Old beaten up Space Duel cabinet restoration: any recommendations ?

Mamezilla

New member

Donor 2011
Joined
Dec 4, 2011
Messages
23
Reaction score
0
Location
Quebec, Canada
Old beaten up Space Duel cabinet restoration: any recommendations ?

Hello,

I'm a newbie on KLOV and would like to say hello to everyone in here. I've been around the scene for a while, and would like to seek any advice to help me with my project, which has been with highs and lows during the last few years.

A few years back, I've acquired an old beaten up Space Duel cabinet I wanted to restore. This cabinet has passed thru a few conversions, the latest being a Marvel Super hero. The control panel was ruined, and the sides were beaten up so badly that I had no choice to sand down the original side art after applying a few coats of a "citistrip" type product, it had at least 4 layers of paint over it (too bad as the side art on those cabs was nice). Over the last years, I worked on it very randomly (work and a couple of kids), but I decided to try and finish the work during the next winter season. This cab will probably end up a 60 in 1 (hopefully I won't get too much flamed because I might be ruining a classic as some could say, but it was the only cab I could get at that time, it had no game in it and it was so beaten up..., also I never played this game, so I do not have any interest in it).

My carpentry knowledge is VERY limited and my ability in this area is around 0... The cabinet, which seems to be made with particle board, had some swelling on the bottom of one of the sides. I.took out some of the "swelling" and have patched that part with Bondo, now I need to sand it down. Since I must work indoor and that Bondo smell stinks, I tried to patch other holes with plastic wood, but the results are bad. I'll have to sand off these and I guess I'll have to use Bondo, will have to vent the room where I work on it but winter is quite cold around here up north in Canada. Unless there are alternatives.

So I have a couple of questions :
- Are there alternatives besides Bondo because of the smell and fumes, since I have to work indoor during winter ?
- I'm contemplating either applying laminate on the sides, or painting them. If I end painting, should I sand down the sides more (until I reach the bare particle board), or does it seems to be enough and applying a couple of coats of primer will do the job to make the sides smooth ? I could also try some vinyl that thisoldgame.com has to sell, but I'm afraid that vinyl is not very forgiving for imperfections under it. Am I correct ? Even if I would end up buying the Space duel repro on vinyl from Zarloffson (from this thread: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=159034 ), it would show all imperfections under it, right ?

I've posted a few pics of the cabinet like it is right now. I'll post other pics of the back and control panel and will have some more questions on the next posts.

Thanks to everyone !
 

Attachments

  • image001.jpg
    image001.jpg
    75.2 KB · Views: 57
  • image002.jpg
    image002.jpg
    77.2 KB · Views: 52
  • image003.jpg
    image003.jpg
    98.6 KB · Views: 58
  • image004.jpg
    image004.jpg
    61.5 KB · Views: 50
  • image005.jpg
    image005.jpg
    71 KB · Views: 44
Last edited:
Old beaten up Space Duel cabinet

On the back of the cabinet, the edge between the back and the top part is a bit beaten up as you will see on the pics. There was a handle screwed on the top part, and the wood particle around the holes created is a bit swollen up. Is Bondo still the best way to repair these ?
 

Attachments

  • image006.jpg
    image006.jpg
    75.3 KB · Views: 12
  • image008.jpg
    image008.jpg
    77 KB · Views: 15
  • image009.jpg
    image009.jpg
    80.4 KB · Views: 12
Last edited:
Old beaten up Space Duel cabinet

Now for the control panel: the original one was too badly beaten up (it had been converted to a fighter style layout with too much holes in it). I was lucky about 4 years ago to get another Space duel one on which the overlay was beaten up, but had only the original holes on it so it required less job patching it. Since the cab would end up with a 60 in 1 in it, I limited the layout with one joystick (a Ultimarc T-Stick I acquired last year which is 4-8 switchable from the top), 3 buttons, a 2,25 inch trackball and the 1 and 2 players buttons. You'll also notice that the vertical part of the panel has been cut off for some reason.

After some trial and error during the last few years, I managed to finally patch up the holes with some "Steel Stick" putty I got from the local Canadian Tire and some Bondo. I've drilled the needed holes and tried to sand everything down evenly. I can barely feel any bumps with my fingers, it seems to be even. I had to patch up the two "1 or 2 players" on the right because the higher one would have interfered with the metal piece I'll have to install under it to attach the panel to the cabinet (clamp). I decided meanwhile to use instead 2 Atari cone buttons I have instead of the big ones originally.

For fun, I tried to apply an adhesive vinyl leftover I had on it to have an idea how it would look like when I order and apply an overlay. I could see on the vinyl all the places where ther was patches under it.

- Does it means that when I'll install the real CP overlay, it will end up the same ?
- What should I do next ?

Thanks
 

Attachments

  • image010.jpg
    image010.jpg
    66.4 KB · Views: 31
  • image012.jpg
    image012.jpg
    57.3 KB · Views: 24
  • image013.jpg
    image013.jpg
    61.2 KB · Views: 20
  • image014.jpg
    image014.jpg
    64.5 KB · Views: 20
Last edited:
For fun, I tried to apply an adhesive vinyl leftover I had on it to have an idea how it would look like when I order and apply an overlay. I could see on the vinyl all the places where ther was patches under it.

- Does it means that when I'll install the real CP overlay, it will end up the same ?
- What should I do next ?

JBWeld for Metal might be a better solution then the stick putty you used. It's a lot more resilient when it cures. Takes about 24hrs to cure. And if you don't like the Smell of Bondo; you proably won't like JBWeld.

Also keep in mind the CP will get the most abuse on the machine. I'd make damn sure the stick putty could take the abuse before I spent the dough on a good CP overlay and paint.

Once I had what I beleived to be a "secure" control panel; I'd put down some sandable primer and sand the whole CP flat. Might take 2or3 coats/sanding repeat/rinse cycles before you got it flat and smooth. The sanding / primer will show you where the high/low levels are so it'll look right when the overlay goes down. Also a good base for paint which you'll proably want before the overlay is installed.

As far as bondo; it really is the best stuff. :(
I've used a wood filler/epoxy for some stuff; but to be honest is smells worse than bondo and is very hard to control. Bondo can be installed with your fingers to make those corners smooth and fill the holes. Maybe someone had a different suggestion.
 
I'd check out ebay for a fully populated control panel, they're not too expensive.

Congratulations on fixing up a Space Duel. Much underated game IMO.
 
Thanks for your replies.

Zitt: I can say that the Steel Stick putty I used is hard as a rock. I've sanded numerous times and and tried pushing as hard as I could some of the holes I've plugged with it and they would not budge. I've tried JBWeld in the past and was not satisfied with it.

I didn't know anything about sandable primer. I'll check what would be available in my area up in Canada. If indeed it can can fill up small imperfections, It might save me some time and job. I'll try as you described and will post back.

As for Bondo, it's not because of it's smell (trust me, when you have young kids in diapers, you can smell worse things at times...), it's mainly that I'm afraid that the household will get sick with the odor and fumes. I'm currently trying to work on the cab in my basement, and the odor is being smelled all around the house. I just can't open up the window, it's winter and snowing in here right now and the current temperature outside is around -10 degrees celsius (not sure what it is in farenheith tought). One of the possibilities might be that I use a bit more hardener and make smaller batches at a time so that it dries faster, so might smell during less times. Unless someone has another idea. Too bad Takeman does not have any blanks anymore, there was someone who had one in the UK but the shipping cost was higher than the price of the CP itself to ship it back in North America.

monty a_900: Thanks for the input. There is currently a full control panel currently up on ebay but they ship only to the US. Since I'm modifying the layout on it (add a joystick and trackball), i'd end up having to plug holes on it anyway. One of the possibilities would be to make a customised overlay based on the original but made to suit the controls I'll add on it. I'M wondering if the original CP overlay has been vectorised and is available so that I would be able to modify it to suit my needs. I'll have to check that.

As for the side art, I was able to send a message to Zarloffson yesterday, and he replied that he might have some available next week. I'll be checking that; however it will depend on the budget since the wife is holding the purse a bit...
 
Last edited:
Sandable primer is in the spray paint section
Here in the states; it's at automotive supply stores and most paint sections at home improvement and even walmart; should be easy to find.

Usually comes in charcoal black and grey.

Bondo, I bought mine in a tube and just use a small amount when I need it.
 
Was able to find a can of grey Dupli-Color sandable primer at a local Canadian Tire. I'm going to be working on that during the holidays since I'm off until january 4th. I also got some plexi and a friend who's a carpenter at my work place will cut it for me to sandwich the marquee between 2 pieces and for my CP.

A quick question: is there laminate under the sideart on both sides ?

Happy holidays to everyone !
 
Plexi - I usually laser cut.
Or score and snap it.
I tend not to cut it with anything other than a beam of lite.

You don't have to have a special tool to score... anything sharp will do.
I've used a corner of a wood chisel... maybe even a xacto knife.
 
your first problem will be horizontal shelf mounted monitor. Space duel has provisions to accept a vertical monitor. Your going to have to get creative/make your own mounts to mount a monitor in there.

Plus with the tall back control panel, a vertical monitor might have part of its viewable area blocked. So you should consider that before you start.
 
That's a Gravitar cabinet, not Space Duel. It has only one speaker and does not have the monitor shelf. No big deal, really. The largest CRT I could mount vertically in a Space Duel cab without cutting things up was a 17" VGA. Good luck!
And I use Elmers Wood Filler for EVERYTHING. Patience is important when working with wood filler, you will not the quick drying times of Bondo but you will not get toxic fumes either. I fix CP's with wood filler all the time but it takes time and patience to get them to look real nice, it is not easy and it has taken many CP's for me to get proficient at refinishing old, hacked up control panels.
 
Thanks for the reply guys.

Zitt: I could have cut the marquee plexi myself but I should have mentionned the the guy will cut also at the same time a 1/8" thick piece that will go on top of the control panel. He'll base the piece he'll do on the original one that came with the cabinet on which it has angled cuts on the longer edges. It's gonna be less "scrapy" for the hands when we play, and he has what's needed to do those, I'll ony have to cut the holes on it when the CP will be finished. So I asked him to cut the marquee ones also from a less thicker piece I gave him at the same time, lesser chances of screwing these than if I do it myself... What grade sand paper did you use between layers of sandable primer ?

mrbill2084: The control panel's tall back part had been cut off when I bought the cabinet at first. Since a part of the "curvy" part is still there, it still can hold the plexi. So it gives some more space for the vertical monitor. When I bought the cab, I got at the same time an arcade monitor that had a little burn in, but seemed to work OK. If I decide to use it, I'll probably manage to do a cap job on it; but I'm afraid as hell of these because of the voltage they carry around. I'll consider also fitting the biggest CRT computer monitor I can put in there; there is a surplus/used computer store where I live that has some used 19, 20 and 21 inch computer monitors so I might try to get and fit one of these instead. To be continued...

taylormadelv: You are probably right, but I was sure that was I could see from what was left of the side art was from a Space Duel. I guess it makes sense since there is only one speaker on the top shelf, and another one between the CP and the coin box. I'll check to se what are the options are for some Gravitar side art and CPO.

I saw on the Arcade art library a CUSTOM Space Duel CPO in Illustrator format (made by NoOne=NBA=, see http://arcadeartlibrary.com/arcade_art/details.php?image_id=887 ) that I could have used to make a custom one with what I need (remove the tall back part and so). I have a very old version version of Illustrator that I tried but it wouldn't open the file. I also tried to import it in Mayura (a shareware vector program) but it couln't handle it also. So I'm stuck at this for now.

As for the wood filler, it makes sense also but I wonder if Elmer's will stay on the wood if I put some to fill out the surface dents (like on the back, on my second post). I saw on an Oscar Controls centipede restoration project (http://mirrors.arcadecontrols.com/OscarControls/centipede/centi4.htm) that he used some black vinyl like this: http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?PartNumber=261-618 to go over the black frontof the cab. Would this be an alternative for me ? I guess vinyl isn't very forgiving . Did someone in here try this ?

As a side note, please bear with me if there are typos or gammatical errors in my posts since english is not my native language. Being raised with my Irish (and hard headed...) grandmother, I used to be bilingual when I was a lot youger but since I have less chances practicing it these days, I'm losing it a bit...
 
Last edited:
When you will use vinyl laminate, the "bondo" work on the control panel needs to be perfect or it will not look nice. Vinyl laminate shows every single tiny imperfection, so when I refinish a CP (as I am currently right now), absolute perfection is required when sanding the cp perfectly smooth. I only use imperial wet/dry sandpaper on CP's now and I usually will go up to 1000 grit to get the finish real smooth. It can take a few weeks to get a CP to look this nice and I always cut my holes FIRST. That way, I do not damage any of the bondo work I have already done. Refinishing CP's has become a real artform for me, personally, much skill and time is required to get a hacked up, old cp to look real nice again.
 
I've never done a CP... so I'd trust what others say.
Generally; I use 220,400,500 grit when sanding primer.
Then put a nice layer of regular spray paint down... proally three light coats. Then sand again. Not sure that 1000grit is needed; but then again I don't have the experience.
I guess it depends on how thin the vynil is.
 
Thanks for taking the time of replying and giving tips and tricks. I really appreciate it.

When I talked about using a roll of vinyl laminate like the one used by Oscar Controls's centipede restoration, my intention was to laminate the front, top and back of the cabinet like he did in his project. I guess my restoration job on these parts of the cab would have to be no less than perfect because the vinyl won't be forgiving if there are dents, dust and scratches under it. I'm looking to lessen the work load a bit and still have a somewhat nice look. This is why I tought of using the vinyl laminate for these parts of the cab.

taylormadelv: For the CP, the overlay will be vinyl also so your last post is on the spot. I've started doing small layers of sandable primer on the CP,and will use higher grades od sandpaper as you stated. I'll keep you posted on the results and evolution of the work.

What's the general rule of thumb about vinyl: the less thick it is, the less forgiving it is also ?

Thanks
 
Defering to the experts about vynil
Never used the stuff myself. I'm assuming it's like anything else... gold leave shows more surface imperfections that aluminum foil.
 
Well, as an update, it looks like I'm stuck right now with the darn CP. The original one that was on machine when I got it was so badly beaten/cutted/hacked off that beaten up that there is nothing that can be done with it IMO. As a replacement, I got on E-Bay a few years back another Space duel CP on which the overlay was screwed but the metal was OK.

Since I wanted to put an vertical monitor in the cabinet, I had a local machine shop at that time to cut off a piece of the vertical part on the CP, based on how the original CP on the cab was. The cut was just about around the curvy part that goes up.

Years went by (I worked on and off on the cab because of work and family) and now I realise that the local machine shop has cutted the piece off not straight, one side is longer than the other. I found it out when I had a friend cut me off a new plexi to go on top of the CP, when I wanted to drill the holes for the CP latches. And to add insult to injury, two of the holes made for the latches goes exactly where some of the previous holes were patched, so when I'll screw the latches, I guess the patching job there will break. A real mess...

Also, I passed an offer from another KLOV member that had a blank multi vector CP made by takeman he wanted to sell, but I've passed the offer because I tought I could do with the CP I was working on, and now the blank CP was sold to someone else, and takeman doesn't have some blanks left, only pre-drilled ones.

It's been deception after deception with this project. When I got it in the first place, I was so excited that I didn't look out for these things at the beginning, so now I discover all the problems as I go along. There was so many cabs at that time in that shop that I could have gotten another one that would have been less deceiving to work with.

So, what are my options now:
- Since it is believed that the cab is probably a Gravitar and not a Space Duel (since there is only one speaker on the top shelf), try to get a used Gravitar CP (on which there would be less patching to do since there are less buttons on it thant the Space Duel one ?
- Try to get another used Space Duel CP (there is one on E-Bay right now), and try to make better planning this time and better patching job ?
- Get a pre-drilled multi-vector CP from takeman and patch the holes on it ? Or hope someone else who got a blank one wants to sell it ?
- Try to build and fit a new CP made of wood or MDF ?
- Throw the darn &%$/(* cabinet away and start from scratch...

Any ideas, suggestions, or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
 
Another update after taking some time off to relax and breathe.....

I've removed the steel putty in the hole where I'd have to drill for the CP latch, and used a piece of metal taken from the top of a metal food can and some JBWeld to fix it over this hole. After letting it cure for more than 24 hours, I've drilled the hole for the latch thru it and it worked. After sanding down the surplus JBWeld that was on the CP, I've filled the original hole with Bondo and used a straw to prevent Bondo to fill the drilled hole for the latch. After a few coats of Bondo and sanding, the result seems perfect. Since the latch will go on top the the metal piece putted under the CP to provide a solid base for the original hole, I guess it should stay secured. I should have probably done that to fix all the unneeded holes on the CP in the first place....

Now for the non straight cut of the top of the CP at the curvy part that goes up. I'm thinking maybe I could take a 5/8" or a 3/4" by 24" strip of thin metal or aluminium and have it either soldered or JBWelded at the edge under the CP to "re-straighten" that edge and fill the void with Bondo or something else. I guess having it soldered would be more resistant, but this edge is only for esthetics. I currently have a small roll of aluminium sheet and a used sheet of metal that would do the job, I'll just have to get them cutted to my needs.

Found also some gray filler primer at the local NAPA auto store that will be used at the end to correct all the imperfections on top of the CP at the end.

Any ideas, suggestions, or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and Happy New Year...
 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom