Thanks, will do!

Great Info!

Is there any appropriate UV-shielding spray that can be used on the cabinet to protect / prevent fade?

My X-Files gets some sunlight, I know it's going to start fading eventually.

Could you add UV filter to your windows? They have that contact paper which works pretty well

I added 3M Prestige to the windows in my pinball area. Has the side benefit of saving me money and making the room more comfortable. Unfortunately I needed to find a professional installer to get my hands on it, it's not a DIY product. It eliminates 99% of UV.

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Sun-Control-Window-Films-Prestige-Series-for-Residential/?N=5002385+3292716663&rt=rud

Different slight product variations depending on need.

Good idea: I'll try to find some window film.

vid1900 - any suggestions on thinning the Kilz Oil primer for use in the HF HVLP gun?

I prime my cabinet with a roller+brush.. but just could not get it perfectly flat sanding (too many pits/pockets) without taking most of the primer out too. So I now I need to spray it, but Kilz's says not to thin it... yet it seems all the craftsman do... Any suggestions on ratios?

I'm about to prime a cabinet and don't have spray equipment or a good setup for spraying. I was thinking about using a roller to prime before putting on decals. Based on what I've read here I was planning to use a foam roller, latex primer, and adding Floetrol (makes the paint slightly thinner and slower-drying, and supposedly helps with brush marks). Was this what you were doing as well?

I used foam roller and oil based kilz (no thinning). Oil as a base is always more forgiving in what you use on top vs latex.. and probably sands better too.

The finish was smooth to the touch, but not really and I was pushing for better. Example of the pitting that wouldn't sand out easily..

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Those look like the type of imperfections I would normally fill with Bondo.

yeah but starting with what kind of ratio? Can't see mixing, loading, unloading, mixing more load, unload, etc

Not sure what's the way to dial that in..

Thx Bryan. I did some of that the first time around.. but still had the large areas that were not flat, and wasn't going to fill the whole side again. Here is some before and after to compare..

Before...
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After...
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I was worried the before was 'too much' and would telegraph through the decals too much

The bondo filler work was rough sanded with 80 and then 180grit before I moved onto the primer. Whole cabinet was 180 sanded.

Trying to sand the primer.. I was using 320git.. but eventually moved down to 220grit for the final "I give up damnit!!" passes after not really getting past the 'before' photo above

Thanks. Is that pitting in the wood (and the primer failed to fill it)? Or a result of texture in the paint application thanks to the roller (so the pitting is actually in the primer layer, not down to the wood)?

SHOULD be in the paint.. but that's one of the benefits of primer, it really can expose what you may not see otherwise. It sanded flat without really getting into the wood, so it should all be in the primer. But it's also possible it was the bondo filler that didn't sand smooth and instead was 'tearing'. You can see more of it in the before/after I posted just above this.

Vid,

Wonder if you have any recommendations on repairing a 88 bally Blackwater cabinet. Looks like entire cabinet was made out of particle board. You can probably imagine what the edges look like. Would it be beneficial for me to have a new cab and back box made or is it possible to repair this cab. I can supply pics if I need to. Thanks

Ok here some pics of the problem areas. I thought about sanding all the edges back to where I could go back with fiberglass to rebuild those edges. Got the idea from reading this post. Cab looks pretty bad all around but the edges are extremely bad.

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Good idea with the t-molding. Have any idea on the front corner of the lower cab. Glue doesn't normally hold well on partial board. Thanks vid

You can use wood hardener on the particle board to firm it up first so it stops flaking.

Cabinet clear coat advice please Just painted my Bally Space Time (1972). Very happy with the result.

The thing is I'd like to clear it but I've read many different things and can't decide what to use: 2k semi-gloss, oil-based satin clear varnish, JC661 High Gloss Multi-Panel Clear with an additive, I've also been told Minwax Polycrylic, etc.

The main goal is to protect the paint job from scratches and UV yellowing with a good authentic look.

What do the pros recommend?

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Here is a picture of a 1972 Jungle where I used the same type spray as you used, then I brushed on two coats of Minwax Polycrylic.

I liked the semi-gloss look on that one, not sure how authentic the look is since I was just 10 back then.

Bud

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I put this in my own Fish Tales refurb thread, but I figured i'd toss the info in here for any Cabinet Repair folks for bad gouged or awful corners, etc.

Here is some fiberglass resin repairs I did to my bad cabinet. Some pics of the process. I used Vid's earlier in thread fiberglass resin techniques and I am extremely happy with the results so far.

I made sure I used a burr end on my rotary tool and put some deeper gouges into wood where I could so the resin could seep deeper into the area to give it more hold. The areas I could put some small tapered head screws i also got in for more hold. Build dams and pour in!
I found I needed to wait a couple minutes and add a bit more resin from cup to make sure I was above wood level as some might seep between dam and wood. Watch for that so you don’t have to get the rotary tool out in a few hours to scratch it up and gouge the newly hardened resin so you can too it back up to level

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Couple cured and sanded pics

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I'm shooting to repaint my first cabinet shortly (Gottlieb Bank Shot).
I plan to spray it with a Harbor Freight purple HVLP gun.
What's the rough protocol?
Figured: strip, sand 60-80-100, patch, sand patched areas, prime, sand 60-80-100-120, then paint? Then clear?

From another post I learned I can't spray primer through the HVLP gun, is it worth buying another purple HVLP gun for primer? Or just go rattle can?

Also, the purple gun calls for 6cfm at 40psi.
I have a Snap-On 3 gallon compressor that can do 3.6cfm at 40psi.
Since the cabinet isn't a huge area, will I be OK if I take a break every pass or two to let the compressor catch up, or am I fooling myself?
Is the answer getting a second tank or just getting a bigger/better compressor?

Bigger compressor

I wouldn’t final sand primer with anything more course than 220. You’re not trying to remove any more material necessary than to level and flatten the texture of the primer. Seeing sanding scratches in primer showing through in finish paint is a bummer.

WOW! I would go 80, patch, 80, 120, 220, prime, 320 then paint. Even 220 after priming can leave sanding marks.

Yeah, I should have been more clear. What I was saying was I would never touch a cabinet for final sand with course grit that he list. I should have said I step from 220 to 320 to 400. It is glass smooth by then. Light, light pressure letting the paper do all the work.
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So true. A 2 part high solids urethane lays down so nice and sands and powders up even nicer. It’s well worth it.

Kwik Poly
kwikpolyllc.com/
It will NEVER come apart. It's a two part mix with a small cure window but the advantage is that it can be poured into any small opening and it will fill every void in there. It can even be poured over rotted wood and it will fill and encase it creating a sort of plastic replacement of what was there.

Can you post some pics of the correct clamps to use?

That’s probably what’s holding those teeth in

Can someone please describe the process of stripping or sanding the cabinet? Can you begin with sandpaper or do you normally use a liquid paint stripper then move on to paper? Does all of the original paint have to be removed down to bare wood before you prime and paint it or just enough to get a smooth finish?