Since it was the most obviously messy portion of the cabinet, not to mention one of the few parts I was incentivized to even do anything about, I decided to work on the console first. The buttons and joysticks detached easily enough from the bottom, some screws for the joysticks were hastily attached and or missing / corroded beyond recovery. Had to stop by home depot to pick up replacement nuts and washers.
The neogeo cabinets have a controller card under the joystick port which allows you to use a memory card I assume worked with the home systems as well. It has earphone ports too which I had tested before hand and still miraculously work. I have no way of trying out the memory card slot, though I may as well clean off the contacts and leads on the interface card while I'm at it.
Each microswitch requires two wires running through it to complete the connection to the console. Took me a few hours to label every one properly for easy access later. Finally I was able to pull off the metal console and start sanding.
I used a fine grain sandpaper and pulled off as much of the rust and paint as I could. Don't forget to wear a mask for this, the paint is lead and smells / tastes bad. Also, lead poisoning.
sandin sandin sandin...
When I was mostly happy with the results, I set it aside and made some room for spray painting. This step is simple enough. Be sure to use a primer and paint that match and work on a metal surface. I did one coat of primer and one coat of black glossy paint. The real trick to doing it right is to keep moving the can back and forth, never paint for more than a split second in the same spot or it will clump and drip down the side. If you miss a spot, go back and forth over it in a sweeping motion till the spot is covered even if this means wasting more paint. Also, don't use ancient paint cans of mysterious origin. The gas dissipates after a few years and won't work - its only about $4 a can anyway, so don't be cheap.
Finished product.
With new buttons and plastic console cover.
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