Frankenstein Thinkpad (T40)

[DaKKS]

So, i recently rediscovered my long lost, and faithful old friend, my T40, in the basement. The little (apparently censored ) even had some power left in the battery. so i figured i'd give it another chance. I'm about to try a gpu reflow but i'm contemplating on a mobo replace as i've found a t42 mobo for sale rather cheaply. i also found a t43 mobo, but i've heard they are a bit problematic.

So the final specs would be: 1.8 ghz PM, t42 motherboard, 2gb ddr-333, 100gb, broadcom bcm94318 a/g wifi. these are all parts i have lying around. most of it is pulled from a damaged, but working, HP laptop.

what do you think guys (and gals)? doable? i've heard that the t4* series are rather versatile so it should be possible. at least theoretically.

cheers

[poshgeordie]

Welcome to the forums.

I may be able to help you with repairing your T40 - see the middle right blue logo at the top of the page about graphics chip reflowing in Europe. We actually reball all chips, that is to remove the chip and clean off the old solder balls. We then reball it with a new set of solder balls and then reflow (resolder) the refurbished chip onto the motherboard. PM me with your email address if that's of interest.

Regarding the T42 / HP parts, it's hard to say if the parts will work, especially the CPU. Have a look at this post which lists the processors which will work with T4x boards.

I'm not sure about the other parts and best to try them.

Regarding T43 reliability, I understand that they are very reliable but there can be issues with the Southbridge chip soldering.

As with all T4x motherboard it's very important to make sure the boards aren't flexed which can cause the SB solder balls to become separated from the motherboard.

[DaKKS]

Thanks for the offer but as i've recently bought a car, i'd rather not spend much on an 7 year old laptop. i tried the reflow trick but without one of those IR thermometers, i couldn't get the temp right. still black screen but the computer turns on.

anyway, i found a t42 mobo for 25€ and a t43 mobo for 35€ give or take. i'm looking into replacing the mobo in my t40 to one of those two. haven't decided which yet, but i'm leaning towards the T42. anything i should watch out with?

btw: cpu, ram, and wlan appears to work with the t41 at least. (tried it on my mates thinkpad) so it should work with the t42 motherboard as well. can't confirm with the T40 since it wont boot...

cheers

[DaKKS]

Alrighto, little update. I just purchased a thinkpad t42 motherboard that I will be installing into my T40. for specs, see signature.