Thinkpad T42 Construction materials

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rleo25 · #1 Post by **rleo25** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 8:37 pm

Does anybody know what kind of material has been used in the lid and case construction for the T42?

I've heard many different versions, rangin from titanium to magnesium, carbon reinforced fibres and even an ABS composite plastic.

Which one is the true? are this machines as sturdy as the advertissement says.

christopher_wolf · #2 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 8:43 pm

The machines are as sturdy as reported, yes indeed; have a look here

http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/thinkpad/commu ... index.html

I do think that the hinges are a titanium alloy; and the screen as a pretty darn strong metal backing, most likely a titanium/magnesium alloy. You can press all you like with you hands, you won't see they screen "ripple" or flex like some ofther laptops do. Also, the coating on the lid is a baked-in polymer...scratches are only visible if you manage to get very close and check.

rleo25 · #3 Post by **rleo25** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 9:01 pm

yeah, that's right christopher_wolf, however I wonder what the really materials are?

By the way my lid cover always get grease and stains that bother a litlle, what do you use to protect it? I am a litlle stutborn with cleanness...

christopher_wolf · #4 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 9:22 pm

So am I; I use Klearscreen and a Chamois cloth on the screen and the backing

http://klearscreen.com/

and, errr, what the real materials are?

pipspeak · #5 Post by **pipspeak** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 10:01 pm

As far as I have read over the years (and I'm probably wrong) the only special thing about T-series materials is the lid, which is some plastic-coated Mg alloy and strong enough (I can attest through personal experience) to support an airplane seatback reclined rather suddenly onto the top edge of an open T40 lid. I had to get the guy in front to put hs seat back up to un-jam the computer.

Everything else seems to be the same old polycarbonate (or whatever it is) that other computers are made of. Except it's black

christopher_wolf · #6 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 10:07 pm

The IBM site says the Metal Chassis is Titanium Composite; haven't gotten a look at that though so I can't say.

"A Titanium Composite body helps keeps the weight down even with a 14.1" screen—a size similar to many desktop models. "

Also, I have seen Thinkpads *lifted* quite firmly from the top of the screen and the hinges held perfectly. There is no way I would try this with any other laptop.

#7 Post by **GomJabbar** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 11:47 pm

christopher_wolf wrote:The IBM site says the Metal Chassis is Titanium Composite

I could be wrong, but I think this is the frame the system board sits in. As far as the outer shell is concerned, I 'think' it is a fiber composite. It's puzzling that IBM doesn't tout and describe these features better.

darrenf · #8 Post by **darrenf** » Mon Dec 05, 2005 11:59 pm

I think the tabook says the lid is magnesium and the base is titanium-reinforced carbon-fiber composite.

-darren

rleo25 · #9 Post by **rleo25** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 8:46 am

The only way to get to know it is by means of a metallurgic engineer or some sort of expert, dissasemble some units and test them in a lab, you Caltech guys are good with this issues... and findout.

I Think this is important to know, because we need to take good care of the equipment and give them a proper maintenance.

I would appreciate a thorough study of this almost secret question, there is no enough and reliable information 'till now...

christopher_wolf · #10 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 11:51 am

Hmmmm, that would require shavings off of a Thinkpad of the materials. Which is...difficult to say the least. Anybody have a T4X Shell they could part with for the sake of Science?

Seriously, it would be good to know more about the materials used; obviously, it is far different than most other laptops. Obviously, it is good to take the utmost care of your Thinkpad.

rleo25 · #11 Post by **rleo25** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 1:36 pm

Niiiice idea isn't it? Think we have an interesting "science" project between hands, I'm sure our laptop materials are the best, one of its most important values indeed.

Let's start by getting an used carcass, who is willing to donate it for the science's sake .... and our satisfaction.... I swear these machines are a beauty, let's know why...

christopher_wolf · #12 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 2:12 pm

I do know I would *love* to find out what exactly the polymer coating on the screen lid is.

christopher_wolf · #13 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 2:13 pm

I do know I would *love* to find out what exactly the polymer coating on the screen lid is.

rleo25 · #14 Post by **rleo25** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 2:57 pm

Why am I so obsessed with the lid and case materials? I'll post you some reasons:

a) IBM (and only IBM) was able to develop a special ruberized (polymer?) coating to paint in black the magnesium(?) lid, not only to keep the classic style factor but to serve as a protection to the cover... but... the adherence between this two materials is a problem, so the question is: if u use certain products as wax, silicone, etc., to keep it clean and free of those nasty stains and marks, are they going to deteriorate or even peel the coating, exposing to humidity, corrosion and dust abrassion the lid?

Consequently which ones are the right methods to maintain the lid and the case in general?

b) Whether we discover the importance of these materials, and the priority of having them in our notebooks, wouldn't you prefer buying a less sppedy or competent machine in favor of its physical reliability? or wouldn't you pay a little more for getting a top performer with top materials, and I am not talking about durability in terms of longevity but of protection during it's useful life, which could be short... look at our friend whose TP was almost crushed when a passenger reclined its seat and crunched the lid against the keyboard... awful!!... it it would've been another brand notebook oh my goodness!!! look at the terrible cracks in some Gateways plastic hinges...

and finally

c) If such conclusions are valid, shouldn't we the customers ask our dealers to provide us with high quality machines? and this shouln't be a major parameter to take into account when we advise somebody in his purchase decision. Beware those US$ 500 machines that are in the market and work no more than 5 or 6 months, luckyly until the warranty expires. Let's expect this "commodities" industry trend don't provide us with disposable machines as the only one option in the near future. (Shall we will be watching more cow-boxes in the stores?)

christopher_wolf · #15 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Tue Dec 06, 2005 3:14 pm

I agree; by the way...cracks are bad.

I still have a Compaq 1900 whose only problem is a bad screen, one day I was using it, screen split along the sides, spit out some plastic parts, then the screen just flopped down on the keyboard leaving be there staring at it.
It was both funny and sad at the same time, I burst into laughter later.

I would pay for higher quality materials to be used in a laptop, especially the hinges. Think about, how much actual work do they have to do? Alot. They are like the muscles in your neck, they keep the screen upright and *NOT SWAYING*....sorry, but I have had other laptops, including a Dell and an HP, that had some pretty bad swaying problems. I eventually couldn't stand it. The hinges should be rock solid, more so, and should have very tight tolerances. No wobbling of the screen here and there during movement while the laptop is open.

chellax · #16 Post by **chellax** » Wed Apr 27, 2011 12:35 pm

I suggest you use ABS composite plastic, I've learned it from my online construction course Construction White Card Victoria that suits for a Thinkpad T42

Thinkpad T42 Construction materials

Thinkpad T42 Construction materials

Re: Thinkpad T42 Construction materials

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