GUIDE: Reflow GPU fix - 56K WARNING!!!

[ajkula66]

Oh wow... heh, I may have some experience in reflowing, but reballing...

It is something I could try though... I may have to consider it. Making it a thing though-where I could help out with reballs, would be dependent on my situation with college (oh joy... )

Drop the college which only costs you money, and go into reballing to make money instead...

[RealBlackStuff]

If I were any younger I would have seriously considered it.
According to Nick it's fairly easy to learn if you have the proper equipment.
Look at some of the options:
- reflow motherboards (GPU and Southbridge on T4x/R5x)
- reball motherboards (GPU and Southbridge on T4x/R5x)
- remove/reball soldered CPUs (X3x, X4x, X6x and possibly newer
- remove/replace T61 nVidia GPUs (if you can get them)
- remove SATA chips on T43/R52 boards
- etc.

[Medessec]

I'll have to get in touch and ask... I do agree the best way, and only way i'd like to learn how to do that is to have the right sort of equipment.

I don't think reballing works when the best tools on hand is an old heat gun, a solder stick, and a flathead screw driver.

Drop the college which only costs you money, and go into reballing to make money instead...

Best advice ever.

[thinktwice]

How do you know the right melting point and temperature profile ?
I cannot see it in the Hardware Maintenance manual.

Temperatures for several tin/lead and lead-free solders are given here:
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/293 ... -card-oven

But which one is right ?

[RealBlackStuff]

The proposed machinery that may be bought, comes most likely with manuals.
And if he gets it from Nick, then Nick will no doubt tell him.
The melting point for the T43 GPU solder balls is around 250o C.
But it is different for leaded and unleaded solder.
Why don't you have a look at some of the reflow/reball videos on Nick's old website?
http://reflowrepairs.co.uk/videos/index.php

[Ken Edmonds]

I've just noticed that one of my multi-meters came with a temperature probe that reads up 1000°C. Assuming I can find it, as I've never used it in the 10 years or so I've had the meter, would that be usable for reflowing?
Having rebuilt one T42 with an R52 motherboard, I've still got most of another one and two failed motherboards.

[RealBlackStuff]

No, the reflowing (or rather the reballing) is something that needs to be done by a professional with professional equipment.
Maybe 1 out of 100 amateur attempts might have been successful.
We have often enough warned against this!

[Ken Edmonds]

I've no intention of attempting reballing but this thread is about reflowing. As I've got a working T42/R52 and two scrap motherboards and a pile of bits left over it's not that important if it doesn't work although I'd rather it did.

It was just a question about whether a temperature probe could be used, as I've already got one, rather than an infra-red thermometer which I haven't got and am unlikely to find a use for in the future.

[wisdomkeeper]

Is it normal for defective Intel 828010DBM/FBM to suddenly die and the only sign to be problem with booting from disk drives(disc controller related problems)? My friend brought to me one HP Nc 6220. Every time he powered up the laptop, he usually bend the case, and with it the motherboard, because if not - the laptop stops on the POST screen with HDD LED constantly lighting. I think it was chipset related problem and as I read in the posts before mine - reflow is not an option in this case. So he brought the laptop to me, the laptop powered up normally this time, so I thought first that it's HDD related problem. MHDD was OK, I turned it off, and it just died - I can't power it up anymore.

[lophiomys]

From my experience with separating processors in T4x models:
It is a loose contact and can play all kind of tricks on you.

To find out what the cause really is, it would cost you a lot of time and money.
And additionally from the distance it is impossible to diagnose.

[wisdomkeeper]

It is a loose contact and can play all kind of tricks on you. To find out what the cause really is, it would cost you a lot of time and money.And additionally from the distance it is impossible to diagnose.

I think that I have no wish to diagnose further. I think that it's the Intel chipset. I've opened it and when press slightly one corner of the chip, it works almost normal. If DIY reflow is not an option, then sooner or later it would eventually be dead and there is nothing to do about this.. Thank you. I really hope, that this would not be the future fate of my IBM T41 too.

[RealBlackStuff]

The Intel chip under the wifi card has been the source of numerous problems in T40/T41 and T42.
Flexing of the motherboard causes that chip to loose contact with the mobo.
It is attached to it via BGA, i.e. ca. 650 tiny solder balls.
One or two loose balls is enough to horribly upset the laptop.
The same problem happened with the ATI GPU chip in those T4x machines.
Reballing is the only option. Playing with a heatgun is not an option.

[vtcop]

Thanks for your post friend. I´ve just tried, but it wasn´t worked for me.

I follow all the steps carefully, but now my T61 doesn`t power on.

When I connect the AC, Battery Status and AC Power Status lights blink at the same time, once. Nothing more happens. I've tried to disconnect almost every thing. Same behaviour. I`ve tried to disconnect the LCD too, but then any light comes on. I`ve checked same fuses on the motherboard, but all are ok.

Shall I put my Thinkpad in the trash??

I`ve also checked the charger (with my other thinkpad) and it works perfectly. Same behaviour with only battery. When I connect the battery, AC Power Status and Battery status blink once, nothing more happens when I push the power button.

Battery Status Led
AC Power Status Led

[oeliks]

Works like a charm !


Instead of a IR thermometer I used a PT500 sensor and a regular multimeter.

Thanks!