Author Archives: Kevin

Arcade – Step 2

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I determined that I would use a computer with an I-PAC. I purchased a video card for the computer that would allow me to use the monitor that came with the cabinet, however I was not able to get them working together. I ended up using a slightly larger computer monitor as the display and the original video card.

After removing the original game board and power supply a few modifications were required. First the board in the back of the cabinet had to be cut to allow the computer to be placed inside.
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With a ton of help from Matt all of the original buttons were mapped to the I-PAC.

As I said, I had to replace the original display with a computer monitor. The monitor on hand was too big for the cabinet and some changes were made. First it had to be placed in upside down, in addition sime of the plastic of the monitor had to be removed. Also, the plastic matte around the display had to be trimmed to display the entire screen. The monitor also extends past the rear of the cabinet so a notch will need to be cut from the access board to allow it to close.
Monitor extends past back of cabinet

A power strip was added to the cabinet and plugged into the original power block so that the existing power switch could be used to turn the cabinet on and off.
Wired a power strip into the original power supply

Arcade – Step 1

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I have always loved video games. They have been my spare times passion for over 15 years. Most of my experience has been with console games, and that is great. However, some of my favorite memories are of playing Galaga. There isn't a stand up Galaga cabinet near by so I could only get my Galaga fix with an emulator. As fun as that is, a keyboard just doesn't cut it.

The dream of owning a Galaga cabinet would fill my mind any time I played the game. Finding one has been a little difficult, and when I do they are too expensive.

Recently I went to an Arcade Machine Auction in Winston Salem with a friend of mine. There were several Galaga cabinets available but they sold for way too much. So I began to toss around the idea of building a MAME cabinet. I would need an inexpensive box to put it in so, I kept my eye out for one.

Towards the end of the day an X-Men vs. Street Fighter was auctioned. for the auction the cabinet was plugged in but it didn't turn on. this was okay with me because I didn't need it to work. Nobody bid on it an I was able to get it for $20. Which is good even for an empty cabinet.

It turns out the cabinet was in perfect working order, nobody thought to flip the switch on. The monitor didn't have any burn-in whatsoever. All the controls worked and the sound quality was awesome. There are a few cosmetic problems, most notably a large chunk of wood missing from the left side. This was easily fixed by some wood filler.

I now had a dilemma. Should I keep my new found deal as an X-Men vs. Street Fighter cabinet or replace it with MAME. I do really like XMvsSF but, I wanted to play Galaga. I decided that I would do both.

Step 2

Garden #2

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When I left my last company they gave me the second of my two weeks off with pay so I used it to dig this plot.

I used four 7' landscape logs to border the garden; I notched the ends of each and drilled a hole so that I could drive a nail through them to hold the corners in place. The next thing I did was probably over kill. To inhibit weed growth while waiting for spring I dug foot wide sections of the yard about 18″ deep and turned them upside down in place. To help get the clay of my yard ready for planting I buried some items destined for the compost pile a few inches deep.

Currently the plot is covered with christmas trees to keep the soil somewhat warm and hopefully also help keep weeds from growing. When it comes time to till I will mix in some pine needles and fresh soil.

Concerns:

The location of this plot is adjacent to the lowest spot in the yard. I am afraid that this will cause the roots to rot. My hope is that the summer months will be hot enough to prevent the soil from staying soggy.

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Here is the current view.

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Marvel Masterpieces Duplicate Art

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From the Marvel Masterpieces series there is a lot of duplicated art. Below is a listing of what I have found so far. MMI stands for Marvel Masterpieces Series 1, MMII stands for Marvel Masterpieces Series 2 and so on.

MMI #S3 of 9, MMIII #44: Venom

MMI #S8 of 9, MMI #71: Sand Man

MMI #X4 of 9, MMII #13: Cyclops

MMI #21, MMIII #MK 4: Dagger

MMI #42, MMIII #MK 6: Iron Fist

MMI #48, MMIII #23: Kraven The Hunter

MMI #58, MMIII #MK 7: Moon Knight

MMI #70, MMIII #35: Sabertooth

MMII #48, MMIII #24: Magneto

MMII #1, MMII #38: Iron Man

Also, MMII #56 Nick Fury is actually the Punisher.

“It’s a recycled image. They used the same picture for the header card as they did for the Iron Man card. On top of this, Nick Fury’s card has a picture of the Punisher, Enchantress’ card has a picture of a green version of Scarlet Witch, Archangel’s card has a picture of Angel, Hammerhead’s card has a picture of Tombstone, the Cyclopse card has the same art used for the Cyclopse chase card in MM07, and a number of the chase cards reused images from the base set “–http://scoundrelpublishing.com/spart/viewtopic.php?p=147993#147993

Trading Cards

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Among many kinds of cards I have, I have sets of Marvel Masterpieces 2007 Series I, II & III, Marvel Legends, Serenity Movie, Baseball, Basketball, NASCAR (yes I’m ashamed too), Hockey, Soccer, etc.

I am missing some chase cards and even a couple commons from the Marvel Sets, which I am trying to complete. I have lots of commons to trade, email me if you’re interested.

I’m a little disapointed in the relaunched Marvel Masterpieces series. There are several duplicate pieces of art between the three new series, and sometimes even in the same set. Here’s a list of what I’ve noticed.

To complete Marvel Legends I need:
P1, cc1, cc2, cc3, cc8, cc10, cc11, cc14, cc16, cc17, cc18, Nearly all of the foils

To complete Marvel Masterpieces 08 Set 2 I need:
A 3 of 9, MH 1 of 9, Hulk B, Hulk C, Iron Man B, Iron Man C

To complete Marvel Masterpieces 08 Set 3 I need:
MK 8, MK 9, XM 1, XM 2, XM 3, XM 4, XM 5, XM 8, XM 9, MM 1, MM 2, MM 3, MM 4, MM 5, MM 6, MM 7, MM 9.

Here’s a pair of sketch cards that I pulled.

Marvel Masterpieces_Set II_Hulk Ted Dastick Jr

Marvel Masterpieces_Set III_Captain_Adam Hicks