This is Frenzy, the caterpillar of the IM Berzerk Project.  What happens over the next few months is something incredible.  Especially since Frenzy was in desperate need of TLC.  Jeez, some guys just don't know what they've got till it's gone.

Frenzy was in very bad shape, the interior smelled like a rotten carcass, the exterior was scratched to hell (not to mention the gouge I put in it dragging it out of my Subaru wagon, DAMN!)  The Marquee was badly peeled then painted over from behind with neon red paint.  The Monitor Bezel was in terrible shape.  It's hard to tell from the pictures, but it was spider cracked and peeled at ever corner.  The Coin Door was a mess, and needed paint and polish. One of the 'Quarter' labels was worn through from the light bulb heat, but was easily repainted (I did that with Testors Model Masters paint, they sell a really good neon 'safety' orange that was an exact match). On the bottom of both sides the plywood had delaminated and needed immediate replacement. Other than that, it wasn't too bad aside from the bottom of both sides being damaged.

Well 'demolition' began and the first things to go were the marquee, monitor bezel and this disgusting excuse for cabinet side art that you see above.  I think that's supposed to be Evil Otto, but I can't imagine he'd be happy with that caricature.  The marquee and monitor bezel were not salvageable and were in very bad shape. The T-molding was shot and the control panel had been laminated over with blue laminate.   I might as well start here...

  Refurbishing...
Buying old means buying 'bad'.  Not as true as you might think, but you will need to do work, if not modify the cabinet to fit what you want.  Some folks try and work with a budget, my theory is this, any project that involves refurbishing anything involves money... lot's of money.  Now it's just as expensive to build one, as it is to start with an old one, but bottom line is... forget the damn budget and pay as you go.  I'll show you some nifty short cuts that I learned to try and save some dough or 'shift' the money around.

1. Demolition  
Remove everything that is bolted down.  EVERYTHING.  You'll be wire brushing, replacing, and repainting just about all the hardware one way or the other.  The Coin Door is a side project for a rainy day.  That is one piece that needs specific attention to detail as it will show nicely when done nicely.  I will discuss the Coin Door later.  Remove the marquee, Coin Door, Control Panel, doors, old wires, stickers, etc.  Give a good scrubbing and vacuuming to the inside and make sure the wood is not rotted or badly damaged.  If so, you're going to replace it.  Inspect everything for loose or separated sides, bottom plate, wood condition, and any other cosmetic or structural issues you want to address during reconditioning.

 *** Important*** Bag and label everything that is removed form the cabinet, as it will help later on and make reassembly much faster.  Keep the carriage bolts, wire wheel them to clean them.  I mention these specifically as they are hard to replace with the same type.  What I mean is that of all the hardware store I went to, not one of them carried this size without the Steel Grade markings on the head.  Very ugly and not something you want on your Control Panel.  So make sure they do not get lost.  After wheeling and with a fresh coat of black paint, they look like new!