T41 screen broken - R51 screen usable?

[HarryHo]

Well it happened, cracked the old girl's screen. External display can be used so except for a dead CMOS, I'm hoping to replace the screen. I have a dead R51 that has a good screen but gets status lights but won't boot. So I'm thinking pull the R51 screen for the T41. Looking at the parts listings the screen seems compatible. Am I being foolish?

[TPFanatic]

If the R51 is 14.1" it should work. What was the original screen sizes of both machines? If they're both XGA the should both work with the same inverter and cable.

According to Thinkwiki the R51 and T41 have used the same screens, so I'd guess the physical dimensions are the same! You should be able to use your nails to remove the sticky screw hole covers but they might not stay sticky when you put them back. The screen may also be held to frame rails. Check the HMM.

[kfzhu1229]

Yes they are compatible - as long as they are in the same resolution and same size (R51 is also available in 15" version but not T41). If not in the same resolution, you have to use the R51's cable which is longer and it will still work fine after wiggling the cable somehow without bending it too much. Inverter change is also suggested for resolution change but not necessary from my test results. I also have one 100% working stock non-opened fully working T41p SXGA+ entire lid assembly (antennas, display, cable+ThinkLight, inverter, frame+screws, everything all left untouched but with light wear on the lid coating) with bluetooth and WLAN antennas in case you need. If they are different sizes, you can try to transplant T41's motherboard into R51's. It is very likely to work but I do not know. For the CMOS battery, DO NOT TRY TO BUILD IT BY YOURSELF, IT SIMPLY DOES NOT WORTH IT BECAUSE THE CONDUCTIVE METAL TAPE IS VERY EXPENSIVE!! JUST GET SOME FROM eBay!!

[HarryHo]

Thanks for the reassurance that my reading here and the Hardware Manuals suggest the screen transplant is likely to work. Both the T41 and R51 are 14" models. Once I disassemble them I can note actual part numbers which I assume relate to resolution. From kfzhu1229 I gather that a cable may be needed but that the inverter isn't. I really expect that both are not the fancier versions since both were eBay buys long ago. Most of those buys seem to be corporate clearances which are typically not high end laptops.

No way shall I attempt to work out the CMOS battery. The prices on eBay for the Varta CR2032 make those thoughts go away quickly. And I know the leads need to be welded. I guess some try the roll-your-own because of different laptop lead lengths, which is what I assume differs for each laptop model. But the supplier says they are the IBM PN so I think I'm OK.

The T51 stopped working after (1) I replaced the Hard Drive with a 7200 version IDE (getting harder to find those) and then (2) a CMOS failure - loss of date/time. Shortly afterwards on power up, I hear the fan, see the three lights, but no beeps and blank screen. Trying with HD removed, battery removed, same response suggests main board has died if my readings here are correct.

The knowledge on this forum is amazing and quite helpful. Who else cares about using well built hardware well past it's programmed obsolete date! I still am almost ready for capacitor replacement on a few MAC SE/30 boxes deep in my closet. The IBM fanboys certainly are more adventuresome than the Apple crowd. But the Dell laptops I have had around all expired from overheating eventually. Thanks to all.

[kfzhu1229]

For the R51 can you try to reapply the RAM sticks as well? Also check for the battery acid leakage?
Also to correct your understanding, if the resolution is the same, most likely you do not need any cable/inverter swaps at all. If the resolution and/or size is different, a cable swap must be needed and inverter swaps are suggested but not necessary (the P/Ns for different size/resolution inverters are different but so far I only noticed a slight more heat to the inverter itself and slight shorter battery life under a UXGA display with UXGA cable but a XGA inverter)
If you decide to disconnect the LCD panel from the cable, make sure to apply strong tape or take good care of the original tape and secure it after the LCD swap, or else you may end up in awkward moments like the screen suddenly went wrong at any time and won't heal again until you repeat all the hassle and replug the cable. Trust me, I learnt it the hard way.

[HarryHo]

"strong tape"

What kind of tape should be used. I probably don't need factory specs, but I assume really sticky and really thin. I see some yellowish, very thin tape used inside my MacPro boxes that looks pretty fancy. I haven't yet cracked the IBM so don't know what to expect. But once I start pulling stuff apart I want to have everything ready to put it back together. My wife doesn't understand parts spread all over <G>.

Soon off to cycle the R51 RAM, just in case. The R51 has been the main one in use for my scanner until it decided it was tired. Booting the first time found the CMOS battery failed, then a few days later no boot at all. I did get some CMOS batteries from eBay but haven't put any in yet. The T41 had been in the corner, rarely used, but it fired up with no CMOS issues using external monitor.

[micrex22]

No way shall I attempt to work out the CMOS battery. The prices on eBay for the Varta CR2032 make those thoughts go away quickly.

One of my friends refers to varta as "farta", since their NiCad (and others) often tend to leave catastrophic messes in 486es, amigas, apples, etc.

I'd go with Panasonic or Duracell personally. The pannies are the best in my experience. Old CR2032s can leak, too.

[HarryHo]

No way shall I attempt to work out the CMOS battery. The prices on eBay for the Varta CR2032 make those thoughts go away quickly.

One of my friends refers to varta as "farta", since their NiCad (and others) often tend to leave catastrophic messes in 486es, amigas, apples, etc.

I'd go with Panasonic or Duracell personally. The pannies are the best in my experience. Old CR2032s can leak, too.

I don't really know much about reliability of Varta but have used those type of Li cells (CR2032) often. My ebay units are unbranded, unmarked, covered by yellow shrink wrap. I have never encountered a leaky Li cell, but I suppose there is always a first. There are folk who try to buy CR2032 and attach leads, but the leads really need to be spot welded, not practical for me. The CR2032 with solder tabs are available but reworking the leads is just trouble. In my mind a button Li is pretty much a button Li. Maybe the Chinese ones won't last 10 year, I won't worry.

Varta reviews on Amazon seem mostly positive, some say better than Duracell. Who really knows.

[kfzhu1229]

One of my friends refers to varta as "farta", since their NiCad (and others) often tend to leave catastrophic messes in 486es, amigas, apples, etc.

I'd go with Panasonic or Duracell personally. The pannies are the best in my experience. Old CR2032s can leak, too.

I don't really know much about reliability of Varta but have used those type of Li cells (CR2032) often. My ebay units are unbranded, unmarked, covered by yellow shrink wrap. I have never encountered a leaky Li cell, but I suppose there is always a first. There are folk who try to buy CR2032 and attach leads, but the leads really need to be spot welded, not practical for me. The CR2032 with solder tabs are available but reworking the leads is just trouble. In my mind a button Li is pretty much a button Li. Maybe the Chinese ones won't last 10 year, I won't worry.

Varta reviews on Amazon seem mostly positive, some say better than Duracell. Who really knows.

For the Chinese batteries, most likely they exhaust their power before they can get a chance to leak. If you really need top quality, buy a decent brand battery cell and a roll of conductive tape and DIY. It will last longer but it will cost you more than thrice the price of a ready-to-use one on eBay. The most important thing is to keep your computer itself healthy because what in the world would you spend so much effort on a CMOS battery to put in a dead computer??

[ajkula66]

Varta reviews on Amazon seem mostly positive, some say better than Duracell. Who really knows.

I've owned numerous Varta car batteries while I lived in Europe and they were nothing short of excellent. Whether their other product lines are on the same level I really couldn't say for a fact.