Yet Another Robotron

parkway

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Donor 2016
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So I haven't done a "restore" thread in a while; since my Track and Field in fact. To start, I don't go as all out as some guys. My hat's off to those who do. I prefer to call what I do a "refurb" or "refresh". Although in the case of this game, I need to touch pretty much everything so it will wind up being more of a full restore after all I guess.....

Anyway, shot a quick video of a Robotron I picked up off LetGo for cheap. Cabinet has sat in a garage on the floor (no leg levelers) for close to 20 years. Hasn't been turned on in over two years. It's a mess. I actually never actively was looking for a Robotron, but when this popped up, I felt I had to rescue it. And rescuing it needed indeed.....

https://youtu.be/kWS6qF0uwdo


As a side note, this thing absolutely REEKS of weed. I get a contact high every time I walk into my shed now. Should call it "Stoneotron".
 
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So nothing worked. Boards are all original. No battery damage thankfully. I've never seen caps this bloated personally.

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Connectors were burnt to shit and someone had soldered the wires directly to the board.

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So onto the bench they all go. I had half the caps and connectors needed already. Placed a Mouser order for the rest. All headers and connectors, regardless of how they look are getting replaced. Too much frustration in the past with pinball machine connectors; I've learned my lesson.
 
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So while I wait for the UPS guy, time to fix up the cabinet. As you can see, the bottom has seen better days.

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A smarter person would cut the bad wood out and join new wood to it; pretty much recreating the "skirt" along the bottom of the cab. Well I'm not smart and I'm not great with woodworking, so I'm going the bondo route. Got busy removing the loose wood and wood hardening, gluing, etc. Got started on one corner late today. In the photos, it looks like the bottom edge is way off; it's really not though. Weird camera angle I guess.

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More bondo action.

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For the larger chunks I'm using bondo glass. Never used it before but it's far and away better at recreating large pieces that are missing. I'll follow up with regular bondo for the smaller divots.

This is where I left it for today. Was time to give the kids a bath and have some dinner.

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The GO7 cleaned up nicely. I couldn't see the burn under all the filth. Looks like I won't be using this. At least not this tube.

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That burn isn't bad. Probably won't even notice it with the game on.



Think so? I guess I'll give it a try. What's the worst that could happen, right? I'm guessing these all came with GO7's in them originally or was it a toss up between those and 4900's? I'd rather use the GO7 personally so it's good to hear that the burn isn't as bad as I thought.
 
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Quite likely true. I was looking at a Joust with what loks like a lot of burn but once on, you cannot see it.

How does that Bondo sand? The reinforced one I mean?
 
Quite likely true. I was looking at a Joust with what loks like a lot of burn but once on, you cannot see it.



How does that Bondo sand? The reinforced one I mean?



The bondo glass sands nice and easy just like regular bondo. I really like it. Easy to work with and strong. Not great for small work though so it's not a replacement for regular bondo; more suited to large chunks.
 
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Those bottom front and rear corners are supposed to be square, as I'm sure you are aware. What made you want to do them rounded? Or are you still building the bondo up? Looking forward to getting to my Robotron restore and this is good motivation! Keep up the good work
 
Thanks. I actually assumed they were rounded but found out later on they're not. So much for research.... I'll straighten them out when I get back in there. Hopefully that's soon!
 
i kinda like the faq that the original tube survived all those years, a little burn is nothing that will detracts from game play.
 
i kinda like the faq that the original tube survived all those years, a little burn is nothing that will detracts from game play.



I agree. I'm glad the picture is as nice as it is too.

Incidentally, the story behind this cab is that the PO bought it 25 years ago from an operator/amusement vendor located on 11th Ave in Manhattan. Had it in his home on LI. Moved 20 years ago, stuck it in his garage, and there it sat with minimal play until now. So I'm sure it got a lot of use, but apparently not enough to wreck the monitor totally. :)
 
I agree. I'm glad the picture is as nice as it is too.

Incidentally, the story behind this cab is that the PO bought it 25 years ago from an operator/amusement vendor located on 11th Ave in Manhattan. Had it in his home on LI. Moved 20 years ago, stuck it in his garage, and there it sat with minimal play until now. So I'm sure it got a lot of use, but apparently not enough to wreck the monitor totally. :)
I really love stories like this behind old arcade games. Btw, I may give that Bondo glass a try. Looks pretty awesome.
 
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