retroACTIVE
Active member
Raise your hand if you've ever sanded a Berzerk or other Stern bohemeth?
Are these the nastiest pieces of shit or what?
Are these the nastiest pieces of shit or what?
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Nasty in what way? Hard to sand the finish or uncovering sloppy craftsmanship in the cabinet?
I have a Berzerk cabinet and from this and other Stern cabinets, it seems that they might have used a lesser grade plywood than what was use by Midway, etc.. I believe the finish is textured to cover up knots/crappy wood, in the same way that splatter paint finishes have been used to do the same.
Gotta agree with that. I'm working on a Berzerk now, and it is by far the worst cab i've done - even worse than Q-bert. Not sure what paint they used, but when I'm sanding (random orbital), the paint seems to almost disolve into a powder then get grinded into the wood, staining it black. Lots of patches in the wood, and I had to replace the bottom of both sides because they didn't use leg levelers (added them). I'll be posting some pics of the restoration soon.
Gotta agree with that. I'm working on a Berzerk now, and it is by far the worst cab i've done - even worse than Q-bert. Not sure what paint they used, but when I'm sanding (random orbital), the paint seems to almost disolve into a powder then get grinded into the wood, staining it black. Lots of patches in the wood, and I had to replace the bottom of both sides because they didn't use leg levelers (added them). I'll be posting some pics of the restoration soon.
The sides on mine had very minor chips due to no levelers. Actually, they had the little plastic button furniture glides, same as came on pinballs. They were hardly enough for the job.
What I did to repair, strengthen, and add levelers would probably be considered overkill, but here goes:
http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=152236
Crappy plywood, horrible paint... although durable .... horrible. Panel cuts (radius around the corners) are irregular. Also put together with very little (if any) glue and nails. The nails are funny, reminds me of a home-made job. Not to mention these cabs sit directly on the ground... no leg levelers! I'm going to be correcting that on mine...
That's well done! I like the sturdiness of it. I wouldn't call that overkill... I would call it just right!
You guys are taking this way further than it needs to go. I've done two Stern cabs. I used rubberized undercoating on one, and pour-in sand texture on another. Both paint jobs were rolled, to mimic the original texture even further. prOk advocates rolling plaster on the cab before painting to mimic the texture. In any case, this isn't fine cabinetry, it's a rough Stern cab. The next one I do I am using the spray on Rhino Liner kit.
Understood... I'm not a big fan of the textured finish, so mine is going to be a more traditional smooth finish.
Interesting you say that, as the Pac Novelty games were in the same Stern-shaped cabinet, only made from particle board rather than plywood, with a light textured vinyl on them. That is how my Shark Attack was and that's how I am restoring it. Happ's textured black vinyl will fit the bill nicely on that one. Not perfectly smooth, but much much smoother and more refined than the Stern paint texture.