[スーパーレイジーロードの旅!!] ナムコポールポジション

[ataritoobin]

Yep, the cabinet is running the original Namco PCBs which are a bit different from the Atari PCBs and use different edge connectors.  Each PCB of the 2-board stack has their own 3-pin molex power connector.

The grip must not have been too durable on these...that entire wheel was replaced in that pic    Here's the original:

[ataritoobin]

Hey Bela, let's take a look under that steering wheel wrap:

  Haha!  Just about what I expected, packing tape, something else, and a sticky gooey black mess which must be the original foam.

I noticed that the Taito Grand Champion steering wheels look just about the same, so that might be an option provided the mounting holes are the same.  Those would be (just barely!  ) more plentiful over here.

Here are some interesting "WTF was that person thinking?" things about this machine.

There's an Electrocoin "THIS MACHINE MUST BE EARTHED" sticker on the rear of the machine, so I assume this was imported into the UK by them.  The coin door was modified from the one-slot original (evident by the crooked cuts through the Namco "inspection" tag on the back and original holes, and it still has the coin return under the CP which only works with the original setup) to hold the 2-slot 10p Coin Controls mechanisms.

Only one issue.  

There's no way this door could have ever opened or closed properly without disassembling the mechs!  

Luckily the door is pretty simple, so I will likely recreate it and set it up like the original and leave this one as-is.


Another "WTF?" was the big circular hole in the bottom of the coin box and the bottom of the cabinet with a bit of PVC pipe going to the floor.  Since the door was locked, my best guess is that at some point someone owned it and couldn't get to the credit button (didn't know about Free Play either), so they got the coin box out, cut a hole in it, and cut a hole in the floor with a tube as a guide to get the coins they dropped through out on the floor    Otherwise I have no idea why this was done.

I straightened and painted the coin box, coin box bezel and pedal plate today.  The paint dried a lot more "white" than intended    But it's certainly 100% better than what was there.  I will probably revisit this again at some point.

Working on cleaning up the pedals and shifter.  Took the shifter apart so I could scan its bezel artwork (the pedal being cleaned in the foreground)

Also re-glued the lower back panel of the cabinet.

[level42]

Look like Nintendo coin-mechs....if you dont have a Nintendo cab you can easily sell those....

Your make fast progress. Some weird mods...

Hope you will find a steering wheel. At least the center is in tact.

The fact that electrocoin imported original Japanese PP's indicate how popular (and how much of a money maker) the game was. Of course Atari had the rights for Europe and manufactured PP's in Ireland for that market but it was obviously interesting enough to do shadow imports like this....

[ataritoobin]

Almost there with the CP!

Fixed up the original coin door for now:

Freshened up the shifter bumpers:

Ground down and polished the pedals and shifter (after scanning the artwork!) - these were DEEPLY pitted/rusted.

[Belike]

That poor steering wheel definitely saw better days.
Quarterarcade has one for sale with the Atari logo, but I guess you will rather go for the Namco one

[level42]

Nahhhh, can't go Atari on a Namco PP.......

The wheel is bigger and the spokes are so typical for Atari. i'm sure there is a better solution....

[ataritoobin]

Nahhhh, can't go Atari on a Namco PP.......

The wheel is bigger and the spokes are so typical for Atari. i'm sure there is a better solution....

It looks like Namco may have used the same wheel up until Final Lap, so there may be hope that I can track down an original, or find some fix for the one I have.

The main reason I haven't taken off the wheel yet is you have to PRY the Namco emblem back to get to the bolts - which I'm too chicken to do ATM for fear of bending it  

I'm impressed how heavy-duty the steering wheel mechanism is.  Much more heft to it than the Atari setup.

[ataritoobin]

Look like Nintendo coin-mechs....if you dont have a Nintendo cab you can easily sell those....

Your make fast progress. Some weird mods...

Hope you will find a steering wheel. At least the center is in tact.

The fact that electrocoin imported original Japanese PP's indicate how popular (and how much of a money maker) the game was. Of course Atari had the rights for Europe and manufactured PP's in Ireland for that market but it was obviously interesting enough to do shadow imports like this....

It's interesting isn't it?  I have a Taito Space Invaders: Part II upright (we had the Midway license over here for Space Invaders Deluxe) so I looked up the info on the "Modified by" sticker on the bezel.  Turns out the guy has an import business running out of his house for sporting goods (still does all this time later!) and evidently must have imported arcade games at some point.

[level42]

Found one....




ahh....no, not the same

[Muerto]

Danm, this restoration is flying!!! great work!!!

[ataritoobin]

Found one....




ahh....no, not the same

Hahaha!     I love it!  Arcade lifestyle indeed. 

Danm, this restoration is flying!!! great work!!!

Thank you! 

[ataritoobin]

Finally starting to look like a ナムコポールポジションですね??

Wound up bending a dental tool into a "U" shape to scoop the black paint out of the recessed areas of the control panel.  Felt like I was scraping plaque out of teeth  

Assembled the pedals:

These were ground down in a vice with a belt sander to get the deep rust and pits out, then polished up with finer and finer grits of sandpaper, followed by a clearcoat to hopefully prevent any future rust.

Grafted on a shifter knob from a Sega Turbo.  It's probably possible to re-shape this into the more sloped shape of the original.

[level42]

Must say I can understand why the foot area was made black. I mean, that white stuff looks nice, but after a couple of hours in an arcade you will have black sole marks everywhere ! Make sure you and your visitors drive with shoes off

[ataritoobin]

Must say I can understand why the foot area was made black. I mean, that white stuff looks nice, but after a couple of hours in an arcade you will have black sole marks everywhere ! Make sure you and your visitors drive with shoes off

Good point  !  Luckily my game room is shoeless, so I hopefully won't have to worry (though I have yet to figure where I'm going to put this exactly  )

I put my Etienne hat on last night and made a couple of stickers for the cabinet (forgot screenshots - d'oh!) - a coin door inspection tag and "Indoor Use Only" tag.  I also am working on a "100 Yen Only" sticker (seen in the original coin door pic) and the "JAA" (before they were called JAMMA!) sticker.

I had a thought for the steering wheel, there's a product called "Plasti Dip" that's available as a brush-on, spray, or dip application.  It's a rubbery coating used for worn tools, and evidently, worn steering wheels.

If I can get the foam/rim of the steering wheel nice and even, that might be a possible fix to re-furbish the old wheel which I'd be keen to do vs. replacing it.

[Etienne MacGyver]

I am happy that i inspired you