No longer need help since cab is gone. First CAB Repair - Any Help?

SCUBA King

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So I inherited a stripped out centipede cab with some damage, I was wondering if anyone had any input on how I may be able to salvage this as the artwork is almost flawless (original) for being 40 years old.

It looks like the corner got crushed some how and there is a little blowout near the control kick out area.

I wasn't sure if I can epoxy / bondo and then try to color match the paint or if there are any secrets I don't know about on how to do this.

Note, it is cracked through to Marquee side so it is pretty much just floating there an being held in place mostly by the little bit of wood that is hanging on and the T-Molding.

Thanks in advance for any tips.
 

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Welcome to the forum.
In my opinion, for what it's worth, the areas in the red squares need to be cut out. You can use the other side of the cabinet as a template in order to cut new pieces and then biscuit join them to the cabinet. Then you can use bondo or wood filler to smooth out the seam. While you have the bondo out, you can fill in the areas that are circled in blue. Sand everything smooth ad then paint. I don't know how well you will be able to match that color. But with some of the larger chunks that are coming off by the marquee, you might be able to take it down to Sherwin Williams and see if they can color match. Maybe see if there is a cheap air brush at hobby lobby to try to feather the old and new paint.

Good luck. It's a beautiful cabinet. I can't wait to see it fixed.

Centipede Side.jpg
 
Welcome to the forum.
In my opinion, for what it's worth, the areas in the red squares need to be cut out. You can use the other side of the cabinet as a template in order to cut new pieces and then biscuit join them to the cabinet. Then you can use bondo or wood filler to smooth out the seam. While you have the bondo out, you can fill in the areas that are circled in blue. Sand everything smooth ad then paint. I don't know how well you will be able to match that color. But with some of the larger chunks that are coming off by the marquee, you might be able to take it down to Sherwin Williams and see if they can color match. Maybe see if there is a cheap air brush at hobby lobby to try to feather the old and new paint.

Good luck. It's a beautiful cabinet. I can't wait to see it fixed.

View attachment 480473
Thanks for the input, I'll have a MPCNC router built this winter so I can spin up just about anything out of wood and will do what you say.
As as total newbie to this, is it worth doing the reconditioning on this cab only for someone to want to buy it or do you think that this is something that I should keep and start trying to restore myself to pristine? I am a fixit it and flip it kind of guy who is only attached to one specific piece of scuba gear and one megalodon shark tooth I recovered on a dive, everything else is negotiable to me.

Thanks again for your input. I'll post more photos when I get to work on it.
 
I am a total noob also. :geek:
I just finished cutting my teeth on my first restoration. You might want to wait until some of the more experienced guys on here give their input. They might have a better/different opinion on how to repair this. But from I can see, this is a beautiful cabinet that deserves to be restored. Of course, I believe every cabinet deserves to get be restored.

As to whether you should restore it and then sell or sell now, I guess that would depend on the condition of the rest of the cabinet, what parts are included, and where you are located. There are a lot of variables. I hate to say it, but most likely you will not make money from the time, energy, and material you put into the repair. These are more a passion project than a flip for profit. But I could be totally wrong. Like I said, I'm a noob. With the paperboy I restored, if I were add up the cost of the game, shipping, and materials, I could probably make a little profit if I were to sell it. But I put in hundreds of hours in the restoration. So was it worth all the energy for me to just sell it, no. But that's just me.

If you check out https://www.arcade-classics.com/exidy_arcade_price_guide.html , you can get an idea of what the game is going for. Then you can add up what you need to restore it and see if it's worth the time and effort to you.

If you don't mind me asking, where are located? Is this just the cabinet or are the other components there also?
 
I am a total noob also. :geek:
I just finished cutting my teeth on my first restoration. You might want to wait until some of the more experienced guys on here give their input. They might have a better/different opinion on how to repair this. But from I can see, this is a beautiful cabinet that deserves to be restored. Of course, I believe every cabinet deserves to get be restored.

As to whether you should restore it and then sell or sell now, I guess that would depend on the condition of the rest of the cabinet, what parts are included, and where you are located. There are a lot of variables. I hate to say it, but most likely you will not make money from the time, energy, and material you put into the repair. These are more a passion project than a flip for profit. But I could be totally wrong. Like I said, I'm a noob. With the paperboy I restored, if I were add up the cost of the game, shipping, and materials, I could probably make a little profit if I were to sell it. But I put in hundreds of hours in the restoration. So was it worth all the energy for me to just sell it, no. But that's just me.

If you check out https://www.arcade-classics.com/exidy_arcade_price_guide.html , you can get an idea of what the game is going for. Then you can add up what you need to restore it and see if it's worth the time and effort to you.

If you don't mind me asking, where are located? Is this just the cabinet or are the other components there also?
I don't mind yiu asking at all. I'm just north of Ann Arbor in MI. This was a full centipede game. Trackball was yellow wico worn like nobody's business. Guts look original. Board was having issues before I inherited it according to past owners.
Tried to power on on bench (got a pile of parts and the cabinet all separate) Got green flashing screen and horrible audio tone that was trying to say something is wrong.
So in short I have all components outside of cabinet, tube is separated from neck board waiting for cap kit and that is out and coin mech was horribly disfigured. Door and buttons intact but inside mech was bent all to hell. Think all works except for board.
 
Welcome to the forum.

There are literally hundreds of threads in the archives here, with that repair you are attempting, as well as many others

The archives are an invaluable resource. You should spend time searching them for any question, as they already contain the answers to most questions about most types of repairs, for most games.

Pro Tip: Always use the Advanced Search page, not the widget in the upper right corner. It will get you far better results.
 
The "right" way to fix those is to do as Jaydon said: use the opposite side as a template to router a replacement piece, cut the bad wood out, biscuit join the new piece, and cut a new groove for the t-molding. There are many threads in the restoration forum that show how this can be done. If you already have all those tools (router, biscuit joiner, table saw, clamps, router bit to cut t-molding groove) it's actually pretty straightforward. There are those who would try wood hardener+bondo+endless sanding, and that can get you a nice looking repair without dropping a small fortune on new tools, but it takes a long time to get smooth and contoured and it won't be as strong as a glued-in replacement piece.

The drawback with either approach is that the entire side is one big piece of white vinyl, and you will inevitably have a seam where the vinyl stops and bare wood begins (unless you want to replace the entire side art, which is both pricey and IMO unnecessary with original art that nice overall). White paint out of a spray can may be a close match but it won't be perfect, and even if you manage to get the color close, the the seam will still be visible because you will have a painted surface next to a vinyl surface. You can feather the paint over the seam and get it to blend in fairly well, but it will always be pretty obvious that a repair has been done. But that's not to say you shouldn't do it, only that you shouldn't get your hopes up of achieving perfection. I have plenty of games where I've repaired just that sort of damage, and although you can see the repair, it's 100x better than it looked before.

Centipede is a classic game, but it's also one of the most common arcade games ever made, so it's neither rare nor particularly valuable. Unless you literally got it for free, a full-blown restoration on a Centipede is rarely a profitable venture if the goal is to sell it when you're done. Just something to keep in mind as you begin that process. Good luck!
 
The "right" way to fix those is to do as Jaydon said: use the opposite side as a template to router a replacement piece, cut the bad wood out, biscuit join the new piece, and cut a new groove for the t-molding. There are many threads in the restoration forum that show how this can be done. If you already have all those tools (router, biscuit joiner, table saw, clamps, router bit to cut t-molding groove) it's actually pretty straightforward. There are those who would try wood hardener+bondo+endless sanding, and that can get you a nice looking repair without dropping a small fortune on new tools, but it takes a long time to get smooth and contoured and it won't be as strong as a glued-in replacement piece.

The drawback with either approach is that the entire side is one big piece of white vinyl, and you will inevitably have a seam where the vinyl stops and bare wood begins (unless you want to replace the entire side art, which is both pricey and IMO unnecessary with original art that nice overall). White paint out of a spray can may be a close match but it won't be perfect, and even if you manage to get the color close, the the seam will still be visible because you will have a painted surface next to a vinyl surface. You can feather the paint over the seam and get it to blend in fairly well, but it will always be pretty obvious that a repair has been done. But that's not to say you shouldn't do it, only that you shouldn't get your hopes up of achieving perfection. I have plenty of games where I've repaired just that sort of damage, and although you can see the repair, it's 100x better than it looked before.

Centipede is a classic game, but it's also one of the most common arcade games ever made, so it's neither rare nor particularly valuable. Unless you literally got it for free, a full-blown restoration on a Centipede is rarely a profitable venture if the goal is to sell it when you're done. Just something to keep in mind as you begin that process. Good luck!
Thanks for taking all the time for rely. I have all the tools above except biscuit joiner. I appreciate other info too. I may hold off on taking time and effort to restore centipede since it's so common but may use it as guinea pig before I try a different one down the road based on your opinion of ROI on doing this one. I'm excited to try my hand at doing a restoration soon and can't believe the amount of responsiveness I'm getting as a new member here already. Thanks for taking the time. It's appreciated.
 
and if you join in new material to recut to a pattern from other side, always use like material if possible, and check the thickness is same/close. Do not use plywood, I'd use a chunk of MDF. Just had to replace about a 6" x 12" section in back edge of a Gauntlet cabinet. Back edge was hit and chunk knocked out. I cut the section out so that the 'seam' is aligned with the wood blocking on inside.
 
So I inherited a stripped out centipede cab with some damage, I was wondering if anyone had any input on how I may be able to salvage this as the artwork is almost flawless (original) for being 40 years old.

It looks like the corner got crushed some how and there is a little blowout near the control kick out area.

I wasn't sure if I can epoxy / bondo and then try to color match the paint or if there are any secrets I don't know about on how to do this.

Note, it is cracked through to Marquee side so it is pretty much just floating there an being held in place mostly by the little bit of wood that is hanging on and the T-Molding.

Thanks in advance for any tips.

Since I'm a newbie, I posted this in the wrong category and Admin moved it over, so now I can't edit it. I wanted to say thanks to everyone for awesome advice on this, BUT, neighbor took it back as-is so I won't be able to attempt this repair (at this time anyway, maybe they'll send it back over?).

THANK YOU TO ALL who offered so much advice so fast. I just don't want to waste anyone's time moving forward.
 
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