two arcade machines out for trash

[bomberpunk]

one man's trash really is another man's treasure.

 

literally just two blocks from my house, there were two stand-up arcade games out for trash: Space Invaders and Donkey Kong. i snagged them both. the plug to DK needs to be rewired, and SI failed to power up. so now i'm on my way to Wally-World to go pick up some fuses and a replacement plug for tonight's unexpected projects.

 

 

hell yeah!

Edited March 3, 2008 by bomberpunk

[bomberpunk]

these guys are going to have to wait for daylight to get worked on. i'm going out for a few beers. the machines have been moved to the backyard under a covered patio area.

 

from Wal-Mart, i got flourescent starters, a new 3-prong plug, fuses, and a new toggle switch for SI, because the one currently on the machine is corroded, and it's a push-down button-type switch that doesn't stay down.

 

also, SI has some water damage on the backside with some board falling apart. but that's nothing a trip to Ho Depot can't fix. my main goal will be to get these working first, then i'll worry about cosmetics. i'll take more pictures tomorrow in case anyone wants to see the progress.

[Dr Galaga]

Daaaaaaang. Good deal! Yea, post more pics!

Once you get the Donkey Kong working you need to get a Donkey Kong 2: Jumpman Returns upgrade. I have it and love it!

[MrAtari2600]

wowza!

for freebies nice catch!

[Zwackery]

also, SI has some water damage on the backside with some board falling apart.

Nice score!

Do you think these were damaged by Hurricane Katrina?

[bomberpunk]

also, SI has some water damage on the backside with some board falling apart.

Nice score!

Do you think these were damaged by Hurricane Katrina?

 

i can't say for certain, but i imagine so. our neighborhood did flood back then, but there seems to be no water damage to DK, only to SI. it could have been stored on its back, or in a leaky shed, or maybe DK was a post-Katrina purchase for the guy.

 

he did come outside while i was "digging through the trash" to say they both work, that he didn't want to get rid of them, but that they needed to go bacause he was having major work done to his house.

 

i do have an update on DK. i installed the new 3-prong plug and it powers up with a working monitor and working marquee. coin mechs work too, at least for the player 1 side. however, the graphics are somewhat garbled. i probably need to get inside the unit and check the board connections and/or settings, but i don't have a key for the back board lock, which is one of those tubular keyholes. i already tried the "bic pen trick" but it didn't work.

 

i'll add video of DK running to youtube and post it in the morning.

Edited February 17, 2008 by bomberpunk

[EricDeLee]

Sweet deal! I wish I could find one out in the garbage like that!

[bomberpunk]

- pacman noise, random crap on screen

- playable, but still glitchy

 

now if i can just get inside the cabinet and tweak the video, it might be A-OK.

 

also, can anyone with a SI machine tell me if the plug is supposed to be grounded or not, because mine isn't. just 2 prongs.

correction. a previous owner snipped off the bottom ground prong. so i guess i have go go back to the store and replace it.

Edited February 17, 2008 by bomberpunk

[MrAtari2600]

uhm... if it works like an NES

 

clean the ends? lol i don't know clean it out check the connections

[bomberpunk]

thanks to the totally tubular keyhole, i gave up on the DK machine and started to focus attention on SI.

 

now this may or may not be one of my problems:

 

looks like the grounding was cut, which would mean i would have to get another plug like the one i put on the DK machine:

 

and finally, i was able to pry off a damp fragile piece of wood (and in one piece, too) to access the insides of the SI machine. this is what it looks like, and it ain't pretty. i don't even know what half this crap does, but i did install new fuses. still no power, though.

[Brian D. Deuel]

thanks to the totally tubular keyhole, i gave up on the DK machine and started to focus attention on SI.

 

now this may or may not be one of my problems:

 

looks like the grounding was cut, which would mean i would have to get another plug like the one i put on the DK machine:

 

and finally, i was able to pry off a damp fragile piece of wood (and in one piece, too) to access the insides of the SI machine. this is what it looks like, and it ain't pretty. i don't even know what half this crap does, but i did install new fuses. still no power, though.

 

Why not just drill the lock out?

[bomberpunk]

Why not just drill the lock out?

 

...because i'm... an... ...idiot?

[jboypacman]

Sweet trash find once you get these up and running you should have two great machines for your collection.

[MrAtari2600]

maybe the PS for the SI is dead o_o or sumfin

all i can think of

Im still a n00bie at cades but

 

Hey im still figuring this wire problem out confuses the crap outta me

[Brian D. Deuel]

Why not just drill the lock out?

 

...because i'm... an... ...idiot?

 

Nah you're not. It's pretty easy. Just get a nice big bit, put it in the center of the barrel, and let 'er go. Eventually, you'll hit the screw that holds the lock lever and POP. She'll open right up for you like the house in People Under The Stairs

[MrAtari2600]

Why not just drill the lock out?

 

...because i'm... an... ...idiot?

 

Nah you're not. It's pretty easy. Just get a nice big bit, put it in the center of the barrel, and let 'er go. Eventually, you'll hit the screw that holds the lock lever and POP. She'll open right up for you like the house in People Under The Stairs

 

 

dont most have a screw you can dissasemble?

[bomberpunk]

yeah, on the inside.

 

i tried drilling, must be doing something wrong. the bit i used might not be big enough. i might have to get into my neighbor's ridiulous arsenal of powertools. updates to come soon, hopefully.

[MrAtari2600]

well goodluck with your destruction of the effing cursed lock lol.

 

Looks like you got yourself a quite nice job to do here

[bomberpunk]

yeah... the back panel of the DK machine was literally falling off from the top. i guess the tool fairy came out and loosened this thing for me.

 

the tube-lock ended up just being there for show. the metal rod attachment for the lock lay at the bottom of the unit, with the damn keys, a sealed baggie of fuses, the original DK manual which is very moldy, and some guy's moldy & illegible business card.

 

i fiddled with the screen controls near the monitor plus two other ones that were attached to one of the boards. it doesn't affect the garbles graphics. and sometimes, when i power it up it will go back to that garbled backwards stuff seen in video #1 (scrolll up and check a previous post of mine).

 

i'm kinda familiar with JAMMA boards, and i'm not sure how different this is, but its a series of boards connected to each other. surely one is just for graphics, another for sound, etc... right?

 

any board techs familiar with DK guts?

[Cap5750]

any board techs familiar with DK guts?

 

You might check here:

http://www.mikesarcade.com/arcade/repairs/dkong.html

 

I glanced through it and didn't see anything resembling your condition, but you might be able to contact the author and see if he has any ideas.

 

Further, you can always go to the mameworld forums and post there. There's a ton of good people over there who might be able to help.

[Cassidy Nolen]

Great finds! The best is when you can spend your money restoring and not trying to buy the cabs! Good for you.

 

Now, the bad news...from what I see, that SI has some serious moisture issues. Chances are you need to look at all of the seated chips on the boards. Those will most likely be rusty too. Take a look there and decide how far down this rabbit hole you are ready to go.

 

SI boards (actually all the Midway "toaster" style boards) are VERY sensitive to -5V on video RAM. If you have 5V and ground the board will put garbled junk on the screen. SHUT IT DOWN until you are SURE, and I mean SURE you have -5 AT the board. Not just -5 at the power supply. If this one is over your head, buy beverages for a friend that knows how to read wiring schematics. Any good computer hacker or gear head mechanic should be able to do it. Wiring schematics are online.

 

My first assumption: That power supply board is dead. From the moisture damage in that cab, I would not be suprised if that isolation transformer is banged up too. Worst case scenario, you'd wire a new power supply in there and bypass the isolation transformer. All the motorola monitors had onboard isolation transformers anyway.

 

Not trying to discourage you, just being honest. Devil is in the details on these oldies.

 

Cassidy

[bomberpunk]

any board techs familiar with DK guts?

 

You might check here:

http://www.mikesarcade.com/arcade/repairs/dkong.html

 

I glanced through it and didn't see anything resembling your condition, but you might be able to contact the author and see if he has any ideas.

 

Further, you can always go to the mameworld forums and post there. There's a ton of good people over there who might be able to help.

 

 

i wrote to the guy at MikesArcade.com with the links to the youtube videos, and this is what he had to say:

Well, when it runs, it looks like the roms on the VIDEO board need to be reseated, or could be bad. If it doesn't always boot, it could be poor power connections or a marginal power supply.

 

so i think the rest of the work is beyond my capabilities.

[bomberpunk]

Now, the bad news...from what I see, that SI has some serious moisture issues. Chances are you need to look at all of the seated chips on the boards. Those will most likely be rusty too. Take a look there and decide how far down this rabbit hole you are ready to go.

 

SI boards (actually all the Midway "toaster" style boards) are VERY sensitive to -5V on video RAM. If you have 5V and ground the board will put garbled junk on the screen. SHUT IT DOWN until you are SURE, and I mean SURE you have -5 AT the board. Not just -5 at the power supply. If this one is over your head, buy beverages for a friend that knows how to read wiring schematics. Any good computer hacker or gear head mechanic should be able to do it. Wiring schematics are online.

 

My first assumption: That power supply board is dead. From the moisture damage in that cab, I would not be suprised if that isolation transformer is banged up too. Worst case scenario, you'd wire a new power supply in there and bypass the isolation transformer. All the motorola monitors had onboard isolation transformers anyway.

 

Not trying to discourage you, just being honest. Devil is in the details on these oldies.

 

Cassidy

 

to be honest with you, i understood about 50% of that! are these things i can find at a radioshack, or do i have to special-order them?

[uosipa llamxew]

Daaaaaaang. Good deal! Yea, post more pics!

Once you get the Donkey Kong working you need to get a Donkey Kong 2: Jumpman Returns upgrade. I have it and love it!

 

Not to derail this thread, but I was curious if there was some video online of this Donkey Kong hack? I rather enjoyed the Champ Games version of DK... is this DK2 hack as good?

[Lord Thag]

You found Donkey Kong and Space Invaders in the trash? Just, sitting there, waiting for pickup? On the way to work?

 

*muttered expletives*

 

You sir, are a damned lucky bastard, and I hate you. Why can't I find that on the way to work!?

 

FYI, my buddy fixes trashed games like that all the time. The usual procedure is to check for bad solder joints, rust etc and clean fix that. Then, order and replace all of the capacitors on the board/monitor, which is time consuming, but not that hard if you can solder. Lastly, you would order a replacement power supply. Lot of work, not necessarily a lot of money.

 

Or, you could just gut it, drop in a 19' computer monitor and an old pc with a minipac board wired to the controls ($40 or so) and use dos mame to boot directly to Space invaders. You'd never be able to tell once it boots up