Thinkpads.com A31P Project - (Pic Warning)

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#31 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 2:46 pm

The board eh, well I had a stick of 128MB PC2100 to test with. I popped it in and pressed the power button, the lights sequenced normally. The power led remained on and that's it. No beeps, no display. So, I'd say the main symptom is no post.

ajkula66 · #32 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 3:02 pm

Well, maybe your hands will bring magic...try pressing on you know what when you get a chance...I'll keep my fingers crossed...

#33 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 3:53 pm

Pressed on the GPU, no dice.

#34 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 4:12 pm

Well, it's nothing simple. I removed the modem/ethernet combo card, battery, bluetooth, wifi card. Still won't post. Motherboard removal is imminent. Also, it's back to the original reported problem - abrupt lights out/shutdown. It's almost like there is a dead short or there is a missing voltage on the board. Oh, and BTW, the cheapest A31P system board on EBay right now is $279....Yay.

Paul Pennington · #35 Post by **Paul Pennington** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 5:07 pm

Harryc wrote:Update: The project's A31P just arrived. A cursory glance says it's in very nice condition. Considering the source that is not a surprise. . I will try to post pictures today.

What did the model number turn out to be?

#36 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 5:17 pm

The model is 2653-R5U

#37 Post by **underclocker** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 6:44 pm

Internal UXGA FlexView, wifi, BT and 2.0GHz, quite awesome.

Product: ThinkPad A31p 2653-R5U
Original description: P4-M 2.0GHz(512KB), 256MB RAM, 60.0GB HDD, 15.0 UXGA(1600x1200) TFT LCD, 16x10x24x/8x CD-RW/DVD, Wi-Fi wireless/Modem(MPCI), Ethernet(CDC), IEEE 1394, IBM Secure Chip(TCPA), Bluetooth(CDC), TV out, Li-Ion battery, WinXP Pro

Good luck with the mobo diags.

P.S. I can send you an IBM port replicator/dock to go along with the machine.

ajkula66 · #38 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 6:45 pm

Given the symptoms, I'd say it's some type of a fluctuating short since it's not always there, but would have no clue where to look for it...at this point I'm usually either parting the machine out or swapping the planar...

As for planars, the original one is FRU 26P8430. If we can't locate it, we can go for ones without the security chip, namely 26P8232 or 26P8399...

I'm still hoping for that rabbit to come out of Harry's hat, though...

#39 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 6:55 pm

ajkula66 wrote:Given the symptoms, I'd say it's some type of a fluctuating short since it's not always there, but would have no clue where to look for it...at this point I'm usually either parting the machine out or swapping the planar...

As for planars, the original one is FRU 26P8430. If we can't locate it, we can go for ones without the security chip, namely 26P8232 or 26P8399...

I'm still hoping for that rabbit to come out of Harry's hat, though...

Thanks George. The cheapest one of those on EBay is this one. And that is $243 shipped from a seller with zero feedback who just joined EBay

#40 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 6:57 pm

underclocker wrote:P.S. I can send you an IBM port replicator/dock to go along with the machine.

Ed, that would be great. Thanks!. Use the same address as the hard drive.

sarbin · #41 Post by **sarbin** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:08 pm

Harryc wrote: Sarbin - Caddy

If these parts and the offer are still on the table, please send me a PM and I'll give you my address. Thank-you!

nope, sorry Harry. i don't have a caddy.

my post above was re: a 12.7mm hdd i might have sans caddy or screws. but, it looks like you've sourced the hdd for this project.

TTA · #42 Post by **TTA** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:12 pm

Harryc wrote: Oh, and BTW, the cheapest A31P system board on EBay right now is $279....Yay.

That's nuts, I'd probaly sell my A31p for not much more than that.

ajkula66 · #43 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:18 pm

I should have a spare caddy somewhere, but I'm positive that I've got no screws...

And I agree with Harry, that $243 shipped eBay ad is weird to say the least...wouldn't risk my money there...

#44 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:35 pm

Now here's an interesting auction for an A31P on EBay. The model # is different but this one arrived with the same blue tape and white mark on the top. Hmmm.

ajkula66 · #45 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:43 pm

That is the machine...

And the model number wasn't the only thing that was wrong in the description...

#46 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:46 pm

LOL...the nose knows

. Well, at least I don't have to post pictures tonight. Anyway, here is a board that the auction says is compatible. Thoughts? I use laptopaid all the time. They seem pretty good ...

#47 Post by **underclocker** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:46 pm

Harryc wrote:Ed, that would be great. Thanks!. Use the same address as the hard drive.

Harry, I can ship it out on Monday.

Additionally, let me send you a drive caddy, since the replicator is heavy enough there won't be additional postage charges. I don't have spare caddy screws either - where do all those little guys go!

#48 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:47 pm

Ed, perfect. Thanks again!

ajkula66 · #49 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 7:50 pm

Wrong planar...the one for $129

#50 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 6:42 am

Parts still needed;

PC-2100 RAM, at least 1 x 512MB. It takes 1GB total.
Floppy Drive, Ultrabay 2000
CDROM Drive, Ultrabay 2000
AC Adapter
Hard drive cover screw

#51 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 7:45 am

Pictures are up. The last shot of the LCD is not a good picture. I'll take one again in better light. I did inspect the LCD surface closely though...no imperfections.

http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01326_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01329_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01331_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01334_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01336_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01339_a.jpg
http://thinkpads.vedet.net/pictures/dsc01343_a.jpg

#52 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 8:51 am

So, system board removal is where we are going next. Any last thoughts or something to try before this machine comes apart?

A31P System Board Removal
Reference – A31P Maintenance Manual Page 118

1.)Remove Battery
2.)Remove Keyboard
3.)Remove Keyboard CRU Insulator
4.)Remove Wifi mPCI, Modem/Ethernet CDC, and Bluetooth cards
5.)Remove RAM
6.)Remove CMOS Battery
7.)Remove all Drives
8.)Remove Rear I/O Plate
9.)Remove Keyboard Bezel
10.)Remove Hinge Cover
11.)Remove Fan
12.)Remove CPU
13.)Remove Security Chip
14.)Remove Ultrabay Plus Slot
15.)Remove Sub-Card for PC Card Slot
16.)Remove LCD Assm.

Paul Pennington · #53 Post by **Paul Pennington** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 12:37 pm

It doesn't really matter, but using the list in the HMM has the advantage that the pages are in order and you can just flip through the manual as you do the disassembly:

1210 System board
For access, remove these FRUs, in order:
“1010 Battery pack” on page 64
“1020 Mini PCI adapter” on page 65
“1030 Communication daughter card (CDC)” on page 68
“1040 Backup battery” on page 75
“1050 DIMM” on page 76
“1060 Hard-disk drive” on page 77
“1070 Ultrabay Plus device” on page 79
“1080 Ultrabay 2000 device” on page 80
“1090 I/O plate” on page 81
“1100 Keyboard” on page 82
“1110 Keyboard CRU insulator” on page 87
“1120 Keyboard bezel” on page 89
“1130 Hinge cover” on page 93
“1140 Fan assembly” on page 94
“1150 CPU” on page 96
“1190 Security chip” on page 109
“1160 Ultrabay Plus slot” on page 98
“1160 Ultrabay Plus slot” on page 98
“1180 Sub card for PC Card slot” on page 107
“1200 LCD assembly” on page 110

There must be a typo on step 1160: the second one should probably read:

"1170 Ultrabay 2000 slot" on page 103

And what's up with 1190 -- they say to remove the security chip and then have a big warning in a box at the bottom of the page saying NOT to remove it. WTF?

schiesz · #54 Post by **schiesz** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 12:55 pm

I just sent a PM about a power supply and CD-RW i'll be sending. I thought I had a floppy, but haven't found it yet. If I do, i'll post it here.

Too bad the sellers on ebay think they have solid gold with those old motherboards.. Did I understand correctly that this machine is a flexview and has bluetooth? This is looking to be a nice machine.

#55 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 1:35 pm

Paul Pennington, good idea, that is what I did end up doing. schiesz, I have sent a reply to your PM. Yes it has UXGA flexview and bluetooth.

I have completed the system board removal and will post pictures tonight or tomorrow. I did not see anything obviously loose or broken. I did check every fuse that I could identify with a multimeter and they all were fine. No loose transductors. I did find that the board was stamped with a used part sticker from IBM, so this board has been replaced at least once. Also the thermal compound was smeared all over the CPU..not a neat job. It could be that whatever was originally wrong with the board was repaired (or they thought so) and it simply gave out again.

Any more ideas on what to look for on the board? Thoughts on a source for a complete base or just a board?

Edit: We could also build a frankenpad. A31 base with a UXGA flexview LCD. Would this work? There are plenty of A31 bases on EBay between $100 to $200.
Something like this perhaps?

Edit 2: This one is funny. i cut wire i think it is not big dill...LOL
It's hard to tell what wire he cut, but that would be a sweet deal if he didn't trash the board. Worth the risk? By the way, the fan is in backwards, and the keyboard is upside down. If he shipped it with those parts floating around it would scratch the hell out of the LCD

.

#56 Post by **rkawakami** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 2:49 pm

Harryc wrote:By the way, the fan is in backwards, and the keyboard is upside down. If he shipped it with those parts floating around it would scratch the hell out of the LCD .

I was just going to post the note about the keyboard being backwards

. I'd probably steer clear of this seller only because he probably will use/used the wrong screw and killed the motherboard like on this A31p:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=43916

No, I still haven't got around to stripping this board out and making an attempt to re-patch the damaged traces. I recently found an outfit that sells self-adhesive circuit traces so that might be an option for a repair. However, I seem to have forgotten which system I was using when I bookmarked that site

.

#57 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 3:05 pm

Good point Ray. Your post made me run over to the board and check

. No damage there ..

Paul Pennington · #58 Post by **Paul Pennington** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 5:51 pm

Harryc wrote:We could also build a frankenpad. A31 base with a UXGA flexview LCD. Would this work? There are plenty of A31 bases on EBay between $100 to $200.

I'd save that as a last resort. The pictures show it to be in very nice shape. It would be much better to restore it to its original condition. There may be a member here with an A31 board who no longer reads this list. How about posting a wanted ad in the marketplace?

#59 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 6:51 pm

Done. There is an Ad in Marketplace. How long do we wait?

. I will be shocked if some member here has a high end A31P board lying around. My take on this project is it died when two things happened. The first thing was the initial realization of the A31P system board prices on EBay. The second nail in the coffin was when I did not find a problem on the system board this afternoon. Lets wait a few days and see if a solution comes up. If it doesn't, then we can decide on a new project.

#60 Post by **Harryc** » Sun Sep 28, 2008 4:45 am

Thinkpads.com A31P Project - (Pic Warning)

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