John's Arcade Forum - Classic Arcade and Pinball Collecting and Restoring Discussion Forum - RETRO MAME - Nintendo Vs Forum

So I finally got the three cabs I picked up this week all cleaned up and running. Not great games but local and a fair price. I looked up the serials on the cabs and I am very sad to what this operator did!

side arms hyperdyne in a joust cab
Capcom Bowling in Phoenix cab (the orginal artwork is actually still there under the tactpaper but in bad shape)
Ameridarts in a Jungle Hunt Cab

My heart sunk! Phoenix and joust are high favorites for me. I am considering returning them to their former glory but don't have the location to do work on them, very sad.

EDIT: Pictures
(http://i.imgur.com/omEZC5j.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/QU4EApW.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/uoVQNek.jpg)

Does anyone know how to remove the rubber cement without ruining the artwork?

This is not from personal experience!

Online there's references to removing with pencil erasers. And posts about using a product from walmart called UnDo
plus this guide seems to be informative, few things on youtue, mostly removing it from table tennis bats.

http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-remove-rubber-cement-stains2.htm (http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-remove-rubber-cement-stains2.htm)

Can you post some more pics of the phoenix?, no matter how bad it looks, it's a piece of history you have there, well done.

ive seen that before.

Head over to harbor freight and pick up a cheap heat gun for 19 bux.
dont burn it,, just warm it up so it starts moving again. be careful on a heat guns high setting it may burn it.
you might use a plastic putty knife to knock the stuff off onto some newspaper on the floor.
simple green and citrus cleaners might remove ink or paint so use that for a last resort.

We got the control panel overlay off and the other side of the vinyl off. No side art on that side and the control panel could use some love.
(http://i.imgur.com/3nbnKdJ.jpg)
But I have a hard decision to make now. I love the artwork on this cab, probably one of my favorite of any machine i have ever seen but the game is pretty low on games i like list. I would hate to destroy such a beautiful piece of work but How does everyone feel about putting a repo CPO and mameing it?

take the panel to an autobody shop and flip em 25 bux to sandblast the panel back to bright metal.
order an overlay.Crack your wallet open a tad lol. 
This is the one thing i excel at over most people restoring cabs.. Im a really good paint/autobody/fabricator. My buddy is a cabinet maker.
And looking at this machine, its possible to whip it back together.
I stand there looking at a 32 Ford as the guy behind me is saying "I need it cut back in half then re welded back together like brand new"  and im thinking "wtf did i just get myself into" lol.
You just cant get brought down by the look of it now.. just vision the outcome.  IF you cabinet save the poor thing lol.
You really cant sand rust off completely as you are just grinding it back into the metal .. anybody you see sanding a panel without blasting off the rust first is looking at the rust comming back again.
I dont care how much rattle can you use , its comming back. you have to completely remove the rust and wash it after with final clean or vinegar.

I am taking it to my dad's shop this weekend to get it painted and probably plug that huge hole. i just feel guilty cutting a hole for the joystick. I think i am going to go through it but still a hard decision.

It is a bit of a Marmite game, but one I love from my youth.  Please please don't mame it.

http://www.gameongrafix.com/products/phoenix-cpojpg (http://www.gameongrafix.com/products/phoenix-cpojpg)
(http://www.gameongrafix.com/sc_images/products/med-Phoenix%20CPO.jpg)

I actually bought a new CPO that is on its way. I am hoping this weekend to fill in that massive hole and repaint it. I was considering maming it because it is my only vertical cab and I really would like to be able to play some other games. I want to restore this back to its former glory because it is absolutely  beautiful. That being said I was considering only putting a joystick in and leaving the buttons the same. I am not afraid of maming it and converting back.

ok bro just put pics of the progress .. are you going with hyperspin btw?

yeah I am trying to go with hyperspin. It is completely unneeded  for the vertical setup but the horizontal setup will have hyperspin so i figured why do twice the work.