So here we have the Willis Moon Patrol control panel overlay. It has all the quality features I’ve come to expect from a Willis product, with die-cut control openings, reverse screen printing and 3M paper backing; they even made a good effort on the artwork. Granted its not the Williams Moon Patrol cpo, but it has some interesting features. The Willis Moon Patrol cpo attempts to create the perspective that you’re in the seat of some lunar vehicle, driving your way across the moons craggy surface. With the sun setting in the distance, you’ve just embarked on some great adventure across this alien terrain. Not buying it?
Image may be NSFW.
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Then lets just say that it’s much better than some of the bootleg pieces I’ve seen, especially this one – bad bootleg moon patrol cpo – and leave it at that.
Of course we’d prefer to restore our Williams Moon Patrol control panel with an original NOS overlay, but those are becoming harder to find and even when you do find one it’s not always in the best shape. You could look for a suitable reproduction, but heck, this Willis Moon Patrol replacement cpo just might do the trick. Plus it has the famous Willis “player” men and lots of attention to detail. Back in 1983 when this replacement overlay was released it would have worked just fine for the operator trying to make a living off quarters. It would have cost much less than an OEM replacement and done just as good a job making the machine look new again. Sort of. Maybe I won’t be able to convince you that this Willis Moon Patrol cpo is worthy of adorning your prized Williams classic, but at least we can agree that it is a cool piece of arcade history.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
My example of the Willis Moon Patrol cpo is in pretty nice shape, missing most of the die-cuts, but otherwise clean and without significant damage. The colors are still bright and the text is crisp and like new, almost as if it just rolled off the press in 1983. A better decade for sure! This one gets stashed away in the vault. If you have any information about Willis Industries or would just like to comment about the artwork they produced, drop me a line I’d love to talk Willis!
