Basics of replacing Cabinet Art
NoTellin
some youtube clips and googled the subject but there are still gaps in
my mind. Is there a website out there that gives good detail on this
process? I understand there is a Wet and Dry process and from what I
have seen, the cabinets are usually repainted prior to applying
labels, is this standard black paint or a stain of some type?
Thanks...
Brad
Pinster68
Same question has been brewing here. I've also heard the pros talk
about "seaming" the edges and would really like to know more. These
little details get noticed, and if I'm going to plunk down the time
and effort I want to get it right.
TIA,
Brian
AddictedToEMs
well as Kerry Stair's stuff. The paint I've been using is from Home
Depot - Painter's Touch semi gloss black on top of white primer. Be
prepared to spend ALOT of time on cabinet prep. I can't get to the
sites at work to give you a link - someone else will probably step in
to help. I have a bit of sanding to do then finally decal time.
Scott
Kerry Richard
I have done several, here are a few of my comments;
1) Fill all holes, nicks & dings and let them "cure" srink. I then
take a single sided razor & use auto spot putty glaze over the filled
areas and wet sand again. Take your time to make sure the cabinet is
smooth as glass. If not, when you apply the side art you will see the
nooks and crannies.
2) I spray paint my entire cabinet with oil based Rustoliem (sp?). I
like it because it dries rock hard.
3) I paint all the bolt head and backbox hindge brackets at the same
time.
4) I have done both wet method and dry. Wet is more forgiving, dry is
less messy. Some say dry is better, because it doesn't dilute the
glue.
5) Some people free hand the edge cutting, I don't. I use a long metal
4' yard stick gently clamped or lightly blue taped, to the edge. I
use fresh single sided straight edge blades for a clean cut.
6) I have used a flat tipped sharpie felt pen, right after to hide the
white edge of cut decal. Some have used a paint pen. I may try this
myself.
7) I do the coin door 1st, so I can match the sides to it.
8) I do recommend a 2nd person for help handling the larger panels.
Do use a plastic / yellow squegee (Lowes / HD / Tap Plastics) and
always start from center and squeege out to the edges. If not you will
bubbles and/or wrinkles.
I know there are many others who have tips & ideas. You can also
Google & RGP installing side art.
Good luck and enjoy the new cabinet when done.
Kerry Richard
Pinster68
Thanks for sharing Kerry. I know this has been covered many a time in
other threads, but it's nice to get a fresh perspective.
Two things ...
Best filler for a smooth finish?
Do you cut the edge 90 degrees to the cabinet, or at a 45 degree to
create a smoother edge?
voxtech
Here's a reprint of Treasure Cove's method. I found this very helpful
when I re placed the decals on my IJ. They recommend the wet method
but I did the dry and it turned out perfect. Definitely use Bryan
Kelly's "patented" coin door filler method, it makes the front decal
so much easier.
Tom
-----------------------------------------------------------
Well guys, here's my two cents .... I have no claims to be perfect at
this
but I *have* done about 8 IJs, 2 CC's and this week I did my 4th
Monster
Bash. ... anyway, for what it's worth, here's how I do it:
1) REMOVAL OF OLD DECALS: for games like CC and MB you'll need a razor
blade
scraper (or sharp edged putty knife) and a heat gun ( a real heat gun
works
fantastic, but a hair dryer will work ok too)... heat up an edge and
start
peeling back with the razor, enough so you can get a grip on the decal
with
your hand, ... then heat and slowly pull up the decal (it's also
beneficial
if you wear a garden glove on your right hand to keep the heat away
from
your fingers while you're pulling up the decals)
For games like IJ, there's no decal, so just proceed to step number
2.
2) SURFACE PREP: You'll need an orbital sander for this step, ... also
get
sandpaper (2 grits 60 & 150, .... nothing finer than 150!) Sand down
the
cabinet with the coarse paper, ... then evaluate any marks and scuffs.
There
are 2 types of scuffs (or gouges), ... one along the edges and ones on
the
surface of the cabinet. You'll need to use Bondo on the edges because
wood
filler isn't strong enough and will just crack off. Likewise 'don't'
use
bondo on the surface imperfections because it will just peel off there
as
well, use wood filler on the slight imperfections, ... squeege on the
wood
filler with a small razor blade. Sooooooooooo, for the 'first
pass' ... use
Bondo for the big gouges along the edges (and security holes on the
cabinet
front - note just apply a piece of masking tape inside the cabinet
over the
holes, then when applying the Bondo, be sure you 'push' the bondo in
to fill
up the drill hole) ... and wood filler for the rest. Let dry, ... then
sand
down again with 60 grit paper. The next step is to spray on liberal
amounts
of "White Wood Primer" that you can get at Home Depot or Ace
Hardware, ...
it'll take about three cans for a cabinet and backbox. The reason to
use
White is that with white, it will be very easy to see any
imperfections in
the surface. Switch to 150 grit paper, lightly sand down the white ...
then
check for imperfections and squeege on more wood filler with a razor
blade,
.. let dry, sand, .. then spray on more white on these areas, ...
check
again, ... more filler, ... spray white, .. repeat until you have a
nice
smooth surface (I don't go any finer than 150 because I think the
decals
will adhere better to a surface that isn't 'glaass' smooth) .... the
trick
here is to keep using this technique until the surface is nice and
even with
NO indents, .. remember that the slightest 1/32 scratch with a ball
point
pen, will telegraph to the surface of the decal when you're done!
3) THE REST OF THE CABINET: No you're NOT ready for decals yet
Grasshopper,
... now we have to do the rear of the cabinet and the backbox. Remove
the
plate holding the AC Line Cord and remove it. Remove the grey cabinet
slides, also remove the backbox lockdown brackets. Next, mask off
with
masking tape, the area imprinted with yellow printing and the serial
number
decal and the FCC sticker (just put tape over the sticker, then use a
hobby
razor knife to trim along the edge!) Next, sand the back of the
cabinet and
backbox with 150 grit paper (fill and repair if you have to) Also sand
the
top of the backbox as well (and now's a good time to also prep the
inside
edges of the backbox too) ... Get someGloss Black Lacquer spray, ..
and
spray a nice black coat over these areas. (a trick here is .... it's
ok to
spray 'heavy' around the edges, and in the open areas, but when you're
doing
the rear of the backbox, .. you want to *feather* the paint as it gets
near
the edge of the tape that covers the yellow printing, ... ie a heavy
spray
around the edges, .... getting lighter and lighter as you spray close
to the
masking tape - this way you won't have much of a noticeable black
line
around the yellow printing when you remove the tape! ... After
this, ... also
spray along the corner edges of the cabinet and backbox and
especially
around the star buttons on the cabinet front. ... let everything
DRY, ....
then 'manually' lightly sand the cabinet sides and front (everywhere
the
decal will be placed) with 150 paper, ... just lightly mind you, ...
Then,
get a tack rag, and clean everything up, ... sweep up the garage
floor,
....get everything nice and clean, and you don't want any DUST
particles,
etc, .. getting under the decal 'screwing up the works'.
PS .... Without calling anyone names, or starting a FLAME war, ... let
me
just STRONGLY state that you DO NOT want to apply your expensive
decals DRY
on your pinball game. Sure, ... it CAN be done, ... and like others
have
posted, it HAS been done.... but DON'T try it!!!! It's NOT worth
it, ...
there's NO ADVANTAGE to applying the decals dry, yet there are many
disadvantages. Now which spray to use: Windex or Spray soap solution?
I've
used both, and now use a soap solution. Get and empty spray bottle
(32oz/1Qt) and put it 2 tablespoons of dawn diswashing soap and fill
the
reat up with water (DO NOT put more than 2 tablespoons full of
Dawn ,,,,
more IS NOT better) Using the soap solution makes it a little easier
than
Windex to re-position the decal on the cabinet if you have too, ... so
from
my experience, use a SOAP SOLUTION.
4) GETTING THE DECAL READY: .... the problem with decals is that
they're
made slightly bigger (for obvious reasons) than the cabinet and there
are NO
alignment marks on the corners telling you where to cut! This is
where
having good photos of your game on the Internet Pinball Database comes
in
very handy! You *always* put the decal on the cabinet front first!!!
(positioning help: for Indiana Jones & Monster Bash, the bottom edge
of the
lettering will need to be approx 3/16" up from the bottom edge of the
cabinet. As an example to help tell you the technique I use for
putting the
decal on, ... let's assume that the cabinet front is a square, 24
inches on
a side. Now measure the decal, ... and let's assume it measures 25 in
on a
side. That means that I'm going to have a 1/2 in overhang, ... so I
mark the
decal 1/2 inch IN from each side with a pencil, .. then I do the same
for
the other dimension and mark it as well. Next, use your scissors and
cut out
the small notch at each corner of the decal where you made your marks.
Note:
do NOT cut out the whole length of the decal - you'll razor it off
after the
decal is stuck in place! (make for a much nicer and more professional
edge
in the decal) ... lay the decal down on the cabinet front and make
sure that
the corners are just visible at the notches you cut, .... this now is
how
you lay down the decal, to get it aligned properly, ... by putting
your
NOTCHES right at the corners of the cabinet. NEXT, ... wipe off the
cabinet
with a tack rag again, then spray LIBERALLY with your soap
solution, ..
there's NO such thing as spraying too much here! ...You'll also need
a
helper to put on the decals, ... for the cabinet front and the
backbox
decals, ... you can completely peel away the backing before you
apply, ...
have your helper hold the bottom edge of the decal "UP" while you
carefull
apply the bottom edge to the cabinet right at your alignment marks.
Once you
have the decals edge positioned correctly, let your helper slowly
lower the
bottom edge into place, .... no heavy pressing of the decal now, ....
just
lay it down in place, ..... check the corners to make sure it looks
good,
.... also stoop down on your knees and look up from the bottom of the
decal,
... and your eyes will see the decal overhang from the bottom, ... and
you
can tell from this position if it's on 'straight' ... if something's
NOT
right lift up and re-position until it is ... no worries here MATE,
because
your'e using a SOAPY SOLUTION to help you!!! CAVEAT: this cutting
*small*
equal NOTCHES in the corners of the decal works great for decals that
are
'centered' on the material, but some decals aren't like that (the
Monster
Bash side decals) and you'll have to use other alignment techniques
for
these, .. same for CC for the cabinet front, ... make sure the "STAR"
is
correctly positioned over the start button, ... before applying. In
general
though, the NOTCH technique for alignment is the place to start!!!
5) TRIMMING: Get a small white plastic squeegee from Home Depot and
also
find some peel n stick 1/2" velcro tape .. the velcro has 2 parts, ...
the
smooth part is the one you want,... take a piece and stick along the
edge of
the squeegee , .... this is the "soft" edge that you'll use to
squeegee the
decal in place, so that you won't scratch it up or put marks in
it!!!!!!
Also put a new razor blade in your hobby knife. Squeege out the decal
starting from the center outward, ... pushing out the SOAPY
SOLUTION.... and
getting rid of any bubbles ... Afterwards, .... you'll need to trim
away the
decal overlap from the edge of the cabinet...... BE CAREFUL here ...
do NOT
cut the decal at a 90 degree angle (straight down), ... but instead
hold the
knife firmly at a 45 degree angle outward and carefully & slowly cut
along
the edges of the cabinet .... also cut out the screw holes and around
the
coin door opening....
Use the same technique for the large cabinet sides except don't
completely
peel away the backing before you start, only peel away about 12 in.
then
peel off the backing as you go. After you're finished, ... be sure to
cut
out for all holes, etc now before the decal dries ... you SHOULD let
it dry
for 24 hours before beginning re-assembly of the machine. Also, re-
check the
decals every hour or so for the first few hours, ... to re-squeege if
a
bubble appears, etc .... don't worry about the decal seeming to NOT
stick in
the corners right now, ... ie DONT F**K with it, ... let it
dry! ....
Well there you have it, ... the TreasureCove way of installing decals.
I
make no claims that this is the best way to install them, but I've
done
about a dozen so far, ...
Bryan Kelly
things a bit differently today, but you'll get the idea.
http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/album42
http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/album41
I had a buddy video me restoring an MM a couple of years ago. We
ended up with about 20 hours of stuff (the whole process took about
140 hours) that will hopefully end up on a DVD or two or three. I've
got another buddy who is currently going through it all and is
thinking about trying to put something together. I guess we'll have
to wait and see.
Write ups here are great but you really need to see someone go through
the process. A good example is when people say the cabinet surfaces
have to be like a pane of glass. No they don't. Every little nick
and ding has to be addressed, but after spending 8 hours sanding with
80 grit, then 120 grit, then 220 grit, you'll still see minor wood
grain. That's the stuff that won't show through the artwork.
Also keep in mind, everyone does things a bit different, so go with
what you feel comfortable with.
Bryan (CARGPB 14)
http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/bspins
NoTellin
> These two albums are what I've got for pics. They're old and I do
> things a bit differently today, but you'll get the idea.
>
> http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/album42
>
> http://usergallery.myhomegameroom.com/gallery/album41
>
> I had a buddy video me restoring an MM a couple of years ago. We
> ended up with about 20 hours of stuff (the whole process took about
> 140 hours) that will hopefully end up on a DVD or two or three. I've
> got another buddy who is currently going through it all and is
> thinking about trying to put something together. I guess we'll have
> to wait and see.
>
> Write ups here are great but you really need to see someone go through
> the process. A good example is when people say the cabinet surfaces
> have to be like a pane of glass. No they don't. Every little nick
> and ding has to be addressed, but after spending 8 hours sanding with
> 80 grit, then 120 grit, then 220 grit, you'll still see minor wood
> grain. That's the stuff that won't show through the artwork.
>
> Also keep in mind, everyone does things a bit different, so go with
> what you feel comfortable with.
>
>
> On Nov 12, 8:22 am, NoTellin <bmccarty2...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> > I need to replace decals on both my ST:TNG and my IJ. I've watched
> > some youtube clips and googled the subject but there are still gaps in
> > my mind. Is there a website out there that gives good detail on this
> > process? I understand there is a Wet and Dry process and from what I
> > have seen, the cabinets are usually repainted prior to applying
> > labels, is this standard black paint or a stain of some type?
> > Thanks...
>
>
> - Show quoted text -
Thanks to those that responded, much more detail than I had
originally. One More question: What type spray gun do you use to
paint the cabinet? I'm going to go buy a heat gun and spray gun; any
suggestions...
Thanks again!
Brad