T21 Light up problem

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nominds · #1 Post by **nominds** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:57 pm

hi...i have a t21 and it just now started not to light up..,,one day it would and the next day it wouldn't......my buddy told me to buy a inverter board, which i did and still nothin.....now i don't know what to do....any ideas on what i can do or try please.

skygodtj · #2 Post by **skygodtj** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 5:16 pm

Does the LCD light/flicker if you open/close or shake(gently) the lid? Is it intermittant, or has it just gone out completely? Look -very- closely at the LCD, shine a light onto it.. do you see very faint images, just very dark? If so, the flourescent tube (abt $15 on eBay) has gone bad. As you've already replaced the inverter (but you may have got a bad replacement) the CCFL(backlight) may be out completely. Search eBay for "IBM T21 backlight"

If you do not see any images, the video cable may be loose/out, or bad. Also avail. on eBay, search for "IBM T21 video cable"

If you do not see any images, plug in an external monitor and see if that works correctly (plug it in, and hit Fn-F7), you should see everything on the ext. monitor. If you dont see anything, the mobo may be bad. If you have a display, it's:

1) bad backlight and/or
2) bad video cable

If you have no display, it's:

bad motherboard.

TJ

nominds · #3 Post by **nominds** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 7:54 pm

yes it used to flicker but now its just gone.....i do see a image in the screen....very black....so maybe it is the blub....is it hard to replace ???? can u give me a link to where i can remove it ?
thanks

#4 Post by **rkawakami** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:15 pm

This post in the 600 forum details the replacement of the CCFL backlight:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=3705

The T21 would be a similar procedure. However, it may be easier (though not cheaper) to replace the entire LCD panel.

skygodtj · #5 Post by **skygodtj** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:23 pm

ok, just the bulb out? the CCFL isnt difficult to replace, just involved, and can be dangerous.

A word of caution is really needed -- When I (and a bunch of people here a lot smarter than me) started working with Thinkpads a bunch of years ago, the easiest way to fix a backlight was replace the entire LCD. After replacing the 10th or 20th bad LCD, I split one open to see how tought it would be to just replace the tube. It wasnt difficult, just very involved.

If you havent played with the LCDs at all, I would just get a replacment LCD and leave the tube replacment to a time when you're comfortable opening it up. The tube is toxic and if you bust it, you're a goner... kidding.. but it is clasified Hazardous material.

ok, with the scary caveat out of the way...

From a post by tfflivemb2: "If you loosely follow the instructions in the the 600/770 conference on how to replace the CCFL in a 600, you can get to and replace the CCFL in a T2x. "

Start with the Hardware Maint. Manual. That will get you on the road to removing the LCD assembly from the base, then you can split it open, disassemble, and replace the tube.

Here is a link for getting the tube..

http://www.lcdpart.com/Products/ms20290.html

If you search for "IBM T21 LCD" you should find a bunch of them, fairly cheap, it's LOTS easier(and safer) to replace the whole thing.

TJ

skygodtj · #6 Post by **skygodtj** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:29 pm

rkawakami wrote:This post in the 600 forum details the replacement of the CCFL backlight:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=3705

The T21 would be a similar procedure. However, it may be easier (though not cheaper) to replace the entire LCD panel.

ya beat me to it... I searched thru the old posts but couldnt find this to add to mine post..

teege

#7 Post by **rkawakami** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:32 pm

It's a "sticky" at the top of the page in the 600 forum

.

skygodtj · #8 Post by **skygodtj** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 8:33 pm

I.. ah.. knew that

T21 Light up problem

T21 Light up problem

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