PowerBook 165c

[just.in.time]

Went to pick up a local PowerBook 165c that was being offered as not working. At $30, seemed like a fair price for a fun restore project.

Computer is in perfect condition physically. Applied power to it and it started with no issue, loud and clear chime, display working as good as the passive display on a 165c could hope to work. Booted right into System 7.1 with some old apps still in place.

Aside from the fact that it turned on, the next biggest surprise was to find it with maxed out RAM at 14MB.

Only issue that I can tell is the trackball doesn’t like to move the mouse up or down very well (though does great left to right). Guessing it will need a cleaning. Also still need to try the floppy disk drive… guessing it will need servicing as well. Need to dig around the site to see if we have a wiki on how to clean the trackball system. This is my first 100 series PowerBook since the early 2000s.

Does the 165c have a clock battery and/or capacitors that are known to leak?

Also, with RAM at 14MB, what does everyone think on best OS for it? I’m leaning towards 7.5.5 but open to ideas.

 

[3lectr1cPPC]

Does the 165c have a clock battery and/or capacitors that are known to leak?

Not nearly to the extent of other models. The PRAM battery is a rechargeable Lithium coin cell that's soldered to the interconnect board in the top case. It doesn't really leak, but it never hurts to remove it.
The LCD has some capacitors on it, but they're through-hole caps that don't leak nearly as often as surface mount caps do. They CAN to be clear, just less common. I'd replace them if it was my system, but it isn't a must-do. The inverter board might also have one or two of the same type of cap on it.
The power supply on the other hand is quite prone to cap failure. The 3A chargers for the color models (165c and 180c) seem to be better than the 2A versions are, but it's still not a bad idea to recap them. I haven't done mine yet because I'm lazy.

7.1 will run better than 7.5.5 but 7.5.5 is fine.

 

[just.in.time]

Good to know on those caps and PRAM battery. Will have to find some time to replace those.

As far as power supply, I got fortunate (maybe) on this one that it came with an aftermarket model. Seems to work okay for now. Will probably still investigate after I go through the PowerBook.

 

[Juror22]

Does the 165c have a clock battery and/or capacitors that are known to leak?

As 3lectr1cPPC stated, there is a Lithium coin cell that's soldered to the interconnect board and I have seen that battery corrode, leak and cause minor damage to the interconnect board in several models. Not trying to alarm you, or start anything, just making sure that you know the potential extent of the issue and can plan accordingly.

 

[just.in.time]

Is that battery pretty easy to remove? @Juror22

 

[Juror22]

After you have the case open...
Seriously, not too bad if you've messed about, changing RAM in the PB line. You will want a copy of the 165c -180c Service Source as a guide, but basically:
Remove the main battery, I/O door, take out 5 screws (sometimes 4 if the one in the back was lost), separate the top from the bottom case take out 2 more screws holding the DC/DC converter (inverter board) and then two final screws holding in the interconnect board. That will give you the ability to desolder the battery. Then you just put everything back.

 

[just.in.time]

Sounds good, thank you @Juror22 .

Good news, floppy drive seems to ready just fine and inject/ejects smoothly.

Bad news, I’m thinking the aftermarket power supply it came with will need some maintenance. Computer runs great and very reliable for about 45 minutes to an hour, then will crash or freeze up. By this point the power supply is very warm to the touch. I need to get my multimeter out to validate but my guess is the voltage drops as it heats up. Letting it cool for a while allows computer to work again.

 

[3lectr1cPPC]

Is it a 3A rated supply?

 

[just.in.time]

Yes, lists 7.5v - 2.0a and 7.5v - 3.2a on back label.

 

[3lectr1cPPC]

Must be a crappy charger then.

 

[just.in.time]

Definitely a possibility. Going to get out the multimeter today or tomorrow to confirm.

 

[just.in.time]

If it is way out, might throw a WTB thread in the trading post to see if anyone has a 3amp Apple charger they’d be willing to sell.

 

[just.in.time]

Ordered an Apple 3amp charger. Will hopefully be here this weekend.