Time to finally clear out some of the arcade road trips I still haven’t shared.
Let’s jump back a little over three years, to September 2022.

At that moment, I was going through a slightly odd phase. I had drifted away from the arcade world for a while, drawn back toward another long‑standing passion of mine: music, and more specifically, the guitar.
For anyone curious, my YouTube channel with my guitar covers was my main creative outlet back then. Check this out (and feel free to like) -> My Guitar YT Channel

So yes - I wasn’t really looking for anything arcade‑related anymore. My “must‑have” list felt complete, and the hunt had pretty much gone quiet.
But after so many years of checking what’s for sale around me, the habit stayed. And during one of those casual scans, I stumbled upon a listing… just 44 km from home.

Not much preparation, the seller didn’t live far, so no schedule stress. I had no idea what I was going to buy, or even if I would buy anything at all.
I didn’t negotiate anything; I simply told the seller I’d stop by, just ‘to have a look’…

So here we are, September 27th, 2022.



Like I said, it was practically next door…



...and that was for the best, because at that point I wouldn’t have driven much farther for anything arcade‑related. (around that same period I did go on a looong road trip for ...a guitar.  But that’s another story)

Living in Belgium, right at the ‘three borders,’ is pretty convenient… A few kilometers in any direction and I’m either in Luxembourg, France, or Germany.
For this story, though, we’ll be crossing into France...



With such a short drive, there really wasn’t anything epic to report… At best, I could show you a French roundabout? 



...or perhaps I should show you a picturesque little French village while I’m at it?



Alright, enough chatter...we’ve arrived at the seller’s place.



I step into the seller’s warehouse or rather, the place of the person handling the sale (he's not the owner).
I’m not alone; a few other potential buyers are already there. And it makes sense, there’s quite a lot of interesting old stuff lying around 
For example, this Atari Sprint    or this Super Bug (which has less impact on me, since I already owned that cabinet once and eventually sold it).



Not bad, not bad… but these aren’t the cabinets I came for. Let’s see what else is around.
Hmm… some generic Sidam machines, a few old Super Breakout… and quite a lot of jukeboxes...
Turns out I’m the only guy here actually interested in these old arcade cabinets — which works out just fine for me. 



Ah, there it is... the cabinet that actually got me off my butt and driving out here… an ultra‑rare Polaris cabaret by Taito  (and behind it, two more Super Breakouts… Good lord, that’s five already!  ). 



She’s in rough shape: at first glance, the back door is missing, the monitor tube is broken, the base has water damage, and the original control panel is gone… Honestly, that’s fine by me, definitely a lot of work ahead, but also plenty of arguments for not paying too much in the end... and I’m not about to get picky when it comes to a cabinet this rare!



With the negotiation done, I kept walking around before loading the Polaris — just in case I stumbled upon another gem.
A whole row of cocktail tables, though I’d say they were all generic models. 



Another generic cabinet — though this one is interesting because it comes from the old French arcade ‘J.R.’. 





@Old School : could this be one of the machines from your legendary ‘JR’ Arcade? 

Here’s another very interesting cabinet. It’s an Atari Coupe Davis, the European version of Atari’s Pong Doubles in the US.





I hesitated to take that one too. But I didn’t have the space to bring it back right away, since I was about to load the Polaris into the car.
So I figured I could always come back later. I’m not far from home anyway…

There were a few more generic cabinets that I didn’t even bother taking pictures of, but trust me — nothing interesting.
Alright, time to load the Polaris



On the short road back, I had to take the official ‘catch of the day’ photo :



Except… yeah, I look a bit grumpy or sad there.   We all go through rough patches, and I was definitely in one of those phases. Arcade stuff wasn’t really what I needed at that moment.

Another thing: in that warehouse, there was clearly stuff for other collectors. After picking up the Polaris, I could have shared the location. But as I said, I wasn’t really in the arcade mood anymore. I feel a bit guilty about it, especially since I’m usually the one advocating for sharing
A few months after this road trip, I contacted the seller again to see if anything was left, but I never got a reply. I also regret letting the Sprint and the Monte Carlo slip away... 

Alright, back in Belgium — short distance or not, it still qualifies as an international road trip   



And here are my stats as a "professional road‑tripper"  (who doesn’t earn a single cent doing all this — quite the opposite, actually… ) 



BELGIUM -> FRANCE -> BELGIUM
ROADTRIP TIME ELAPSED 2H32
DISTANCE 88 KM

The cabinet is out of the car and ready to enter the Nuno’s Lair.



Stay tuned for its restoration.

Rare enough to be worth mentioning here... and keeping track of it: a Starblade arcade cabinet is for sale in UK, listed onto our friends UKVAC forum.
These are becoming very difficult to find these days That one took quite a bit of work, but it was totally worth it! 

Link on UKVAC

Excellent work and very well documented, here's the WIP from the resurrection of the Galaxian3 Theater6 located in at FUNWORD in Nashua (New Hampshire) 



I had almost given up hope of finally seeing someone put in the necessary effort to study this beast. I am glad to finally see some interest in this machine. 

Follow the LINK 

After all these years of collecting arcade games (+25 years), finding the ones I absolutely wanted to own but also getting many from the what I call the "nice to have" list, I didn't think I'll once again get the road to drive so far for getting an additional cabinet!
So what cabinet is still missing in my 'collection' (although I do not collect arcade games anymore strictly speaking)? And what do I mean by driving so far?
Well, this time -and for the very first time- I'm going to take my car and leave the European Union, to go outside the Schengen area...I'm going to United Kingdom!


[click picture]

Sure, this is not the first time I'm doing a road trip to UK, but this gonna be the first one I'll do after the Brexit, so technically I'll the first time outside European Union!  but the fact is... it's gonna be my...

20th UK Road Trip Anniversary

It's time to remind myself of all these trips to England over the past 20 years...

1. Dragon's Lair 2, Star Wars cockpit (2005)
2. Space Ace (2006)
3. Rolling Thunder (2007)
4. Space Harrier (2007)
5. Daytona USA (2007)
6. Computer Space (2007)
7. Guitar Freaks (2007)
8. APB (2007)
9. Battlezone (2007)
10. Galaga, Spy Hunter, Radarscope, Zaxxon, Super Bug (2007)
11. Return of the Jedi (2008)
12. Pac Man Jr, Gyruss (2008)
13. Ms Pac Man (2008)
14. Burger Time (2009)
15. Ghosts'n'Goblins, Moon Patrol (2009)
16. Darth Maul and Han Solo life size (2010)
17. Wacko (2011)
18. Starhawk, Condor [DUKE OF LANCASTER raid!) (2012)
19. Firefox cockpit (2014)

What can I say by looking at this list?

- 2007 was a crazy year! (8 UK road trips)
- my last UK road trip was done 10 years ago
- 19 is not a good number

So what could be the game that would deserve another 'massive' road trip?    Well...

A few years ago, for various reasons I went through a phase of disinterest of this hobby. I think a lot of old collectors have gone through this phase. I have favoured other activities and decided to slow down everything arcade related. I had the opportunity to sell some of my games. I don't regret selling these games, apart from two or three titles.. and Dragon's Lair 2 is one of them. On a positive note, my Dragon's Lair 2 went to a very good person/well know collector.

So when I see the ad from Darren 'Dazza' for the sale of a Dragon's Lair 2, I said to myself :

- Here's an opportunity to get back a Dragon's Lair 2 cabinet, and so having back in my game room the full "Bluth Trilogy" cabinets (Dragon's Lair + Dragon's Lair 2 + Space Ace)


(picture of my "Bluth Trilogy" row of cabs before selling my DL2...)

- I'll hit the 20th UK road trip in my counter
- I'll have a nice project to work on (as you'll see, there'll be a lot of work!)
- I'll meet Darren again (and possibly Jason 'FinnyUK'), 18 years after the legendary Dragon's Lair Euro Fans Meeting


(click on picture for the meeting report)

In no time I immediately get in touch with Darren, asking him more details. Unfortunately, as the cabinet is not located at his place, I had to figure out its condition with only these pictures :







For sure a non working one, damaged and missing parts... but I'm totally fine with that, deal done! 
And to be fair, I'm more buying my 20th UK road trip than buying a cabinet (just kidding... or not?) 

The number "20"... how crazy is that? ->

- I'll do this 20th UK road trip 20 years (or so) later after my first UK road trip
- For this 20th UK road trip, I'll pick up the same game I got during my first UK road trip : a Dragon's Lair 2  the circle is complete!

...when the stars align! 

Sunday 7th of July 2024... one day before departure

Going to UK since the Brexit happened is not as easy...
A visa is required to travel to UK. Mine is still available, thanks for my last trip to Las Vegas a couple of months ago.
I expect to have problems at customs if I bring back some merchandises... especially with such items like a vintage arcade cabinet, sometime quite difficult to describe to a customs officer.
So I got with me a bill of sale that describes the 'item' (non working, incomplete, for parts,...), with the price, and also a bank account statement that shows the same amount. This should satisfy customs officiers in the event of in-depth investigations.
Finally, I also got a Dragon's Lair 2 arcade flyer to picture the game if the Customs officers really do not know what I'm talking about!  I also *may have*  a special plan with that flyer... 
Oh, a part of the deal with Darren was also to bring him a couple of Belgian beers 



This is the Italy/Elettronolo version of the cabinet. The same model I sold years ago.
This cabinet version of Dragon's Lair 2 seems slightly different in term of shape/size than the others cabinets versions (US or UK).
I use to check the cabinet dimensions on the flyer of the game, but obviously no flyer was released for the Italy/Elettronolo version? Can someone confirm?
But it should fits. I'm getting some tools in case of disassembling :



Monday 8th of July 2024... the D day

It's very early ... 5h00am ... it's summer, and the sun is already starting to rise
 


First leg of this tour is the travel from my home (in South Belgium) to Le Shuttle (euro tunnel terminal) at Calais (France) 



For my road tripper' statistic   



Official departure time -> 5h16am (4h16am UK time)

For this Journey, I'm accompanied by a new mascot, created by my son 



Do you smell that? Road Trip, son. Nothing else in the world smells like that. I love the smell of road trip in the morning.



The Arc Majeur 



Arc Majeur is 60 metres high, 75 metres wide and weighs 200 tonnes. It's the world's largest public work of art made of Corten steel, a material often also used in architecture which combines corrosion resistance, tensile strength and a pleasingly warm appearance. The red-brown patina that develops on its surface is waterproof and does not seep through materials, unlike standard rust. Both parts of the arc are made of 20-metre-long steel segments (three on the larger side, two on the smaller side) that have been fused together with surgical precision. The construction process took into account both the condition of the soil at its final location, vibration caused by heavy traffic and the potential for extreme climatic changes, for example, 200 km/h winds. The base of the sculpture extends to a depth of three metres into the soil. Thus Arc Majeur embodies both a brilliant artistic idea and the highest level of 21st-century technological and scientific know-how (source)

Oh... something really cool will happens in few seconds... 



Ready?



Yeaaaah!!! 



OK, it was more fun to watch in the days of mechanical meters  ...



And what about this Wanlin AC Restaurant located on the E411 motorway, that has witnessed many of my adventures... oh wait, they removed the "AC Restaurant" giant logo on it? All that remains is the frame...everything is disappearing nowadays! 



Leaving Belgium to arrive in the north of France...



We are almost there.... Channel Tunnel sign in sight 



The first entrance :



Nothing to do... the terminal recognizes my license plate...I'm right on time... your recompense is ...no additional charge!   



The first border control. Let's start with the French customs officers...no question or so....



... and then the UK customs officers, with the usual question : who are you? where you go? purpose of the visit? any special merchandises ? Alcohols ?
I explain to them that I'm visiting a friend, possibly visiting a tourist site...and probably will be come back with an arcade machine...
"An arcade machine" said the officer? Yes... I give him the flyer of the cabinet in order to help him to picture it.
The customs officer took the fllyer in his hand and passed it to one of his colleagues who was checking another car.
1 minute later, his colleagues come to me. He gives me back the flyer and says: "I played this game when I was a kid... have a safe trip" 

A couple of minutes to wait before boarding...



During the wait, I'm still thinking about the entire 'scope' of this Journey    The famous flyer I showed the customs officers ... 



Boarding time, head of to LE SHUTTLE...



Ths SHUTTLE that I know very well now, having already taken it ...19 times in nineteen years.  



Le Shuttle trench ..."Stay on target"...



At this point, we are about 75 meters (246 feet) below sea level! 



Let there be light...



...and there was light!



Welcome in UK 



And let me celebrate my triumphant arrival with an appropriate song played... by myself 



(and do not hesitate to have a look/subscribe to my YT guitar channel right here)

I'm in love 









I need this... life size!

 

Back in September 2022.
I have the opportunity to get the legendary original gauntlet arcade machine. I picked up the 'modern' version 20 years ago (aka Gauntlet Legends, see here), but nothing can't beat the original version!
I love this game... I've had the opportunity to buy this game several times over the past 25 years, but I always thought that having it at home would kill its interest. Being by nature a multiplayer game, with a kind of 'pay to win' gameplay, with no possibility to 1CC. So as a solo player, I didn't really see the point of having it at home.
Bullshit! I love too much that game, I had so much great memories (on the arcade version, but also on the Amstrad CPC port).... cabinet is so gorgeous, and Gauntlet is definitively a title that belong to the arcade history. Now I've 2 kids (meaning more players). Oh and because, come one, everyone know the game "Gauntlet"! Finally, I'm such a fan of the CONAN movies... this game could have been called 'The Adventure of Conan the Barbarian'.

So after all theses arguments, I have the approval of the Barbarian and his Valkyrie to make this journey.



In order to 'size' this Adventure....


 
...but for once, it will be a road trip very close to home... only 111km to destination :



In order for the seller not to change his mind, I decided to go and get the game immediately. It was a kind of 'unexpected & improvised' road trip. So my first stop is the bank, where my favorite thief is waiting for me... warrior need money :



Soon enough, in the middle of the Cimmera land, the led "Warrior Needs Food Badly!" is on :



I should find something to eat in this tavern...



Problem solved :



Here I am at the French border, where I will continue under good escort from now...



...because this country looks very violent indeed and it seems very dangerous to want to cross it alone... (wind turbine spotted!)



In the midst of all this violence outside, it is with all serenity that I present you the amulet of protection that my son made for me... clearly mandatory for this dangerous journey!



It's quieter now, we're getting closer to the goal...



Here we are, the beast was hiding in that garage :



The history of this cabinet by the seller : the game was operated in the small pub from this little village. About 20 years ago, the seller bought the game from that pub. When he bought it, it wasn't the Gauntlet board anymore. The cabinet was already 'jamma' hacked.
At the time, he wanted to restore the orignal game, but in the end he didn't do anything at all. So the cabinet remained in its original state for almost 20 years in that garage.
Having no longer a particular plan, he put this cabinet for sale, and here I am.
The deal with the seller was : as is, no question... so let be it!



I'm not talking about the way home, which went smoothly.



(for my stats : 246 km / 5h23 on road / Belgium<>France)

Here's the beast inside the Nuno's Lair, ready to be resurrected and start a new life 



Do you want to life forever ?



... so let's bring back this game to its full glory!

21 of June 2023
...
INITIATE ROADTRIP
...
...
...
SCANMODE 110373
ACQUIRE TRANSPORT PRIORITY
PRIORITY 920101
...

...
...
DISABLE CAMERA EYE
ACTIVE HUMAN EYE
...
...
CHECK MIRROR

...
...
STATUS OK
IDENTITY DARTH NUNO CONFIRMED
DISABLE HUMAN EYE
ACTIVE CAMERA EYE
...
...
...
LOCALIZE TARGET
COMPUTE ITINERARY
PRIORITY 102812
...

...
...
SCAN MODE LEVEL 42
ASSESS VEHICULE
...

...
...
...
SCANMODE 120917
ACQUIRE SUPPORT PRIORITY.
CRITERIA MORALE SUPPORT
...

..
..
VISUAL :
MALE HT0506
ECTOMORPH
NAME : SAM
ASSESSMENT COMPLETE
FIT PROBABILITY 0.92
...
...
...
EXAMINE BAG
BEVERAGE MATCH
COMPATIBILITY CONFIRMED
...

...
..
IMAGE ENHANCE
MODE 423-6503
SEQUENCERS 20
SPEED PARAMETERS
...

...
...
UPDATING DISTANCE TO TARGET
666 MODE LOOK UP
TRACKING MODE
FULL ISO LEVELS
...

...
...
...
LATERAL SPEED 573 3589
TRAJECTORY 600 2372
BASE CORRECT 113 3553
ACCELERATION 328 5893
...

...
...
...
PRIORITY TARGET ACTIVATED
ANALYZE CLASSIFICATION
PRIMARY TARGET CONFIRMED
DISABLE CAMERA EYE
ACTIVE HUMAN EYE TO INCREASE IRRATIONAL ANALYSIS HUMAN MODE
...

...
SYSTEM INTERRUPT
...
...
DIAGNOSTIC
ALL SYSTEMS OK
LESS MONEY AVAILABLE IN THE ACCOUNT
...
LOADING THE MACHINE
...

...
...
SEARCH FOOD MODE
PRIORITY 800618
BURGER KING LOCATED
...

...
CRITERIA
...
CALORIES 630
FAT 34 GR
SATURATED FAT 11 GR
SODIUM 1080 GR
CARBOHYDRATHES 58 GR
FIBER 4 GR
PROTEIN 25 GR
SUGAR 12 GR
....

...
...
LOCALIZE HOME
COMPUTE ITINERARY
PRIORITY 444719
SHUTDOWN AND REBOOT AT LOCATION
...
SYSTEM INTERRUPT
...

...
DIAGNOSTIC
ALL SYSTEMS OK
SAVING DATA
ROADTRIP TIME ELAPSED 9H04M
DISTANCE 496 KM...
...
UNLOADING THE MACHINE
HUMAN SAM ON GUNS
DEFENSE MODE 1678
...

...
ASSESSMENT WASTE OF AMMO
...
SCAN MODE LEVEL 22
NO DANGER
T2 SECURED IN GAME ROOM
MISSION SUCCESFULL
ALL SYSTEMS SHUTDOWN
...
SYSTEM INTERRUPT!

And this is it! T2 Arcade is now in the game room 



I think I have the best security guard here for this particular game 



It's time to play this game... but for some reasons, my youngest child doesn't dare to come and try the game?   



 

I'm looking for a Zaccaria SCRAMBLE curved marquee in order to complete my ongoing project right here.

Here's the condition of mine   



Badly broken   



If you have an other Zaccaria curved marquee (other than Scramble), I'm also interested!