Keyboard Repair

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Deal
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Keyboard Repair

Post by Deal »

My laptop started repeating 'c's on each touch. Having no money to replace $2300 and years software, I disected the keyboard and killed the patient with early exacto knife repairs. I won a bid on Ebay for replacement, and swapped keyboards to restore. The dead keyboard hung like a 'dumb ass' personal failure. Months later on a rainy day, I did the nuclear option and disected its almost 300 parts to expose and unfold the membranes. Like a 'Cold Case file' I saw my weak repair mistakes. I used a 30x microscope and traced high resistance circuits. All the circuits are embeded, and I repaired them by cutting paralled strokes into the protective membranes with sharp blade which when painted with silver print circuit board paint (GC electronics, 15 years on shelf) brought the circuits to workable surface with zero resistance. Everything was easy after that except for reassembling 300 tedious parts. I now have two computers. Question is after searching web and finding no replacement keyboard (Winbook SI Laptop), what should I have done to avoid this difficult repair other than be throw away 'wealthy'?
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Chris Smith
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by Chris Smith »

I buy new keyboards for less than five bucks. Some how the million dollar repair approach doesn’t fit the picture, throw out the bath water, and start over new.
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dr_when
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by dr_when »

Chris...5$?? I thought he said laptop keyboard.
"Who is John Galt?"
L. Daniel Rosa
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by L. Daniel Rosa »

Some laptops can take an external keyboard. Mine has a PS/2 socket marked for mouse and keyboard, but I suspect the keyboard is not on the stardard pins.
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Edd
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by Edd »

That’s definitely my keyboard choice when I have room to spread out on a table and not utilizing its”LAPtop” functionality. An accompanying briefcase tote along a full size sloped keyboard and a mouse along with an industrial size backup battery, as compared to the internal ones run time.<p>73's de Edd
[email protected] ..….....(Interstellar~~~~Warp~~~Speed)
[email protected]….......(Firewalled-Spam*Cookies*Crumbs)
:) <p>Welllll... to get express action on your info, I opted instead to utilize a collegiate library aide via telephony....along with some degree of telepathy......being involved in the schematics interpretation.
I was able to find one year prior to your units production, and like mass manufactured products they stick with some design for a time unless they have problems or the need for technical upgrading.
The AC line fuse should have an item designator/identifier of FX3401 silk screened on the PCB adjunct to it. The same type I mentioned previously, and yes, it is a 4 amp "blow slowly" type as I also had mentioned....for repetitively taking AC current surge inrush upon initial cold set power up.
And yes the unit did use a plastic encased full wave bridge in lieu of the typical 4 discrete diodes, for raw DC rectification, its item designator is DX3401. To confirm that the SMPS design is the same, find the SMPS transformer (TX3404) and its associated sheet alum heat sink aside and confirm the large plastic power IC's markings is of the STR53041 family. That unit looks like a very large/wide power transistor on steroids with 5 buss leads coming out its bottom.
I don't really think that you peeked behind the SMPS xformer, but there is another micro 3 amp SB PT fuse in its terminal 4 AC leg feeding to the sets derived 15/9/5 VDC supplies, probably not of any relation to YOUR problem.
So, if your set passed my initially described analysis and you are very lucky, you might be flying again with a mere fuse replacement. Ergo...'' rots o ruck''.<p>Hmmmmm...now back to that beleagured aide.....I know that I didn't hear a final extollation of ''I'M QUEEN OF THE WORLD!''...but I certainly was catching aside snippets of conversation with her associates in the effect of ....Egyptian ......tombs...... walls ......Alexandria......cuneiform… Sarcapogus
.........Hieroglyphs ..........
<p>terri:
Thank 'yuh very much.......Thank 'yuh very much...........a la Elvis(esque)<p>Would you believe that I have never had Ungar since waaaaaay back to the days of "wood burner" style of units and their selectable wattage and associated tiplet choices. I did have one of the later and upgraded turqoise Imperial series , but it
was stolen from me. Therefore I am not up on their controlled temp units, however seeing a few of their tiplets at Hamfests flea markets reveals a similar “pellet” design.
Oy...oy...Xuan loi…...I DO have one of their de-soldering stations with its vacuum pump assisted solder removal to a quartz glass reservoir...and on its side there is mounted a 40-60 w soldering iron, I will have to pull it out and see how it is
designed.<p>Will:
That’s a 50/50 chance….. if being in the dark on the integrity of the sets PS. That 10A metering current shunt wire would afford nil in any limiting to the power supply circuitry. <p>Most people don't know what they are doing, and a lot of them are really good at it !. <p>[ September 08, 2005: Message edited by: Edd Whatley ]</p>
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jollyrgr
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by jollyrgr »

Deal,<p>As sad as it sounds your method (eBay) is about the best. Laptops, and their keyboards in general, are difficult to find parts for. Where I work we routinely have to replace computer keyboards, both desktop and laptops. When a desktop computer is replaced we generally keep the keyboards and mice as spares. The computers' drives are wiped (using a DOD standard program) and donated to local schools.<p>
Retired laptops are broken down into their sub assemblies and stored for spare parts. Eventually someone will drop a laptop and smash the screen, spill a drink in it, or have it suffer a "normal" failure. In some cases it is the first one or two laptops that get replaced with newer models until enough spare parts can be had to make one good laptop.<p>In the years I've worked on computes I have tried to convince people NOT to get a laptop if they can avoid it, just from the perspective that they are difficult to get parts for. Desktops (at least those five years old and younger) can be easily repaired. In cases like yours I have recommened that people go to used compute stores and eBay to buy a dead computer of the same model and scavenge it for spare parts. This does work out to be cheaper than buying a new part, if you can find it.
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JerryAlport
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by JerryAlport »

Second keyboard on my SI has sticky key.
Manufacturer no longer fixes or has parts.
Deal,
If I can find a replacement keyboard on
Ebay or otherwise, how did you open the case
of your SI to get at the keyboard? I understand
that the touchpad comes loose to get at the keyboard. Does the touchpad section come loose
using screws on the bottom of the case? How many
screws?
Chris,
What is your source fro keyboards?
Thanks,
Jerry [email protected]
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Chris Smith
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Re: Keyboard Repair

Post by Chris Smith »

Jerry
My sources are generic style PS2 keyboards.
The One that I used to buy from no longer lists a catalog, making it hard to shop, but send them a email and they will respond. Just ask for generic Keyboards, all price ranges.<p>Aaronix.Com, Pacific Memory Group <p>Also try [$3.99 and up]
http://www.xpcgear.com/keyboards.html<p>OR
The Nerds
The Geeks
and a few others?<p>I think the most I have paid for any generic keyboard is 12 bucks, including shipping. <p>If you need a used one, Ill send you three for the cost of shipping. It will help me clean out my place a little.<p>I also have a lap top keyboard, but the brand wont probably work?<p>If you don’t have a PS2 port, there are other ways of accessing a keyboard, such as USB and others.<p>[ May 05, 2005: Message edited by: Chris Smith ]</p>
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