PB 5xx original AC adapter re-cap & modern replacement

[jmacz]

Shared the instructions, parts, and model here:

PowerBook Power Supply Connector (520/520c/540/540c)

I wanted to share information on this PowerBook 5xx Power Supply Connector I have been toying with. Been so busy with other projects lately that I only got a chance to play with this a bit more today. I have not yet worked on the actual power supply yet but I wanted to at least share the...

68kmla.org

 

[alexGS]

I probably should have posted in this thread - sorry - but I have started a new thread with my theory of why two supplies are needed. It seems to me that VBatt must be limited to about 1A, or the battery will attempt to charge with all the current available. Please see my post at https://68kmla.org/bb/index.php?threads/500-series-alternative-power-supply-learnings.45726/

 

[jmacz]

Do these two also need to be replaced or should they be ok?

 

[3lectr1cPPC]

I’m not aware of them being failure prone.

 

[jmacz]

Ok, I desoldered them and they look ok (not like RIFAs). Maybe since they're out already, I'll just replace them.

 

[wottle]

FYI, these 3d printed connectors work fantastic. I used them in combination with another project on TinkerDifferent to house a USB-C trigger board and buck or boost converter. I had some problems with the buck / boost boards overheating, and the standard 15v you can get out of a USB-C trigger board was very close to the 16v the stock charger gives. So far, it seems to work fantastically. No problems running off of 15v. I did not hook up the VBATT connections because I don't have a working battery, but in theory you could probably build one with dual USB-C triggers for the two 15v lines.



I only have an FDM printer, and it was not up to the task of printing the plastic connectors, but I used JLCPCB resin printing to produce them and they turned out fantastically. Highly recommend using them if you need something printed and want it to look high quality. Once I got the metal grinding wheel for cutting the stainless steel tubing, I was able to get pretty good results. Soldering the wire to the little bit of exposed stainless for the shell was difficult, but I managed.

 

[jmacz]

Congrats, glad the model worked well for you