UXGA R52 ... almost

[hiram]

I had a dead R50p (1832-22M) in the cupboard waiting for the day I came across a working R50p with a faulty screen. It was there for over a year.

I recently got some R51 and R52 thinkpads in really nice condition. The R51's were password locked so I figured I'd use them for spares. One of the R52's had permanent black marker pen writing on the outside of the lid so I swapped one of the R51 lids. Then it occurred to me I might be able to put the FlexView R50p lid onto an R52. I checked this forum and it could be done. I had an R52 with 64MB ATI Radeon X300 so I did it.

The first time I powered up the IBM splash screen displayed for an instant, then a black screen with 2 beeps - no post. I finally worked out it was the modem/bluetooth card I had carried over from the R50p. I installed that as well because there was a cable for the bluetooth coming out of the lid. Not a big deal, I thought. I can sort that out later, perhaps with a bios update. So I swapped back the original modem card.

Next power up, the IBM splash screen displayed for an instant, then a black screen. Lots of hard drive activity but I couldn't see anything. Force power down then take it to another room (with different lighting) that has an external monitor with 1600x1200 native resolution. Same startup scenario on the thinkpad but now I can see it is booting normally on the monitor. It automatically adjusted the display resolution to UXGA as well. Then I notice there is an extremely dim screen display on the thinkpad. I can just make out the outline of bright areas.

So now I am left wondering. Is this a screen issue, cable or a motherboard/video chip issue or something else?

If it is the backlighting, why would it display normally for a second then go dark?

If this sounds familiar to someone then I would appreciate your advice as to my next course of action.

[RealBlackStuff]

Sounds to me like a burnt-through CCFL.
It works for a few seconds while cold, then 'loses' it when it warms up.
Yours is an IDTech LCD.
I have written up how to replace its CCFL here: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=88991

[hiram]

Thanks for your response. I was afraid it would be something like that because the repair procedure you describe is beyond my capabilities.

Which is unfortunate, because in other respects the dead R50p is in near-new condition. The keyboard (NMB) and keyboard bezel have no wear on them so I was always hoping the screen would be similarly pristine. The LCD possibly is but I still have not had the opportunity to verify that.

I will probably offer it for sale in the Marketplace, although postage may be prohibitive from Australia.

[RealBlackStuff]

Just a thought: did you also transfer the LCD cable and inverter from your R50p to your R52?
If not, that could also explain the screen not working...
In the T4x/R5x series you always need a "matched trio" LCD-cable-inverter, i.e. all XGA, all SXGA+, or all UXGA.

[hiram]

If the inverter is in the lid, then yes. I did a complete lid swap.

(Swapping lids, replacing fans, CPUs, basic assembly/disassembly. This is the extent of the things I feel comfortable doing.)

[RealBlackStuff]

You may have blown a fuse on the motherboard (near the LCD connector). Check continuity with a multimeter.
Did the R52 work/display before you swapped the lid?

[hiram]

That would require me having a multimeter.

But yes, the R52 was working fine before the lid swap. The next thing to do is swap back the original lid to confirm there is no blown fuse on the motherboard. I will get to that on the weekend.

All going well, it will more confirm your original diagnosis.

However, all is not lost. I just bought this:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/281031953034
I made the seller an offer and he withdrew his Buy It Now ad. I will do the same thing with its lid.

So I will eventually get an UXGA R52. It will just cost me more than I had hoped.

[hiram]

Just an update...

The lid from the R50p I bought from the eBay seller worked well so now I have my UXGA R52. I will put an R51 lid on the R50p base and sell that to recoup most of my costs.

The original R50p lid I tried is now for sale in the Marketplace.