Magical blue smoke disapeared t23 won't boot.

[Zaph]

I accidentally plugged a 3com 3c16742a power source into my T23, the plug fitted like a glove.

The result was instant powerdown and a wiff of the blue magical smoke escaping from the cracks near the power inlet.

The polarity on the 3com power source was right, and it measured 15.67 Volts on a multimeter.

The info on the 3com is: Input 220-230V @ 50-60Hz 0.1A
Output DC 12V 1000mA.

The laptop won't power up and is inert.

I'll do autopsy as soon as i get some sleep first, just thought that you guy's could give me some clues what to expect.

Impressions?

--Zaph

ps. I'm heartbroken, it was the best laptop i'we ever owned.

[RealBlackStuff]

The IBM PSUs measure 16V and 3.5A or 4A.
Are you sure the polarity was correct? I doubt that.

Try taking the battery out, and run it off the official IBM brick.

You may need to open your TP and check the small board with the power connector on it.
With a little bit of luck, just replacing that may bring your TP back to life.

[Zaph]

Thanks for the info RealBlackStuff, The polarity was indeed correct and it's really weird that it burned the circuitry. My current suspicion is that the power needs overwhelmed the 3com power source and it short circuited. I'll have a cup of coffee and start opening it up, we'll see what we can see. I'll post some pictures if there is anything worth posting.

--Zaph

[phool@round]

I have a suggestion, we could change your user name to "Zap!".

Look at the primary DC coil, the largest of them all. It's in the upper left hand corner of the system board, on top.

I'm positive no fuses where harmed in the course of this experiment, to see if blue smoke actually does smell...."funny?" sniff sniff, phew!

[Zaph]

Ok, so far i have removed the motherboard and pretty much everything else (having trouble removing the casing for the CD-DVD, because the slide that releases the CD-ROM release doesen't seem to come loose willingly) The maintanance guide is a great help!

There is a strong odor of burned circuit board all around the bits but so far i have not managed to pinpoint any obviously fried foils or components. (have to get the magnifying glass and do some sort of grid search)

As to what RealBlackStuff said about replacing the small circuit board, alas! it only houses the connector for DC and it connects straight to the motherboard. I don't think the trouble is in the connector for i have similar luck trying to start up with battery power, and it went inert during full operation suggesting a fried power converter (if you forgive me the star warsism)

I placed a order for another T23 for about a hundred
euros and hopefully it will arrive next week, untill then i'll keep digging around with this machine.

I'd appriciate all ideas/information on where the power actually goes once it reaches the motherboard and what might be fried. (you could use Ray's motherboard map as a reference)

Allso, do you guys think it's safe to transfer RAM and HD to the incoming T23.

In addition, what kind of cruel sacrifice i could demolish the offending 3com chareger in. High voltage ? Wood chipper? 10th floor bungee without the cord ?


As allways all input is greatly appriciated!

--Zaph


Addendum:

The power coil looks ok upon brief visual inspection, I'll get my magnifying glass.

I pulled the bios battery connector straight from the motherboard trying to remove the bios battery housing, so either way i'm fu**d now either way.
No escaping without heating up the old soldering iron.

[RealBlackStuff]

You could always RMA that unit to 3Com and see if they are willing to replace it under warranty!
I take it that came from a modem or switch?

Alternatively, if you have a rifle, you could always use it for target practice.

I was talking about the sub card item 2060 on page 131 HMM.
That has a bit more than just the power connector on it!

[Zaph]

Desided to opt for a brand new t61 instead.

wsxga+ 3gig's of ram 160gb hd and all the other trimmings.

--Zaph

[RealBlackStuff]

If you are not getting that other T23, you could always part out the old T23. The screen and plastics alone are worth about €100.- when in good condition.

[Zaph]

Alas, the keyboard bezel is cracked, the screen has two pressure spots, the motherboard is fried, i'm keeping the memory and the HD, what's left could prolly be sold for so little it's not worth the effort.

--Zaph

[tfflivemb2]

Alas, the keyboard bezel is cracked, the screen has two pressure spots, the motherboard is fried, i'm keeping the memory and the HD, what's left could prolly be sold for so little it's not worth the effort.

--Zaph

I beg to differ. There are people on your side of the waters that are begging to get anything that they can get their hands on for parts. I would still list it on here. It might not be worth the shipping costs to the US, but somewhere close to you might be. Some people don't mind pressure spots, especially if they are currenty dealing with a DEAD LCD.

[Robbyrobot]

Well, let's see...

The LCD cable can get you around EUR 15
The inverter will fetch about the same
A screen with pressure points runs around EUR 20
You can get a few Euro for the modem and network cards
Even broken (if the break isn't too bad) you can get maybe EUR 10 for the keyboard bezel - for some reason they're in demand, whereas the base is practically worthless
The keyboard can get you maybe EUR 10-15 depending on condition
The other parts, particularly screws, might bring EUR 10

All these guesstimates base on German Ebay. So with a little work and some selling, you could part this one out and still come out on the positive side.

Or sell the whole thing as defective and get maybe EUR 30-50 depending on the general condition.

Don't give up yet - and if you want to throw this one out the window, make sure you throw it in my direction

[Zaph]

Update:

Ah, finally got me aonther T23, and swapped memory and HD -> Works like a charm. So i'm yet again owner of a working t23, as a added bonus the new LCD doese not have any pressure spots, the keyboard bezel is not cracked and all the memory slots work flawlessly, so this 'burning my t23' might be a blessing in disguise.

Allso got a T21, with the lower left corner busted with a huge hole, but it seems to be working otherwise and passes PC-DOC. Installed open office and now i have a lug around laptop that cost me nothing, so i might brave to take it with me to riskier situations.

When my T23 originally burned i went and panicked and got myself a T61. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice machine but when it comes to 'flow' of work i prefer the t23, the t61 takes all kinds of breaks all the time(Can't for the life of me underestand how they manage to make sh1tt13r computers when common sence says they should be getting better), there is a plasticy spot over the PCMCIA slots (which is so out of family with thinkpads that i allmost returned it when i noticed the flexing)

I'm not actually using the t61 for anything except for playing hellgate london and elder scrolls oblivion, so it's a fancy paperweight. Even more so when i get another 2GB of memory for it. Maybe to occational DVD.

So all in all, i now have a t21, t23 and a t61 where i once had a broken chassis of a t23. (allready looking for a cheap t22 so i'd have t21 > t23.. but I don't know if i'm ready to start any serious thinkpad collection)

--Zaph