Robotron Restoration - new to the forum

[frailn]

Hello! Mike here - I'm new to the forum and decided to jump since I just started my very first arcade restoration. Thanks to everyone that contributes to this forum because it has been very informational and inspirational!

About five months ago, I was poking around on the local Craigslist free section (here in Kansas City), and I noticed an ad for a guy giving away free arcade cabinets. Having been familiar with MAME in the past, I decided to go grab one with the intentions of cleaning it, painting it and throwing an old PC inside for MAME.

My teenage son and I went down to the guy's warehouse one Saturday morn, and discovered this guy has dozens upon dozens of old cabs in different conditions. The free cabs were monitor-less. Having NO CLUE what I was doing, I picked out one that seemed right for my purposes. It was painted black, no monitor, a couple of joysticks and four buttons. It seemed pretty solid (no major damage) and best of all, it just barely fit into the back of my Honda Element!

The cabinet has a JAMMA harness. The JAMMA Board is IREM Skins. Everything works when plugged in - except video since there is no monitor. I can hear the sound coming out of the speakers, though. The coin slots take quarters and register them (I can hear it when I drop a quarter in). And the bezel light works.

Well, it's been sitting in the basement for a few months until now. I decided to get started by doing some research and found this forum. Then, my entire project took on a new life when I read this thread about a moon patrol restoration. Hmmm...what is under that black paint on my free cab?

Well, I went straight to Lowe's and picked up some Goof-Off 2 and got busy last weekend. Lo an behold, underneath is Joust artwork! But, looking, even closer, I see the faint outlines of Robotron artwork underneath the Joust!

So, here I have a Robotron -> Joust -> Skins conversion. None of the original Robotron parts are here. And saving the original Robotron artwork would be impossible. So...

I've decided to restore this cab using Robotron stencils, marquee, etc...fix her back up in appearance to the original robotron.

But, I'm still deciding if I should go with a PC mobo and J-Parc to MAME her or get a Multi-Williams Jamma board. I know for sure I want the cab to look like the original Robotron. Just still deciding on the brain...

I'll post pics soon!

[RetroACTIVE]

Welcome!  Williams cabs are great first time restores!  You will be very pleased with  the Robotron stencils at gamestencils.com...

If you can get a JROK Williams all-in-one: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=86022

I would highly recommend it!  It gives you the option of doing a Williams Multigame while staying 100% true to the original design without all the hang-ups of old boards.

Have Fun!

[CheffoJeffo]

Welcome!  Williams cabs are great first time restores!  You will be very pleased with  the Robotron stencils at gamestencils.com...

If you can get a JROK Williams all-in-one: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=86022

I would highly recommend it!  It gives you the option of doing a Williams Multigame while staying 100% true to the original design without all the hang-ups of old boards.

Have Fun!

+1 on all counts.

 

[Ninten-doh]

Welcome!  Williams cabs are great first time restores!  You will be very pleased with  the Robotron stencils at gamestencils.com...

If you can get a JROK Williams all-in-one: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=86022

I would highly recommend it!  It gives you the option of doing a Williams Multigame while staying 100% true to the original design without all the hang-ups of old boards.

Have Fun!

+1 on all counts.

 

+1000  I love my JROK Williams board.   

[frailn]

Thanks for the welcome and the suggestion on the JROK Williams all-in-one. I will check it out!

[Mauzy]

Cool find! Do you have any pictures? I've never seen Robotron art converted into Joust. Sounds like you might have found an oddity as you don't see too many games that get converted into a game from the same year the original from the cab came out (Joust and Robotron are both from 1982)

[frailn]

Cool find! Do you have any pictures? I've never seen Robotron art converted into Joust. Sounds like you might have found an oddity as you don't see too many games that get converted into a game from the same year the original from the cab came out (Joust and Robotron are both from 1982)

I'll take some pics tonight when I get home from work. Yep, the inspection stamp inside the cab says "1982"! Robotron art is definitely under the Joust art - it might be hard to capture on my digital camera, but I'll give it a try. The black latex paint is coming off fairly easily with the Goof Off 2, but the joust art is a bit stubborn. I have to lean a little bit in the right light, but I can faintly see those diagonal lines from the Robotron logo...

[frailn]

Pics as promised!

Goof Off 2 doing it's work. I see some joust!


Robotron artwork peeking through.


Full cab pic


Inside. The control panel wiring is hanging down. Need to secure that!


IREM Skins game PCB. It works!


Here's the IREM Skins marquee that I pulled out.


And the control panel. It had a piece of metal, then black vinyl, then some plexiglass on top. Think I'll just start from scratch rather than try to save this...

[Mauzy]

Thats really weird. It looks like it was repainted at the factory, but I can't see Williams having "too many Robotrons". If Robotron wasn't popular, it wouldn't be uncommon as manufacturers sometimes cannibalized crappy games to cut cost on something popular or new like Radarscopes being converted to Donkey Kong and Bosconian into Galaga, both occurring at the factory.

You seem to have something unique there!



Also, 1000th post. Yay for me!

 

[Kevin Mullins]

That's definitely a Robotron style cabinet, as the Joust was originally a bit different.
Unusual for them to make that sort of "conversion". But they did come out about the same time, so anything is possible.

Any sort of paper tags left inside from Williams?
(usually stapled somewhere)

[frailn]

The inside of the control panel has a stamp: "Oct 6 1982 TESTED INSPECTED"

Looks like the original power supply and some sort of power supply PCB with williams tags on one or two of the parts on this PCB that say "Williams" and a number. I'm assuming that's a part number for a PSU part.

The IREM Skins game is definately JAMMA, says so on the board. So, I think the original wiring was modified to work with this JAMMA connector.

After fighting with the Goof Off 2 and discovering that the artwork is not salvagable, I'm going to get some stronger stripper and take this all the way down to the wood. I'll prime it, and repaint it with the proper Robotron art. I think I'll go with robotron marquee, but haven't decided on the control panel yet. I'd like to use a Robotron control panel art but, not sure how that will look with the extra buttons that go with a multi-Willams layout.

I don't want to mess with the wiring, other than to add extra buttons, since everything works! My first hurdle will be to figure out how to feed 5v to the multi-Williams board...oh and come up with cash for a monitor, multi-williams board and the stencils. I can see that this will add up quick:

monitor - 275
board - 165
stencil - 80
paints - ?
robotron Marquee - 40
robotron bezel - 60

Is there another part that frames the monitor between robotron bezel and the monitor? Not sure since mine was stripped.

My wife says, "it figures" that I would pick out the one weird cabinet out the dozens I was offered for free! I didn't even know it was a Robotron! I just thought, "hey this cabinet looks like something I could work with..."

[RetroACTIVE]

The part you are looking for is a black 19" monitor bezel and can be found at virtually any arcade parts supplier.  Im pretty sure these standard bezels will work for you.  I think twistedquarter has a pretty decent prices on these (that is they won't rip you off on shipping, as it is an oversized item).  The bezel is oversized as you will have to cut it to fit.

[Spyridon]

I've heard of several people that had Robotron artwork underneath thier Joust artwork, so it must have been a common theme at Williams. 

That Joust artwork looks to be in pretty good shape.  If you can save it and you are going with a Multi-Williams, you may want to keep the Joust theme.

[frailn]

That Joust artwork looks to be in pretty good shape.

The other side of the cab is not as nice. I managed to get all of the black latex removed and you can see where someone hit this with sandpaper before they started painting the Joust artwork. Once I get the thing upright again, I'll post a pic.

I suppose it could be touched up -- my wife offered to do this for me. But, I kind of like the idea of going with the original Robotron art and making the cab look like it just rolled out of the factory in 1982. Also, from what I've seen on the internet, the original Joust used a different shaped cabinet.

Robotron holds a lot of nostalgia for me. It was the  first video game I ever played at the arcade! Another first - on the way to my first arcade visit, my best friend's brother was driving us and blasting the radio: Duran Duran, Hungry Like the Wolf! That was the first time I heard that song, or even heard of Duran Duran. After that day, I burned my disco duck albums, gave up board games (and a lot of quarters)!

I'm leaning very heavily towards Robotron.

[Level42]

I'd go for Robotron too because the cab shape is Robotron.

[Ninten-doh]

Robotron!  Robotron!  Robotron! 

[frailn]

Nice tagline, Nintendoh

I promise sweetie, this is my last cab purchase

I bet I could talk my wife  into another cabinet if it's TEMPEST - the only video game she will play!

[frailn]

Okay, I have decided to go with JROK's multi-williams board. I love the idea of playing the original games non-emulated. This is a total 180 from my original plan of putting a PC in this cabinet and building some sort of crazy control panel in order to play the 6,000 plus games that are emulated on MAME. JROK's board appeals to the retro-geek in me. I already have another, unrelated project in the works creating a synth out of original Commodore 64 sound chips. So, this is right up my alley!

I also decided to restore the cabinet with Robotron artwork - stencils on the sides, original marquee, and bezel artwork. So this cabinet restoration will be Robotron with a "twist." The twist being the extra Williams games available for play.

Now for the last bit - the control panel. If I'm going to invest in JROK's board, I really want the ability to play ALL the games that are available, with the exception of Sinistar (since it's requires a third joystick and vertical monitor).

So, I've looked at the two multi-williams control panel overlays that are available for sale on the internet. I don't think these would look good with full Robotron artwork on the rest of the cab.

From ArtWorkDoctor.com


From ArcadeShop.com


I figure the artwork for the cabinet should be consistent. If I have everything except the control panel in original Robotron art, then the multi-williams cpo's are going to stick out like a sore thumb. Tonight I plan to play around in Adobe Illustrator and see if I can cook up something that uses the multi-williams joystick/button layout, but has more of a Robotron look and feel.

If anyone has ideas or if someone has plowed this ground before, let me know. I want this cpo to look VERY ROBOTRONISH....

[RayB]

When you took the paint off, i assume you used a plastic scraper? Did you find it scratches the Joust layer?

[RetroACTIVE]

I figure the artwork for the cabinet should be consistent. If I have everything except the control panel in original Robotron art, then the multi-williams cpo's are going to stick out like a sore thumb. Tonight I plan to play around in Adobe Illustrator and see if I can cook up something that uses the multi-williams joystick/button layout, but has more of a Robotron look and feel.

If anyone has ideas or if someone has plowed this ground before, let me know. I want this cpo to look VERY ROBOTRONISH....

I couldn't agree more... thats one thing I detest about my Defender multigame... its corny... too much caricature art...  someday I'll get back to it....

There are a few Williams Multigame threads over at KLOV... a couple of fellows have already done this sort of thing ... you'll have to search.... but I do recall someone did a robotron and  joust themed artwork... you will have to get it printed tough.

[Spyridon]

There are a few Williams Multigame threads over at KLOV... a couple of fellows have already done this sort of thing ... you'll have to search.... but I do recall someone did a robotron and  joust themed artwork... you will have to get it printed tough.

Someone definitely did a Joust one.  I don't remember the Robotron one.

[frailn]

When you took the paint off, i assume you used a plastic scraper? Did you find it scratches the Joust layer?

Ray - I used a nylon bristle brush and for the most part, it did not harm the underlying Joust paint. However, there were a couple places where I got a little crazy with the elbow grease and you can tell that I was starting to wear down the original art a little bit. Not much. I also noticed that someone obviously hit this thing with sandpaper before applying the black latex paint. I think I will try a plastic scraper to see how that does. I'm going to steal one from my wife - she has a few that came with the Pampered Chef baking stones!

There are a few Williams Multigame threads over at KLOV... a couple of fellows have already done this sort of thing ...

Thanks for the heads-up! I'll check out the KLOV forum and see what I can find...

[frailn]

I found the Joust/Multi-Williams CPO over at KLOV. I really like how this was laid out. I plan on doing something similar in the Robotron theme. Couldn't find a Robotron-specific CPO like this.

[Level42]

I'd "kill" if someone would adjust one of those CPO's to the Euro-sized Joust CP.....

[Ninten-doh]

I figure the artwork for the cabinet should be consistent. If I have everything except the control panel in original Robotron art, then the multi-williams cpo's are going to stick out like a sore thumb. Tonight I plan to play around in Adobe Illustrator and see if I can cook up something that uses the multi-williams joystick/button layout, but has more of a Robotron look and feel.

This is exactly what I would do.  Create a custom one that keeps the same look/feel as the original Robotron, just like that KLOV'r did for the Joust version.

I've put some hi res Robotron cpo images on my Picasa site if they'll be of any help:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jarcade99/RobotronCpos?authkey=Gv1sRgCLj-usautrbOrgE#


Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.   

[GaryMcT]

Okay, I have decided to go with JROK's multi-williams board. I love the idea of playing the original games non-emulated. This is a total 180 from my original plan of putting a PC in this cabinet and building some sort of crazy control panel in order to play the 6,000 plus games that are emulated on MAME. JROK's board appeals to the retro-geek in me. I already have another, unrelated project in the works creating a synth out of original Commodore 64 sound chips. So, this is right up my alley!

I also decided to restore the cabinet with Robotron artwork - stencils on the sides, original marquee, and bezel artwork. So this cabinet restoration will be Robotron with a "twist." The twist being the extra Williams games available for play.

Now for the last bit - the control panel. If I'm going to invest in JROK's board, I really want the ability to play ALL the games that are available, with the exception of Sinistar (since it's requires a third joystick and vertical monitor).

So, I've looked at the two multi-williams control panel overlays that are available for sale on the internet. I don't think these would look good with full Robotron artwork on the rest of the cab.

From ArtWorkDoctor.com


From ArcadeShop.com


I figure the artwork for the cabinet should be consistent. If I have everything except the control panel in original Robotron art, then the multi-williams cpo's are going to stick out like a sore thumb. Tonight I plan to play around in Adobe Illustrator and see if I can cook up something that uses the multi-williams joystick/button layout, but has more of a Robotron look and feel.

If anyone has ideas or if someone has plowed this ground before, let me know. I want this cpo to look VERY ROBOTRONISH....

I'd love to see what you come up with!

[frailn]

Update - Cleaned out the inside of the cabinet and started stripping one side yesterday.







I FOUND A QUARTER STUCK INSIDE! I'm going to have to find a special place for this quarter.


And, here is my first attempt ad designing a control panel overlay. Keep in mind that this is an extremely rough draft, but gives you an idea of where I'm headed. I think I'll put text in the red boxes, like "FLAP" , "HYPERSPACE" etc... This is not to scale and the buttons probably need to be moved around to match the orginal Multi-Williams CPO. But, it's a start. I'm interested to hear your thoughts, ideas, input, criticism.

[Epyx]

And I spy a C64 old breadbox design on your shelf

[venkman]

i wish i had a garage space to work on mine! im in a second story tennament flat

good luck with this - looking forward to seing it progress. i was happy to see your change of 'direction' ..