Gauntlet Restoration Project

Zoma

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Kyle, TX, Texas
I'm sure the guys who scan the central Texas Craigslist has seen this cab come up before; "simpsons cabinet - $275". Sounds pretty sweet by the title: Simpsons cabinet for $250? That is, until you get a load of what the thing actually looks like.

1txetZM.jpg


I sent it around to a few of my arcade-savvy buddies and we all had a laugh. Then it became an inside joke, picking up the ever-so amazing Simpsons cabinet... then the thought of picking this thing up for real became a better and better idea in my head. Flipping this monstrosity back to a dedicated Gauntlet would be a true test of my skill. Finally decided to go for it and picked it up tonight for $230. I figured, hell, the monitor kind of works, there's a Simpsons PCB in it for me, and the wood is in pretty damn good condition, so it can't be a TOTAL loss... right?

ErWkWyMh.jpg

Here it is in our truck, being strapped down tightly.

f9OhytBh.jpg

The marquee is still in decent condition, sans screw holes from the Simpsons "marquee".

74GEGlQh.jpg

Unfortunately, the original art is not on this cab. The person stripped the original art and placed some black vinyls over the cab, which we didn't discover until after we started trying to scrape. OH WELL.

lc9HiM0h.jpg

Not a complete loss, though. The control panel is really really really rough, but it is still... existant.



Judge me if you want. I have faith that this fallen warrior can be brought back from the dead. I'll update this thread as I get farther; done on working on it for tonight. c:
 
I think it's great that you are saving a classic. I have done a few deconversions my self, they are a lot of work but worth it. Good job and good luck...
 
JP1 on here does the full tall sideart repro's They look pretty good. I just got a set to use deconverting mine from a capt america and the avengers. Yours is actually in much better shape than mine was...
 
You should pull the Gauntlet 2 control panel artwork off.
The original Gauntlet control panel artwork I bet is in amazing condition.
You can see the original artwork on the edges of the Gauntlet 2 artwork.

Just to let you know too I also have the original six internal harnesses if you need them. :)

I'm sure the guys who scan the central Texas Craigslist has seen this cab come up before; "simpsons cabinet - $275". Sounds pretty sweet by the title: Simpsons cabinet for $250? That is, until you get a load of what the thing actually looks like.

1txetZM.jpg


I sent it around to a few of my arcade-savvy buddies and we all had a laugh. Then it became an inside joke, picking up the ever-so amazing Simpsons cabinet... then the thought of picking this thing up for real became a better and better idea in my head. Flipping this monstrosity back to a dedicated Gauntlet would be a true test of my skill. Finally decided to go for it and picked it up tonight for $230. I figured, hell, the monitor kind of works, there's a Simpsons PCB in it for me, and the wood is in pretty damn good condition, so it can't be a TOTAL loss... right?

ErWkWyMh.jpg

Here it is in our truck, being strapped down tightly.

f9OhytBh.jpg

The marquee is still in decent condition, sans screw holes from the Simpsons "marquee".

74GEGlQh.jpg

Unfortunately, the original art is not on this cab. The person stripped the original art and placed some black vinyls over the cab, which we didn't discover until after we started trying to scrape. OH WELL.

lc9HiM0h.jpg

Not a complete loss, though. The control panel is really really really rough, but it is still... existant.



Judge me if you want. I have faith that this fallen warrior can be brought back from the dead. I'll update this thread as I get farther; done on working on it for tonight. c:
 
You should pull the Gauntlet 2 control panel artwork off.
The original Gauntlet control panel artwork I bet is in amazing condition.
You can see the original artwork on the edges of the Gauntlet 2 artwork.

Just to let you know too I also have the original six internal harnesses if you need them. :)
I may be interested in picking them up! Good advice with the CP. We may have to peel the G2 art off, but we'll see... I kind of like the G2 panel more than the G1. But this G2 may not be good after all. Relevant pics incoming!

Before the 1st coat citristrip:
9VzXHHGl.jpg


After the 1st coat citristrip:
p6CCNDYl.jpg


I'm gonna try another coat tomorrow or maybe some other time this weekend. The smell started to make me feel woozy so I backed off for the night. But it definitely looks a lot better. Also, thanks for the tips about JP1; will definitely be hitting him up for some side art. His stuff looks real nice!
 
I've purchased 2 sets of the artwork for my Gauntlet and Gauntlet 2 and they are really nice.
I normally strip all of the paint, than use a couple of coats of regular paint and finish it off with a really nice epoxy black paint. Comes out really nice.
As for the artwork I actually like the original Gauntlet artwork better than the Gauntlet 2.
And if you interested in the harnesses please drop me a line when your needing them.
Are you needing anything else to complete your project?
Good luck on your restoration. I always love seeing my favorite game being restored.
 
Update! Been busy working on the Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo machine for our upcoming tournament, but I've found some time to keep working on this... As you thought Shawn, the Gauntlet I CP was hidden underneath and in great condition sans a few obnoxious drill holes from the goober who thought converting Gauntlet to Simpsons was a good idea.
a1zKNABl.jpg


Unfortunately it still has a looooooot of cleaning needed.
q38GuiRl.jpg
 
Good luck with your de-conversion. I did the same with a Crime Fighters cab I picked up for about the same price as your Simpsons cab...but sadly a Crime Fighters board isn't worth anything. You could sell the simpsons board and get a decent chunk of change back.

Here's a link to my thread for inspiration: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=224284
 
Good luck with your de-conversion. I did the same with a Crime Fighters cab I picked up for about the same price as your Simpsons cab...but sadly a Crime Fighters board isn't worth anything. You could sell the simpsons board and get a decent chunk of change back.

Here's a link to my thread for inspiration: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=224284
Woah! That is a real good looking cab. Good job. Quite inspiring! :)

Thinking I might just scrap the CP I have now and get a new print and make it out of wood... There's so many holes drilled (including a third button I didn't realize was not supposed to be there until today) so I figure just a new CP will work better. Thoughts?
 
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Woah! That is a real good looking cab. Good job. Quite inspiring! :)

Thinking I might just scrap the CP I have now and get a new print and make it out of wood... There's so many holes drilled (including a third button I didn't realize was not supposed to be there until today) so I figure just a new CP will work better. Thoughts?

what would you do about the metal overlay that the CPO is stuck to? IIRC, the joysticks are mounted to the metal plate, not the wood CP itself. Might be able to find a way to make it work, but could end up being a pain.
 
Woah! That is a real good looking cab. Good job. Quite inspiring! :)

Thinking I might just scrap the CP I have now and get a new print and make it out of wood... There's so many holes drilled (including a third button I didn't realize was not supposed to be there until today) so I figure just a new CP will work better. Thoughts?
If you do decide to junk it, lmk and i might take it off your hands. Im looking at doing a super-multi gauntlet with a 1/2 multi board, then a gauntlet -> jamma, and a dark legacy pcb with a 2 in 1 switcher to the cab. In that case id need the extra hole!
 
Hey! I remember this thread. Well, my rough patch has settled and we've gone into overtime finishing this restoration...

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Pretty much couldn't salvage the original art. There were just too many stray splinters and wood chips glued on to get anything nice out of it.

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Didn't realize it til we took them apart, but apparently the Gauntlet coin doors had metal reject button bezels. Super cool!

tI9xYBYl.jpg

Paint job came out fantastically!
 
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