My Scratch Built Renegade

During the mid 80's, I would take my nephew to the old Lakeland mall arcade.  That arcade is long gone, and the mall is now a church!  Anyway, our favorite pastime there was Renegade.  It was the first "beat'em up" game I can remember playing.  If I were to ever own a stand-up, full size arcade game, it would have to be Renegade.  So that is how I got started in this hobby.

Renegade was never sold as a dedicated machine.  Story has it that in the waning years of the video arcade boom of the early 80's, game developers began providing conversion kits.  Operators were then able to convert an older game, something that was no longer earning them money, into a new and hopefully profitable game.  And convert they did.  Most cabinets were painted black to conceal their previous identity.  The conversion kit would come with a few pieces of art, usually a new marquee and control panel overlay.  It was around this time that game rooms began to look, well, shabby to say the least.

After researching this, and learning that poor Renegade was never actually sold as a "dedicated" cabinet, I decided to build one from scratch.  I located a working circuit board (PCB) for Renegade on Ebay and after several more months, located a few pieces of original art from the conversion kit. 

Having already bored you to tears with the "why", I'll spare you  the "how".  Just know that if you plan to ever "scratch build" an arcade game, that it will be a slightly costly and time-consuming endeavor.  Three tools that were very helpful were a "biscuit joiner", a router, and large clamps.  Without those tools, I cant see how I would've created a square cabinet.  The entire cabinet is held together with biscuit joints and wood glue.  It is extremely solid, no worries there.  I used only basic hand tools, and I'm quite happy with the final results.

Alive and well

Tonight I came home to find the conversion kit from Bob at the door.  Fifteen minutes later I was playing some sweet Galaga.  If you haven't installed one of these before, it couldn't be easier.  I think a 5th grader could do this one.  Bob includes instructions,  and the AC line is fed from the monitor power lead.  I made the extra effort to install the frame ground from the switcher to one of the legs of the transformer.  After powering up, I checked the voltages, and adjusted to right under +5.2v, but I could already hear the game playing, and could hardly wait to take a look.

This is perhaps the first game I've repaired that has a decent looking monitor.  I doubt it even needs a cap kit, it's clear, bright, and actually centered.
Of course I played a few games, right away.  Galaga is much more difficult than I remember.  Now I've got to get the marquee light working, it's missing completely.


This has been one sweet purchase.  I'll probably strip the parts out of the cab, give it a fresh coat of black paint on the inner painted surfaces, and replace the t-molding and control panel overlay.  After that this game will be in A+ condition.

Nice Score!

Naturally I wasn't looking for another game, this one was just too good to pass up. It was posted on e-bay, but pointed out to me by the guys on klov.com. From the pictures, and the description, I could tell this cabinet had potential. So I clicked the buy it now option and crossed my fingers.

Turned out to be one of the cleanest, best condition games I have purchased to date. There were the usual scratches, only much fewer. The control panel overlay is a bit worn, but still very nice. The side art, bezel, and marquee, are all in excellent condition. As it stands this game is an "A" and will soon be an "A+" on my VAPS page.

As always, with these old games, it had it's fair share of oddities. First would be the hacked power supply connectors. Wires were cut all about the cabinet and left hanging, as if someone had simply went wild with a pair of cutters. After repairing the wire loom damages and replacing the original connector (they were kind enough to leave the original in the bottom of the cab), I flipped the power on and it came up in test mode. I flipped the test switch to normal play, and the game came up, with sound, graphics, looking good! I stood there for a second or two in amazement, jaw open, and then the game just died.

Checking the voltages now (something I should have done first), the +5v that was needed at the PCB was fluctuating into the 12-13V range. Yikes! I shut the game down and unplugged the power going to the main boards. Upon checking further, the voltage could not be adjusted within a proper range of +5 to 5.2.

Bob Roberts to the rescue. I ordered his "switching power supply conversion kit". I plan to leave the original linear power supply intact and in the cabinet. I'll install the new "switcher" and rest easy that this one won't catch fire.

Lastly a big THANK YOU, to my bud Brian Rodocker for the loaner truck! And also for the "buy it" words of encouragement.