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Could be RAM. Could be an ATA device not responding. Could be a bad display (the cables wear out because they pass through the clutch cover area). Try removing RAM, disconnecting the ATA cable (should be pretty easy - just pull the plug off the logic board), and/or using an external video cable.

A little sleuthing later and I found a couple open components in the 5vsb circuit. Sadly I couldn't find usable information for testing some of the VRMs (they require specific bench-testing configurations with power supplies and things, a DMM probe won't really tell you anything other than pure...

I read something about it ages ago but I don't remember specifics. It's a pattern though: basically with every major change since the '020, Motorola has compromised pre-existing features, instead opting for "compatibility" by emulating in software the features/instructions that were dropped...

PLI's Turbo Floppy 1.4 is probably what you want. No idea if there are any for sale anywhere now though. There were also a couple other options but this is the only one I've seen in person. They apparently don't read 800k or 720k floppies though; HD only.

Looks like there's already some cardboard scuffing (that line pattern) on the top of the unit. Probably from the first trip to Sendico. Hopefully that's the worst damage it sees.

I'm pretty sure I just used a large-ish flat screwdriver at the seams, pressing slightly inward and twisting. Also a little prying around the power socket to get it started.

Just to clarify: At its most basic, if it has an ATA hard drive, you're going to need to cut up the CC's (or big ol' LC's, if you prefer) chassis to install a new (modified) wiring harness a few inches deeper into the case. You can use any of the Q630-derived boards, or any of the non-PCI PPC...

So Hagiwara seems to offer something in the "industrial SSD" area that would be ideal but they're in that "contact for quote" group and are likely to be pretty expensive. Also the ones I saw were 3.5" and I'd also like a 2.5" option. They may have one but I was having trouble searching their...

In a nutshell: the LC PDS was originally a 16-bit interface that was directly connected to the 68020 in the LC. It was later expanded to 32 bits in the LC III, LC 550, and other full 32-bit '030s, though very few cards ever used the full 32 bits; most stayed 16 bit for compatibility with the...

True: the high-end Macs didn't have soldered RAM monopolizing any address space, and it was cumulative, which is why most of these had goofy RAM maximums (like the 6100's 8+32+32=72MB). The Q630, however, even in double RAM slot form, was one of the compromised models: it could only use a...

There aren't a ton of upgrade options for the original logic board. There were never any processor upgrades available because there's no way to install one. The LC PDS isn't "real" on these (nor is it on any post-'030 Mac) and so it can't override the host processor. There were some fairly rare...

The 6100 and 7100 use SMD oscillators so it's easy for the clip-on accelerators to slip over. The 8100 usually has its oscillator soldered through the logic board so it's harder to override it. I did a mild overclock on an 8100/110, taking it to 120MHz by replacing its 36.6MHz oscillator with a...

All of the first-gen Power Macs, most Centris/Quadras except the 900 and 950, and nearly every PowerBook up to the WS/PDQ had soldered RAM. Many of these were at one point considered "high end." The Classic and Classic II didn't have a ton of space to work with internally, and their power...

It's kind of tricky. They're entirely bonded, no screws or anything, and the plastic is really brittle after so many years. I'm not sure if there's a particular solvent that can break the bond in the case or if it's heat bonded. The few times I've done it I pried the halves apart and just glued...

Some people may be familiar with ATA disk-on-module drives, which are basically anywhere from about 1-32GB of fixed storage in a module that plugs directly into an ATA header. There are no flash cards, no USB connectors, no configuration software, no nothing: plug it in and presto! You have a...

Sucks about the bike. People are the worst. You're in KY, yeah? Unless there's another Louisville somewhere. They're not like Springfield. Anyway the 5210 is a 5200/75LC with a non-USA badge. The education model was all over schools in the States though so it shouldn't be that hard to find one...

Most compact Macs had a fairly low power budget, especially the post-SE/30 models, so I'd probably reconsider using SCA drives in those, at least any of the >7200RPM models. Modern 7200RPM drives probably actually draw close to the same amount of power as those older, slower drives, but the...

I think the only Mac board I've seen where they changed the CPU from PGA to QFP in a revision is one of the compact Mac IIs, either the cx or ci. I may have to order one or three of these boards though since I have at least one dodgy original board that doesn't want to cooperate.

PLI made the Mac-centric SCSI Turbo Floppy 1.4 in the late '80s as a solution for using HD floppies on pre-FDHD Macs. Basically they were proprietary controller cards (for that turbo floppy performance) driving an MFM-to-SCSI controller board attached to a standard PC 3.5" floppy drive. Honestly...

Your PS's capacitors may also be getting old. Sometimes if left plugged in long enough they'll charge up to the point where they'll work, but it can be unreliable. I have a hard power supply for a computer and I have to flick the switch and let it sit there before the caps charge enough to power...