I've got a question on the best way to 'restore' some of the metal parts in the cabinet, playfield, coin door, etc. These parts seem to be made of of steel with some sort of galvanizing on them. Most of the parts I'm looking at are not too bad, but feel a bit rough, some with a bit of corrosion (rust?), so I've smoothed them with a Scotchbrite pad, and waxed them to prevent further deterioration. Does anybody have any better process?

Thanks all for some great ideas! Hope everybody is getting some resto work done these days, and staying healthy!

I'm curious as to what others are doing with the metal backbox doors on old EM machines that you are restoring. Mine is serviceable; it's got a couple of wrinkles in the sides as though somebody tried to pry it out, and a bit of corrosion here and there. Nothing major wrong though. I've given thought to a few scenarios: Clean it up and keep it as is; clean it up and paint it to match the cabinet base color; replace it with a plywood panel painted to match, or perhaps a mix - stiffen the existing panel with some plywood and paint (or not). These last two are not high on my list, I should say, but are possibilities.

Thoughts?

Ah, powder coat! Great idea! I took the door and the channel to a local shop for an estimate, and they also recommended a fab shop to have a new door made if that's the path I decide to take. I re-fit the door in the backbox, and it's more bent than I remember, so a new one seems the best course. In for a penny, in for a dollar, I guess!

My thought was do do the door in the same color as the base color of the cabinet, but has anybody tried any contrasting/complementary colors?