Boring Donkey Kong restore

nomore25s

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This will be my 2nd "tear it down and restore it back" attempt. Damn you all that restore such nice cabinets and shamed me into trying to do the same :)

I picked this up for cheap and was convinced I had to fix a few cosmetic things, cap the monitor and move on. Then I picked up some side art. Then I was forced to patch and paint the sides, and it has snowballed from there.

I couple of pics right after I picked it up:
 

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I started tearing apart the CP. First thing I noticed was the fire button hole was too small for the button. They had drilled some holes to try to make it bigger, but the CP still ended up cracking. I don't know if the fire button is a replacement or the CPO. I have a new CPO from Mikes and the button fits fine.

The crazy part is the fade UNDER the CPO of the wooden part. I had to trim the picture down so it might not come through very well, but you can see the images from the CPO faded into the wooden part underneath.

That, and the black dust cover was smashed. It looked like they pried up the clear one and took a knife to the one underneath.
 

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Yep... original nintendo buttons are a bit smaller than the common standard.... if a previous owner tried to force a non-nintendo in there that could cause cracking to the CPO.

DK cabs are great to restore... they look really slick all cleaned up with new side art and all. Don't sell yorself short... any restoration can be as challenging as you let it. I really enjoyed my DKII project... I'll probably end up doing another Nintendo at some point because they look so darned good in the game room.

,
 
There is no such thing as a boring DK restoration. The hard work will be worth it - I still play mine all the time!
 
At least you got one to restore... I can't find one to buy ( at a descent price ) if my life depended on it..



*** Good luck with the restoration!***
 
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Thanks guys.

Yea, I'm crazy lucky to have picked up this machine! I posted about it a year or so back.

My "boring" part was in reference to the idea that plenty of DK's have been restored and I doubt mine will add any useful information. Its a labor of love thats for sure. Maybe this thread will help/inspire another restore!

Picked up the dust rings from gamestencils. I had PM'd him and his was kind enough to PM me back once they were in stock again. The CP is now completely rebuilt - I'll try to post pictures/updates soon. Work/Family has been kicking my butt.

I finished wiring up the replacement marquee light to the power brick - only to have it NOT work. Sometime while fooling with the original light (I bought replacement bulbs and starters) I killed the cabinet fuse :( I had meant to plug the fixture into my Popeye cabinet, but didn't get around to it. Was at Lowe's and shelled out the $9 for a new fixture. I bet the old one probably works....thats the problem with working 30-60 minutes every couple of days.

I need to install the new wiring harness from Dokert and then cap the monitor/sound board. Apply the sideart, t-molding and then tackle the coin door.....

More pictures "soon".
 
Some updated pictures

Here are a few pictures. Cabinet is all painted (top, back and back door as well). I couldn't stand it anymore and installed the side-art and t-molding. The t-molding is awesome and my crappy picture doesn't do it justice! I ordered 3 sets and will probably put the 2nd on Popeye "soon". Then the MB restore begins and it really needs t-molding!

I was going to wait until the monitor and everything inside was "finished". Then I remembered I had to put the monitor brackets in after the side-art.

I just cap'd the monitor - it of course doesn't work now. I posted in the monitor section about it :mad:

I cap'd the sound board, and its working great.

Put in Dokert's wiring harness, added some aluminum pieces to mount DK Jr. in there at the same time. That looks like it should work (I can't remember who on KLOV gave me the idea, wasn't mine, though I am using it!)

I can't find my instruction sticker and "insert coin". They're around somewhere ....
 

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Anyone know what the material is that the black piece of cardboard is stuck to the monitor is called? It seems like it was slight squishy like weather stripping, but adhesive on both sides like double-sided tape.

I guess I'll try a hobby store and see if I can describe it to them.
 
Anyone know what the material is that the black piece of cardboard is stuck to the monitor is called? It seems like it was slight squishy like weather stripping, but adhesive on both sides like double-sided tape.

I guess I'll try a hobby store and see if I can describe it to them.

Nice job! There's a member on here that was making repro Nintendo monitor shrouds. Can't remember who though.

I copied mine that was beat to hell onto a heavy grade poster stock that I found at Michael's.
 
Nice job! There's a member on here that was making repro Nintendo monitor shrouds. Can't remember who though.

I copied mine that was beat to hell onto a heavy grade poster stock that I found at Michael's.

Yea, mine is fine - I was very careful removing it and there are no creases. I was just stuck on what to use to stick it back on the monitor with.

Thanks!
 
The cardboard they used sucks..it warps from the heat and it really doesn't cover all of the open space anyway..get yourself one of the plastic 19" monitor surrounds..Arcadeshop sells them..you can measure and trim around the outside to a custom fit..if you do it right you don't need anything to hold it..it will fit nice and tightly and give you a nice border..I ended up doing that on my nintendo games..I like the look rather than crappy poster board junk..I'm sure they did that because it was cheap..:D
 
More pictures

Okay, down the homestretch....

Got the monitor/shroud/bezel all reinstalled.

Installed the Donkey Kong HS kit from Brasington. Very nice.

Installed DK Jr. along side the DK board. With Dokert's edge-connector wiring harness I can easily switch to DKJr.

Got the coin door stripped, sanded, detailed with the dremel and the first coat of paint on the front. With all the surfaces that is going to be a 2 or 3 day job. I hate doing coin doors.
 

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Oh yea, before anyone asks, I did tear apart the power "station". I figured it would be easier to tap for the marquee light with the station on the workbench than in the bottom of the cabinet.

It was (of course) filthy. I took everything off and cleaned it and hit it with a couple of coats of clear enamel. Might make it easier to clean the dust off next time. Found not one, but TWO more quarters, they were wedged in and around the PS and the transformer.
 

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Nice. I've got the same set up with DK/DK Jr. Boards. Really convenient.
 
Okay, down the homestretch....

Got the monitor/shroud/bezel all reinstalled.

Installed the Donkey Kong HS kit from Brasington. Very nice.

Installed DK Jr. along side the DK board. With Dokert's edge-connector wiring harness I can easily switch to DKJr.

Got the coin door stripped, sanded, detailed with the dremel and the first coat of paint on the front. With all the surfaces that is going to be a 2 or 3 day job. I hate doing coin doors.

I don't suppose you have any more details about the switching between boards, do you? I have both sets of boards but have to disconnect and remove one to switch between them.
 
I don't suppose you have any more details about the switching between boards, do you? I have both sets of boards but have to disconnect and remove one to switch between them.

I specifically installed Dokert's edge-connector DK harness in place of the multi-connector harness.

The Donkey Kong pcb set slides into the wooden slot in the cabinet and for whatever reason there is a 2nd slot. If you extend the metal L-bracket you can have two boardsets side-by-side. I still need to disconnect the edge-connector from one boardset to the other in order to play and some people don't like having to do that. But having them both physically installed keeps me from having to remove one and then put the other in there.
 
I specifically installed Dokert's edge-connector DK harness in place of the multi-connector harness.

The Donkey Kong pcb set slides into the wooden slot in the cabinet and for whatever reason there is a 2nd slot. If you extend the metal L-bracket you can have two boardsets side-by-side. I still need to disconnect the edge-connector from one boardset to the other in order to play and some people don't like having to do that. But having them both physically installed keeps me from having to remove one and then put the other in there.

Got it. Thanks for the reply!
 
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