SNK Lava Type Cabinet
| SNK Lava Type Cabinet | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Katakana | ラバータイプキャビネット |
| Rōmaji | RABĀ TAIPU KYABINETTO |
| AKA | SNK Lava Type; SNK Video Game |
| Type | Sitdown |
| Released | 1981 |
The SNK Lava Type Cabinet (ラバータイプキャビネット) is a compact sitdown arcade cabinet advertised by Shin Nihon Kikaku (SNK) in Japan by late 1981.
Period SNK advertising explicitly describes the machine as a "Lava Type" cabinet and shows it under the generic VIDEO GAME header artwork.
The cabinet is closely related in appearance to the contemporary Tehkan Lava family, although the precise relationship between SNK and Tehkan has not yet been established.
It is therefore best described as a Lava-type or Lava-derived cabinet rather than assuming that it was either an authorised version or an unauthorised clone.
History
The earliest presently documented advertisement on this page appeared in the December issue of Monthly Coin Journal (月刊コインジャーナル).
The publication margin gives the issue date as:
- 昭和56年11月24日
or 24 November 1981.
This establishes that SNK was already advertising the cabinet by late 1981.
The advertisement promotes SNK as a supplier of arcade-machine components and complete cabinets, displaying the Lava Type alongside CRTs, monitor frames, controls, wiring, power components and other arcade parts.
A separate SNK promotional flyer describes the machine as:
- ラバータイプキャビネット
and shows two differently decorated examples of the same basic cabinet.
Design
The SNK Lava Type follows the general compact seated format associated with Tehkan's Lava series:
- sloping CRT enclosure
- projecting control-panel area
- narrow cabinet body
- low seated playing position
- compact floor footprint
However, it is not an exact reproduction of the original Lava cabinet.
The SNK cabinet has continuous structural side panels extending towards the floor rather than the prominent tubular supports associated with the original Lava.
In this respect its body construction more closely resembles the later compact format seen on the Mini Lava.
The curved recess in the side panel surrounding the monitor area also resembles styling subsequently associated with the New Lava.
Unlike the Mini Lava, however, the SNK cabinet incorporates a projecting metal footrest at the front.
These similarities are useful for identification but do not establish a direct manufacturing relationship.
Cabinet construction
Contemporary photographs show a cabinet apparently constructed primarily from flat structural panels with a dark front section and contrasting coloured side panels.
At least two colour schemes are illustrated in SNK advertising:
- dark green / black with green trim
- dark cabinet with red / orange side detailing
Both examples carry a generic illuminated VIDEO GAME header.
The photographs also show a separate stool positioned directly in front of each cabinet.
No confirmed factory dimensions, weight or cabinet material specification are presently available.
Controls
Period advertising shows the cabinet fitted with conventional joystick-and-button arcade control panels.
SNK's component advertisement also illustrates numerous control components alongside the cabinet, including Japanese and imported-style joysticks and pushbuttons.
The surviving material does not establish a single standard control-panel configuration for all SNK Lava Type cabinets.
Controls should therefore be documented from individual surviving examples where possible rather than assumed from the promotional photographs.
Monitor
The cabinet clearly uses a CRT display, but the supplied SNK advertising does not provide a readable monitor size, CRT manufacturer or chassis model.
These fields should remain unconfirmed until clearer manufacturer literature or a surviving identification plate is found.
Relationship to the Tehkan Lava
The cabinet belongs to the wider group of Japanese machines derived from or strongly influenced by the Tehkan Lava design.
The precise relationship is presently unknown.
There is currently no evidence establishing whether the SNK cabinet was:
- licensed from Tehkan
- manufactured by Tehkan for SNK
- produced through another OEM arrangement
- independently derived from the Lava design
- produced without Tehkan's authorisation
This distinction is significant because Tehkan later publicly objected to unauthorised manufacture, modification and sale of cabinets based on its Lava designs.
For this reason the cabinet should not automatically be described as an illegal clone without supporting documentation.
Identification
Useful identifying characteristics visible in period SNK material include:
- generic VIDEO GAME illuminated header
- continuous full-height side panels
- deeply curved side profile around the CRT enclosure
- projecting control panel
- dark lower front section
- projecting front footrest
- compact seated proportions
The design differs noticeably from the original tubular-leg Lava while retaining the same basic compact sitdown concept.
Gallery
-
SNK cabinet and arcade-parts advertisement from the December issue of Monthly Coin Journal, dated 24 November 1981 -
SNK promotional material explicitly describing the cabinet as ラバータイプ ("Lava Type") -
Black-and-white version of the SNK parts and cabinet advertisement
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