Custom RoadBlasters sitdown cabinet is underway...

keithsarcade

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OK, this is by no means going to be a full restoration. And for you purists, look away now as I'm planning on giving this game a "custom" job.

I basically bought this RoadBlasters cockpit on a whim, site unseen and it was a few hours away. I always wanted a sitdown model of this game and never thought I'd find one. Anyway I was pretty disapointed after driving 100+ miles to find it had water damage that the seller didn't mention, but I had made the trip and already agreed to sell a good game to make room for this heap, so I was taking it home regardless. It also has a board problem which I knew about before I agreed to the purchase, and the monitor needs a new flyback. I may end up replacing it altogether as the burn is pretty heavy.

Heres what the game looked like when I brought it home...
 

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Last week I got started by literally cutting this game in half. Believe it or not, this beast isn't "sectional" like most driving games, and getting this in my basement was a chore in itself even with the neighbor's help. I figured since I would be rebuilding the back half of the game anyway, might as well make it a two-piece cabinet. Glad I did too, this thing is going to be a million times easier to deal with when we move into a better place sometime in the near future.

My original plan was to cut new side panels for the back half while reusing most of the original pieces. But after the teardown started today, I think I have a different plan in mind. I am now leaning towards giving the base from the back half a facelift, while preping it for a sliding bucket seat from a newer driving game. Basically, now my vision is converting this former "cockpit" to a custom sit down model with an adjustable seat. Now you can see why I've warned the purists.

The base isn't damaged too bad, but one of the pieces of plywood started to warp in the back corner. As you can see, I'm trying to salvage it. I have the ratchet strap shaping it back in place while the glue dries.

I think I have found a seat that will work great for this project. I should be picking it up next weekend and will report back when I've made more progress.
 

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A special thanks to Jeremy (The Basement Arcade) for graciously donating this seat to the cause. This came from a parted out Sega Rally Championship. Should work great, the colors are about spot on also. Looks like I'll need to build some kind of platform and raise the seat up about 6 to 8 inches, shouldn't be too hard.

It has some scratches. Anyone have any advice on how I can make this look a little better on a budget?

Also you can see I have removed the top from the game. I found that it too had water damage, so it'll get some new lumber there as well.
 

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Got some of the woodworking done this weekend. Since I didn't need the full length of the back half anymore, I shaved about 10" from it. It is now the same length as the front, at least at the bottom. Each section is now about 34" and I also mounted some shaved 2x4's inside the back half. They stick out about 8", just added support to go between the two halves.

For a raised platform for the seat, I cut a box frame out of 2x4's and a good piece of plywood, then sanded the pieces down and applied 2 coats of paint. Did the same for the modified base.

Right now I'm at a stopping point until I get more lumber and some good rails for the seat. The set I have is no good.
 

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On another note, the game will be getting a nice G07 in place of the heavily burned in K7000. It has mild Galaxian burn, but looks a million times better. Figured since I'm putting all this effort in this beast, I ought to put a decent monitor in it.
 

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Interesting, looks like a fun project. keep up the good work :D i like how your making it 2 pieces.
 
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What material is the seat made out of? Is it hard plastic like an ABS? Maybe a palm sander with some successfully finer grades of sandpaper followed by some plastic paint may do the trick? Depending on how thick the material is and how deep the scratches are...
 
Its plastic. I tried a sample sanding using 400 grit on the bottom where it can't be seen, and all it did was tarnish that spot. I'm just wondering if I should try a rubbing compound, or if that would ruin the seat.
 
Its plastic. I tried a sample sanding using 400 grit on the bottom where it can't be seen, and all it did was tarnish that spot. I'm just wondering if I should try a rubbing compound, or if that would ruin the seat.

You need to continue to step up in grit 800, 1200, 2000 and then polish to remove the scratches in the plastic. If they're too deep you probably won't remove them entirely, but it's worth a shot.
 
Back at it this weekend. Here's the rest of the new lumber the game will get. Cut (including slots for the T-Molding), sanded down and in the middle of getting paint.

Also heres what will hopefully be a successful mounting device for the two halves, a thick piece of sheet metal which will be covered with a step tread, should be a close match with the matting already on the floor. I'll be working on that as well as finally mounting the seat tomorrow. Got another set of rails which seem to work (thanks again Jeremy). I did have to modify the release lever as it was way too long (the piece cut off on the right), but I think it turned out well, should work nice.

You need to continue to step up in grit 800, 1200, 2000 and then polish to remove the scratches in the plastic. If they're too deep you probably won't remove them entirely, but it's worth a shot.

Had a hard time finding a higher grit, guess I shouyld be looking at the auto shop instead of the hardware store. What kind of polish should I use?
 

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Calling it a weekend. Back half is almost done, just needs some more red paint, and the front half is back together again (mostly) with the new lumber on top as well as the back door. I'm going to wait to mate the two halves again until I get some new casters for the game. Then it will finally start looking like a driving game again.
 

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Couldn't wait to get back to it. Got the new casters on and mated the two halves. I think it's turned out nice especially considering I'm still a novice when it comes to woodworking. The sliding seat works great and seems just as comfortable as my other driving games.

So now when I need to take it apart for transport, I just remove 3 bolts and the two pieces slide right apart.

This game might hopefully get finished in the next week or two. I have a daughter board from an upright on order, hopefully a few rom swaps will resurrect this one. Otherwise I just need to touch up & tweak a few things, cut a new plexi, fix up the steering wheel and add a couple more custom touches that I have in mind. Can't wait.
 

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Thanks to Atari Force who sold me an untested daughter board from an upright (System 1). I had high hopes that a few rom swaps would bring mine back to life and it did, the game is finally working! The pedal does need a new pot though and the steering assembly needs a couple switches. I'll probably tackle those this weekend.

Now I'm asking for help from anyone who can print a small piece of artwork for me. My idea is to print a marquee from an upright and shrink it down to half size (11 3/4" x 2 1/2"), and have it printed on something like a bumper sticker so I can mount it on the back seat. So far I've sent a request to game on graphics but no response yet. Anyone willing to help me out?
 

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If you cannot find anyone to print the sticker you could try buying some sticker paper from Hobby Lobby and just print it from your computer. Not sure if they have it the size you want though.



Thanks to Atari Force who sold me an untested daughter board from an upright (System 1). I had high hopes that a few rom swaps would bring mine back to life and it did, the game is finally working! The pedal does need a new pot though and the steering assembly needs a couple switches. I'll probably tackle those this weekend.

Now I'm asking for help from anyone who can print a small piece of artwork for me. My idea is to print a marquee from an upright and shrink it down to half size (11 3/4" x 2 1/2"), and have it printed on something like a bumper sticker so I can mount it on the back seat. So far I've sent a request to game on graphics but no response yet. Anyone willing to help me out?
 
Someone here pointed me to a site that prints custom bumper stickers. Got an order in so well see how it goes. Also ordered another "custom touch" but will wait until it arrives and installed before I spoil it. On another note I went shopping today and got materials to fix up the steering and gas pedal.

I could use advice on how to clean the fresnel lens. Mine's getting a little bit of glare.
 
Gonna be a couple weeks before I get the custom goods in, but other than that I'm proud to say its finished and ready to be added to the lineup so here it is. Pedal got a new pot and the thumb buttons got new switches yesterday. I cleaned the fresnel lens as best I could with some dish soap and a toothbrush. Still some glare but I guess that's to be expected from this lens.

Like I said from the beginning, definitely not showroom quality, but considering what I started with I think it turned out very well, and I can finally enjoy some solid gameplay. Also pleased that this project didn't cost near as much as I thought it would (mainly because I gambled on an untested board and it paid off). Anyway we'll see how long it takes me to get to rally 50.
 

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That's really neat! If CafePress doesn't go through, contact Rich or Kendra at ThisOldGame. They'll take care of you.
Good luck.

P.S.: Since when did Galaxian have a Ms. Pac-Man maze? :)
 
Here's the last couple of custom goodies that finally arrived. A marquee printed on a bumper sticker for the back of the seat, as well as 36" red LED light strips for each side of the cabinet.

I also just finished the full page on my site for this game. It's a little more organized than this thread. Feel free to check it out here:

RoadBlasters
 

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