know, my own cabinet has a base color of black (with black and chrome trim no less). But Jesus, how about some other color choices there? Included in the article should be information about base color, sheen, and top coats.

A comparison on cabinet heights, CP angle, depth and width, monitor angles and the people playing them. I see a lot of opinions, but nothing really concrete. If I stood 5'9" I should place the CP how high? Manufacturers have had 30+ years to screw around with these measurements. There should be some science to it by now. Ergonomics is everywhere right now, I'm surprised I haven't really seen it specifically applied to arcades. Of course, I'm more interested in the more bizarre cabinet designs, the designs that didn't work out very well.

Those are just some lame ideas I've come up under a (legal) drug induced misery. I'm sure fate is laughing because all of these ideas were already implemented. 

[Level42]

Easy:

1) How to re-wind a yoke for vector graphics. (preferably with a hi-res computer CRT )
2) How to converge a monitor for dummies.

[SavannahLion]

1) How to re-wind a yoke for vector graphics. (preferably with a hi-res computer CRT )

Don't be facetious. Is that even possible? Has anyone done such a thing?

I thought there were other things that needed to be resolved, PCB, flyback (or whatever the equivalent is called on the vector monitor) and the magnitude (is that the right word? According to an Atari manual, they use "standard" 100 degree gun monitors... apparently, 100 degree monitors aren't standard anymore?)

If this was within the realm of feasibility, that kind of how-to would definitely have my attention.

I bet you're just being facetious and I'm going to thinking about this all day.