Thinkpads Forum

Folks,
I've been reading all over the net about W530, W500 series in general. I've decided the 530 is more than enough machine for me for years of use. It's also a good thing they aren't made anymore because I don't have enough money to buy anything new. I had a T61 10 years ago and couldn't get inexpensive parts in Mexico. Shipping from the US is pretty much a guarantee of losing money. Since they opened the Lenovo factory in Monterrey, parts problems seem to be solved.
I read in many posts, not only here, about rebuilding your Thinkpad. This caught my interest. So, if I were to buy a refurbished W530, theoretically, how long will I be able to rebuild it? Is there a time limit Lenovo puts on their spares production? Also, about how long does the ebay/Amazon/whomever word keep spare parts on hand. Because of the cost I need something that will last me another 8-10 years.
I don't use autocad or anything like that. I'd just like to be able to use whatever program I can without worrying about computer resources.
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Welcome to thinkpads.com!

I'm just starting to get into the W500 series (W500 and recently, W520) so I don't have much experience with them. However, based upon the other machines you see in my .sig below, the best way to keep re-building a system would be to keep an eye out on good deals here and on eBay. As the availability of most of the systems on eBay is in the US, shipping out of the country can be problematic (and increases the cost). I would buy a good, clean, as close to prime system as the first machine. Then, get a couple of more to use as spares, keeping in mind that the screen, keyboard and case plastics are probably the main things that would need replacing. As with most electronics equipment, the cost of keeping laptops running over time is in the shape of an inverted bell curve. Systems are expensive when they are first released. Within a few years depreciation sets in and you can grab a 4 or 5 year old system for about 1/10 the original cost. Fast forward a decade or so and if you are still keen on keeping a 15 year old laptop running, parts have usually become scarce and the law of supply and demand takes over.

With Thinkpads, there can be some sharing of components between one series and another. For example, I believe that the keyboard on a W530 could also be found on T430 and T530 systems. Up until the T/W/Xx30 systems, the Hardware Maintenance Manuals (aka, HMM) contained a Parts List that identified the FRU (part number) of the major components in the system. You could use that data to see what was common between systems. Starting with the T/W/Xx30 series (i.e, circa 2013), the HMMs have removed those parts lists.

Ray,
Thanks for the reply. I have heard the same about keyboard swaps but have never seen it in writing. Ya, looks like you should know Thinkpads. Is that every model from the last 20 years?
Shipping to Mexico has always been a b*tch. I'll have to see if anyone is coming this year, before Christmas. It would be great if there was a list of Thinkpad swappable parts. I looked a little years back but couldn't find anything.
Thanks again for the info.
L
edit: Got my W530 and it's garbage. The display case flexes like rubber[slightly facetious] and my wife's X200 has a chunk out of the case. Guess I should have spent more and gotten imported.