Being a huge fan of Stranger Things and knowing this cabinet and game didn't exist, other than a fun tribute to someone that worked on the show, I decided it would make a really cool wedding gift for my daughter and son-in-law who love my arcade machines, both the real and MAME cabinets I own and restored. The original "Space Knife" appears in once scene in the episode "Dig Dug" from season 2.

The plan was to find a Midway Galaxian, Galaga, or any variant of that cabinet in a condition that I wouldn't mind cutting up and converting to a MAME unit...but with giving honor and respect to the classic age of arcade machine for which this unit will represent. I don't like converting cabinets to MAME machines unless I mostly restore them and pay tribute to the original game. I did this with 4 of my cabinets. BerZerk, Gorf, a Strata Bowling Cafe and a converted Heavy Barrel cabinet. I always start with a really beat up cabinet, usually painted over in that usual black goo they use for paint.
Onwards...this cabinet I found was just what I needed. The cabinet was a disaster, but the Galaxian electronics worked, and most of the cabinet was intact. It had a lot of wood damage covered with bondo, the sides were replaced at one time, and heavily slopped over in black paint as was the rest of the unit. It was already converted to a JAMMA unit, so there went all the original wiring and power. The monitor works great, but was not original and was heavily modified to fit the cabinet.
So I went to work... Cleaning, stripping and repairing all the damage. This gave me the opportunity to make some changes as there really is no set design for Space Knife other than a single side shot in one scene of the show. It's definitely a Midway cabinet though.
I wanted wheels on it so they can move it around, which means I had to extend the sides when I make the repairs ...
First here it is before anything happened...working as it should.
Arrival... On the porch, running before I gutted it, and the damage from age.

The plan was to find a Midway Galaxian, Galaga, or any variant of that cabinet in a condition that I wouldn't mind cutting up and converting to a MAME unit...but with giving honor and respect to the classic age of arcade machine for which this unit will represent. I don't like converting cabinets to MAME machines unless I mostly restore them and pay tribute to the original game. I did this with 4 of my cabinets. BerZerk, Gorf, a Strata Bowling Cafe and a converted Heavy Barrel cabinet. I always start with a really beat up cabinet, usually painted over in that usual black goo they use for paint.
Onwards...this cabinet I found was just what I needed. The cabinet was a disaster, but the Galaxian electronics worked, and most of the cabinet was intact. It had a lot of wood damage covered with bondo, the sides were replaced at one time, and heavily slopped over in black paint as was the rest of the unit. It was already converted to a JAMMA unit, so there went all the original wiring and power. The monitor works great, but was not original and was heavily modified to fit the cabinet.
So I went to work... Cleaning, stripping and repairing all the damage. This gave me the opportunity to make some changes as there really is no set design for Space Knife other than a single side shot in one scene of the show. It's definitely a Midway cabinet though.
I wanted wheels on it so they can move it around, which means I had to extend the sides when I make the repairs ...
First here it is before anything happened...working as it should.
Arrival... On the porch, running before I gutted it, and the damage from age.
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