Best Place to Buy T21 Ribbon Cable

[hts]

My trusty T21's display is on the blink. I use it every day since 2001. I replaced the CFL in the display seveal years ago; restored to like new!. My lcd screen now lights up for @ 5 seconds dims and lights up for @ 5 more seconds before it goes out. I am using an external display. I am betting it is the ribbon cable that has been flexed to death that is the problem. I have looked on the forum marketplace and ebay and not seen any alternatives (1 seller on ebay without FRU). I am also thinking of getting a new part if possible. Does anyone have any recommendations of the best place to purchase a new ribbon cable?

[Neil]

This is, of course, totally guesswork on my part, but I doubt that your problem is the ribbon cable. It very well could be the cable (I've had a bad cable cause display problems before, but it just doesn't seem to fit your description of what's happening. IMHO, the most likely cause is the CCFL. I know you replaced it "several years ago", but it could very well be on the way out again. The next likely (or maybe equally likely) candidate would be the inverter.

If you would like some spare parts to experiment with, I'm fairly sure I have a known good cable and inverter (but no lamps) in my box of T2x spares. Send me a PM if you're interested.