Tips for the would-be restorer (on a budget)

elekTRONarcade

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So after my last three restores, I've got my budget restorations down to science. Between all sorts of helpful tips I've found here and elsewhere, plus a few I've discovered on my own, here's a list of the best tips I personally can offer to anyone looking to restore their machines to showroom-like quality (for a fraction of the cost). Chime in if you have any other tips!

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Feathering particle board (on rear of machine where the access door goes or on edges):

Supplies needed - Minwax Wood Hardener ($12 at ACE), C or Spring Clamps (less than $15 for six, also at ACE), 4 wooden yard sticks (few bucks...same place), 80 grit sanding block ($4 at Lowes), cheapo paint brush to throw away after ($1 at Lowes). Total cost: around $30

Start by cleaning the area of dirt as best as possible. DO NOT remove any pieces of the particle board!. Lightly sand the painted edge (if there is one) to roughen up the paint. Use the cheapo paint brush, and apply a liberal soaking of the Wood Hardener to all the feathering edges. If some of the feathering wood is laying down, do your best to stand them up and pack them together as closely as they originally were. Then, use the yard sticks and C/Spring clamps to clamp the edges together to hold their form. The Wood Hardener is a resin-based product, similar to fiberglass, and will bond the fibers back together and harden into a good, workable surface to sand/repaint.


Chipped/broken edge/corner sections:

Supplies needed - Wood Bondo (works like regular Bondo but is much sturdier and lasts longer. $20 for a large can at Wal-mart), sanding block and yard sticks (see previous entry). staple gun ($10 with staples, Wal-mart). Total cost: $40-$50

Start by removing any splintered, barely-hanging-on pieces and lightly sanding the area around the area to be Bondo-ed. For edges and places like the rear access area, use the staple gun and staple the yard sticks on both sides of the area to form a channel. Lay the machine up on saw horses (if possible) with the area to be patched sticking upward. You want gravity to help pull the Bondo down into all the recesses and hold it in place. For corners, form an L with the yard sticks around the corner and staple in place (Rub a very light coat of vegetable oil on the yard sticks to prevent the Bondo from sticking to them as well). Mix up a small batch of Bondo and gently pack it into the channel/L shape to form a good, solid area. Let dry for 24 hours, then sand and paint as normal. You can easily patch up any areas the Bondo didn't seep into with more Bondo and repeat the process.


Rusty metal pieces:

Supplies needed - Grinder with wire wheel, or even just some steel wool ($2 for the wool at Walmart), Naval Jelly ($5 from ACE), choice of spray paint with primer (various costs), cheapo paint brush. Total cost: around $15 to $20

Remove all the pieces to be de-rusted (is that even a word?), and start by covering with Naval Jelly using a paint brush. Naval jelly is bright pink when applied, and turns a dark red when its done. Careful, as its a bit caustic and can burn the skin. Wait for 20 minutes, then wipe the excess away and start running the piece over the wire wheel or rubbing vigorously with the steel wool. The Naval Jelly will help prevent the piece from rusting again



Powder coated look, without the powder coat price (great for marquee holders, speaker grills, control panels and coin doors):

Supplies needed: Wire wheel and/or sand paper, Rustoleum Hammered Finish Black spray paint ($7 at Walmart per can), heat gun ($25 at Walmart), drop cloth ($1 at Walmart). Total cost: no more than $40

Sand/buff as needed to strip as much of the old paint and rust away as you can. Smooth the piece down as much as possible with finer, 220 grit sandpaper. Then, lay your pieces out on the drop cloth (or suspend from something using bailing wire or twine) and apply four decent coats of the Hammered Finish paint. Now here's the trick: Inbetween coats, use the heat gun on low for five minutes to help bake the enamel onto the metal. After four coats, it gives a finish thats almost as hard as powder coat. Let dry for 24 hours after the final coat, or if you're feeling squirrelly (and don't mind having the wife punch you in the face), use the kitchen oven to bake everything for 4 hours on 250 degrees. The Hammered Finish looks almost exactly like powder coating.


I'll update this post with more tips as soon as I can write them all down. I take no credit for any of these tips, as I'm sure someone else has discovered them before me. These are all tips I've learned or found along the way :p
 
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for control panel bolts, i put the bolt into my drill and tighten it down just enough so that the bolt is secure (be careful, too tight and you'll screw up the threading). Then i go with a low speed on the drill and hit the top of the bolt with some steel wool as it spins. After that, spray the tops with some black enamel paint or polish them up with brasso and they look pretty darn good.
 
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Tips for restore = GOOD!
Wife punching you in the face = BAD!

I may try doing my Time Pilot CP this way, it could use a little spruce up.
 
Black corner protectors can be a quick easy $20-30 fix for chewed up corners and depending on the cabinet style they can look pretty sharp too. I put them on my Phoenix and they look great.
 
I hihgly recommend al RUSTOLEUM 2X Spray and quart colors!

Man I love the "RUSTOLEUM 2X" line! Using their paint with rollers goes on once and covers! As well as the aerosol cans. Add a second coat AFTER IT DRIES YOU HAVE TO LET IT DRY AT LEAST AN HOUR THEN HIT IT AGAIN to make it look like it rolled off the factory floor.
Their High/Semi glosses are great too because it's actually mixed into the color. The greatest thing is that the line of colors are exact matches for existing video games... the majority. SUN YELLOW is an exact match to Ballys PAC MAN YELLOW! Go find these colors, enjoy.
 
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Ken Layton recommended Evapo-Rust in another thread, and it was one of the best pieces of advice I've gotten from KLOV. Pro tips from Ken are always appreciated and welcomed by me!

http://www.evaporust.com/

Nothing else compares for rust removal. I used to be a wire brush and naval jelly guy, but Evaporust is by far superior.
 
I love me some Evaporust too. Probably the only good thing about Harbor Freight. I know you can get it at other places, but HF always has it.
 
Side art can be expensive.

Using a color sharpie can give you the two foot prefect side art look.
Looks good from 2 feet away.

Mistakes can be erased by a mr clean magic eraser.. Caution tho Sometimes, Old 70's art work might rub off. Rub lightly and check for color on the eraser..

Use a 50 cent bottle of latex water base white paint from Walmart on larger dings before using a sharpie. It will prevent the wood colors from muting the colors from the color sharpie pens.

Don't use oil base paint. It will seep under the side art and it might cause the edges of the torn side art to peel up.
 
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