Thinkpads.com R51 Project - (Pic Warning)

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#151 Post by **schen** » Sun Aug 31, 2008 2:37 pm

Harryc wrote:I thought it might be interesting to some members to see what an average Thinkpadder might pay for this project. I will use the lowest prices that I can find on EBay for the 'donated' items. We're going to assume that we don't need a dock;

In my mind, the kicker with the stripped down machines that are numerous on EBay is that the costs of adding the stripped parts back in can be expensive and can add up fast. Still, you could not buy this machine for $240 in working condition. Now, if you already have some parts on hand, that's when it starts to become really cost effective.

These are the kind of machines that I commonly have to find on eBay or Craig's List for people who ask me to help them get a used laptop. Although, I can find them on occasion under $200 (usually with some small issues), they typically sell for between $250 and $300.

Which kind of emphasizes Harry's point that these types of build-ups really become cost effective when you have some parts on hand already.

So IMHO, I'd say somewhere in the $275 range.

sarbin · #152 Post by **sarbin** » Sun Aug 31, 2008 2:45 pm

schen wrote:...these types of build-ups really become cost effective when you have some parts on hand already.

or you can tap into a bunch of packrats' spare parts bins.

that's one thing that was fun for me... like a scavenger hunt.

300+ bucks, Harry. that's one beauty of a 15" IPS display.

#153 Post by **schen** » Sun Aug 31, 2008 2:57 pm

sarbin wrote:or you can tap into a bunch of packrats' spare parts bins.
that's one thing that was fun for me... like a scavenger hunt.

Ah yes... the "packrats' spare parts bin. I've traded for more parts on this forum then I've bought and sold! I'd bet that virually all the active members are "collectors" (aka packrats)!

ajkula66 · #154 Post by **ajkula66** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 7:41 pm

My take on this would be $300 plus shipping. Granted, not a fully loaded machine, but a brand new backlight and the work involved are almost half of that price...

#155 Post by **Harryc** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:54 pm

Thanks for the pricing input. Please keep them coming. So far it looks like we're in the $300 neighborhood.

#156 Post by **Harryc** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 10:49 am

Nobody really asked about it, so I'd assume interest is low. But in case anyone is interested in where the Toshiba is at functionally... it took me a couple of days to figure out how to load and run D-a-m-n Small Linux, but I was successful. I am currently waiting for a wireless card and 64MB of Microdimm to arrive. DSL runs like a top on this machine.

http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/DSC01290_a.JPG

sparta.rising · #157 Post by **sparta.rising** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 10:54 am

Nice, looks like a good little machine to carry around.

#158 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Sep 04, 2008 4:57 pm

sparta.rising, thanks. It weighs 2.9 lbs

. Update on the Toshiba. Added 64MB RAM and a new battery. Run time is 2hrs. 30 Mins. Had a few issues with DSL Linux, installing Puppy Linux tonight.

#159 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 1:33 pm

Virge, I got the hard drive cover and screw today. Thanks for sending it! The Toshiba is working out better than I expected with Puppy Linux. Everything works. I am just waiting for a Netgear MA401 (I needed a 16bit card that works well in Linux) PCMCIA wifi card to arrive. I ordered a Toshiba dock for it that also arrived. Would you believe that it drives a 19" LCD at 1280x1024x16 ?

.

Here's a screenshot of puppy

As far as the R51, we're just waiting on the hard drive from George, which is expected any day now.

#160 Post by **gator** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 1:48 pm

Harry, havent been following this thread ... did you ever get my wifi card? I found another b-card in my 'bin', would be glad to send it across.

#161 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 1:53 pm

Gator, no man I am sorry I haven't seen a 'b' card come through the mail. We don't really need it for the R51 project, so hold that thought

. I am sure it will be needed soon...and thanks!

virge · #162 Post by **virge** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 8:20 pm

Harry, glad to hear you got the HDD cover. Sounds like the machine is about ready to go. You know, if that wifi card for the Toshiba doesn't work out let me know. I have a 3Com 802.11b Xjack card I can contribute.

#163 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 8:30 pm

Virge, yes the R51 is looking very good these days. Still waiting on the hard drive

. Thanks for the offer of the 3com card. I'll let you know ...

Edit: By the way, we've only received three price quotes, so that's what we're going with.

Sarbin - $300
Schen - $275
George - $300
--------------------

So averaged and rounded it would be $290 - Plus Actual Shipping

If anyone is interested, let me know. I'll put it in the Marketplace forum as soon as the hard drive arrives.

#164 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:38 pm

I ended up buying a 40GB 5400RPM Seagate ($40). I tried to load it with recovery CD's today. It was a nightmare with the DVD drive from the project due to repeated read errors. I had to put my new CDRW/DVD drive from the T61 in and that worked fine. More to come on why the DVD drive did not work after diagnostics are run.

Total cost to date;

Actual costs -
$61.11 - R51 and Toshiba Laptops
$18.98 - Inverter
$19.98 - CCFL
$22.50 - Keyboard
$40.00 - Hard Drive
Minus $11. donation
------------------------
$151.57 Out of pocket cost

My budget for the project was $100, so I will be recouping $50 from the sale of the machine. The rest will remain with the project.

Here is a summary of original config vs. what's changed;

Original description:
P M 1.6GHz
256MB RAM >>Now 512MB RAM
60GB 4200rpm HDD >>Now 40GB 5400rpm HDD
15 SXGA+(1400x1050) TFT LCD
32MB ATI Radeon 9000
24x24x24x/8x CD-RW/DVD >>Now DVD Drive
Intel 802.11b/g wireless(MPCI)
Modem(CDC)
1Gb Ethernet(LOM)
UltraNav, Secure Chip
IEEE 1394
6 cell Li-Ion battery
WinXP Pro

#165 Post by **carbon_unit** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 5:43 pm

Bummer, That DVD drive was a pull from a refurbed unit and got replaced with a combo drive. I never even tried it. I just assumed it was good but nobody wants a plain DVD drive anymore. It has been sitting on the shelf for almost two years now.
I guess I proved what happens when you assume.
Sorry about that Harry.

sparta.rising · #166 Post by **sparta.rising** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 6:31 pm

probably just a dusty lense... especially if its been on a shelf for 2 years

#167 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 7:54 pm

carbon_unit, no need for apologies. We want to make this a learning experience for all members. It's actually better that there are a few bugs

. The HL-GDR8083N DVD-ROM drive just needed the most recent firmware. It was way down level. It was consistently failing PC-Doctor device tests, and now passes. I am looping ALL PC-Doctor tests for 10 passes as I am typing this. XP SP3 is loaded and up to date. The recovery partition works fine.

#168 Post by **carbon_unit** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 8:17 pm

Awesome!

I'm glad that is all it was. I didn't want to donate bum parts.

#169 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 10:05 pm

Good news/Bad News. All PC-Doctor tests pass, 10 loops each, and that includes the tests for the DVD-ROM drive. The bad news is that it doesn't play DVD movies consistently. Mostly the drive just makes seeking noises when a movie is inserted. The drive has the latest firmware, and the machine has the latest BIOS and embedded controller. If I pop in my new CDRW drive, movies play great. What's the best way to clean the lens on these drives?

sparta.rising · #170 Post by **sparta.rising** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 10:09 pm

When you eject the drive the lens comes out with the tray. I'd start with just giving it a gentle wipe with a microfiber cloth or spray with compressed air.

It could be that the laser diode is just dieing, in which case it wouldn't be worth replacing.

#171 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 10:38 pm

Cleaning the lens did not make any difference. Any more ideas before we look for a new drive?

#172 Post by **rkawakami** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 11:53 pm

You can download a program such as DVDInfoPro and run the CRC test on the various disk formats that it is suppose to support.

http://www.dvdinfopro.com/

The 14-day trial version should do. You can at least tell if the problem is only with CD or DVD disks. Much the same can be done with PC Doctor although I wouldn't try running the CD/DVD Funnel test as it takes so long with a full disk.

kirpeknots · #173 Post by **kirpeknots** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 5:01 am

Perhaps you should clean the lens with some alcohol. Especially if the former user is a heavy smoker.

#174 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 5:45 am

Ray, per Dvdinfopro, the drive supports, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-RAM, DVD-ROM. I don't have any DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, or DVD+RW media, so that won't fly. The rest I can manage. The main point to consider is that DVD's play fine in my new drive. So, in the interest of completeness I will test this drive, but it will not fix the main issue.

kirpeknots, thanks for the idea. That did not fix the problem.

Edit:Here's the exact same problem on the same drive, no solution.

#175 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 7:54 am

Ray,
Here's the drive's capabilities and what I was able to test/results with DVDInfoPro, CRC Read Error Test;

DVD's
DVD-RW (No media available)
DVD+R - Tested good, no errors
DVD+RW (No media available)
DVD-RAM (No media available)
DVD-ROM - Tested good, no errors

CD's
CD-R - Tested good, no errors
CD-RW - Tested good, no errors

All PC-Doctor tests pass on all requested media.

#176 Post by **RealBlackStuff** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 2:02 pm

Here's a brandnew DVD-ROM, Ultrabay Slim
Only $12.80 incl. shipping.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0258004243
I just bought one for my recently acquired R52.

#177 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 3:01 pm

RBS, thanks for the link. We have an Ultrabay Enhanced CDROM drive on the way, thanks to a donation by Underclocker.

#178 Post by **Harryc** » Sun Sep 14, 2008 4:31 am

I had to use the hard drive I bought for another project, so this one is still in need of a hard drive. It doesn't have to be anything special, just tested and working. Also, Underclocker reminded me that by purchasing a $40 hard drive I was kind of defeating the original purpose of this build...cheap challenge. So, whatever the hard drive is, it has to be cheap or free.

#179 Post by **RealBlackStuff** » Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:09 am

I'll happily donate a good working 10GB HD.
Just PM me your address.

If you would have 4 screws #3 for an R52 14.1 keyboard to spare that would be terrific.

#180 Post by **Harryc** » Sun Sep 14, 2008 9:49 am

Sounds good. PM on the way.

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