So my free Centipede could not be freed :(

[smalltownguy2]

So I contact a guy on a CL ad for a Capcom Bowling cab. Price was right, and I just happened to be the first to reply, so yay.

2 days later the guy calls me to tell me the cab won't turn on. He says I can have it for free. SWEET!

Go down there to meet up with the guy. Cab is in the basement of a house he's just moved out of and is currently up for sale. He needs the cab out of the house before he sells it.

Good news, it's a Centipede conversion, and a very tasteful one at that. Most of the original equipment is in tact, including the original 19K4900 monitor, original power block, coin doors, meters, marquee. The JAMMA conversion was done properly, not all hacked up. I'm excited -- this will be a nice addition to my setup. Especially for free.

I pull off the back to take a peek and immediately notice that the interlock switch has come loose from it's mounting bracket. It's not getting pushed in when the back door is on. Bingo. This one will be easy.

Yeah, RIGHT.

Fast forward 3 hours later.....


I don't know HOW he got that cab into the basement, but it's not coming out. Never mind the fact that Centipede cabs weigh like 7 bajillion pounds, but no matter what way we tried to twist, turn, cajole, we could NOT get that cab up and out of the basement. Just not enough clearance. I swear that cab was BUILT in that basement.

In the end, he let me gut the cab. I took everything that could be unscrewed. The only thing left in that basement now is a shell, back door, and I left the leg levelers on it (b/c they were all worn through). Other than that, I took the rest home with me.

I'm super bummed. Blew 5 hours and all I have to show for it is a cab-less Capcom bowling game. But at least it works. And the monitor made it worth the drive, I guess.

 

[cueball]

just a thought... did you try to twist/turn/lift the empty cabinet?

 

[kencinder]

Probably renovated since putting it in there.

I once had a lady swear up and down to me, they had not done any renovations since moving a piano into their basement...25 years prior.

Funny, the bathroom we couldn't get by at the stairway, looked like it had just been put in no more than a couple years prior. You could tell it wasn't originally there.

 

[DPtwiz]

Take a screwdriver set with square bits, and a heavy rubber mallet and knock it apart carefully after you get all the screws out of it you can. It can be done with little to no damage. Also helps to use a flat screwdriver on the wood blocks to break the glue loose.

 

[smalltownguy2]

just a thought... did you try to twist/turn/lift the empty cabinet?

Yeah, when I saw what I was up against, my first suggestion was to pull the monitor and marquee glass to lighten the load and prevent the marquee from getting broken. Taking the monitor out made it a bajillion minus 40 pounds. Removing the back door took away another 20. When I pulled the back door to unhook the monitor, that's when I noticed the interlock issue.

We went up 8 different ways; on all 4 sides with the top going first, and on all 4 sides with the bottom going first. Without taking a sawzall and cutting off the part that curves out for the control panel, there was no way we were getting it out. He swears up and down that there have been no changes to the entry or house since him and his buddies slid it down the steps 10 years ago. I beg to differ. I've wiggled out some cabs from some pretty tight spaces before; this one isn't coming out whole.

 

[Scott C]

On the bright side, at least you got some free parts that can be used in other converted cabinets including the monitor.

Reminds me of a converted Atari cabinet I saw years ago that was left in the rain. I paid the owner a little $ and then took EVERYTHING minus the cabinet. Those parts are in at least 2-3 other games now.

Scott C.

 

[Fudd]

did you try lifting it with your back in a jerking twisting motion?

 

[Scott C]

did you try lifting it with your back in a jerking twisting motion?

That hurts just thinking about it.

Scott C.

 

[EagleTG]

did you try lifting it with your back in a jerking twisting motion?

HAHAHAH, Nice!

 

[spoonman]

did you try lifting it with your back in a jerking twisting motion?

This should have worked. Remember the last moment you have to lift using your groin as well or you will never get that game out.

 

[DanoND]

That's a bummer. Lonely Centipede.

Go bust it apart. They're easy to reassemble.

 

[Ghostlyguy]

Rot or Bust! Call the guy up and ask if you can pick up the rest of his free junk.

 

[smalltownguy2]

Called the guy back up, and he'd already busted it up and threw it out.

Bummer.

But the KLOV community comes through again -- Alejandromad donated an completely empty & gutted centipede cab for my needs! Woot! Capcom bowling lives again!

 

[bongoben]

But the KLOV community comes through again -- Alejandromad donated an completely empty & gutted centipede cab for my needs! Woot! Capcom bowling lives again!

See, now that's cool.

 

[smalltownguy2]

I need T molding and a recap of the monitor, but here it is:

 

[Ghostlyguy]

I need T molding and a recap of the monitor, but here it is:

Not bad. Just fix up that CP and it should look fine.

 

[smalltownguy2]

Aw, MAN....you just HAD to say that. It was already bugging me.

So I took the whole thing apart and took off the nasty yellow plexi. Now the panel looks 100% better:

 

[Ghostlyguy]

Aw, MAN....you just HAD to say that. It was already bugging me.

So I took the whole thing apart and took off the nasty yellow plexi. Now the panel looks 100% better:

Sweet! I love it.

 

[TK_Monkey]

It was so nice of operators to put all that plexi on top of control panels. Much of it has soda and stuff in it, but sometimes when you pull the plexi off they've (mostly) nicely preserved CPO art. Looks great, I didn't know the trackball for bowling had that marbled texture, neat.