1400c - mouse button not working & new PRAM battery

[sos_nz]

As per the topic title, I fired up my Powerbook 1400c for the first time in a few months and discovered that the mouse button now longer wanted to work. Trackpad works fine though. As per the Apple service manual for the 1400, I tried resetting the PMU/PRAM, to no effect.

So I've stripped it down and will transplant a known working cable from my "donor" 1400cs. Hopefully that works, or I'll have to go in again and swap out the trackpad itself.

While there, I've decided it's time to fit a new PRAM battery, so I've got a couple of VL2330's on order. Will update y'all in due course.

 

[sos_nz]

OK - both problems are solved.

I soldered up a replacement PRAM battery from two new VL2330's and that is working nicely. And using the donor machine's top half i.e. trackpad & button, I now have a fully working 1400c again. Well, except for the dead main battery pack of course - that's next month's project.

Of interest, the newer of these two 1400s was manufactured in July 1997 and has two PRAM batteries, whereas the older one, manufactured in Feb 1996, only has one. As I only had enough VL2330's to make one replacement battery pack, I've left the second, dead PRAM battery unchanged without apparent ill-effect.

 

[J English Smith]

Sos, Interested in any notes, part numbers or photos when you attempt a main battery rebuild - that's something I might still try to do one day. All of my PRAMs are dead, but don't really want to go through what it takes to get to that...not quite as easy as on a Pismo.

 

[MacJunky]

I did not look at dates, but my 1400c has dual batts while the 1400cs only has one. Am I reading correctly that you are seeing the same thing?

 

[sos_nz]

I did not look at dates, but my 1400c has dual batts while the 1400cs only has one. Am I reading correctly that you are seeing the same thing?

Actually, that's probably correct, as I had previously swapped the active TFT screen from a 1400c onto the 1400cs "body", which means that it was the 1400c body (the donor of the top case in this recent transplant operation) which indeed has two PRAM batteries. I wonder why the change from one to two?

ps now is probably timely to remind people to be careful soldering around lithium batteries. If they overheat, they can explode. Take care, kids.

 

[Elfen]

Interesting that is was the cable at fault killing the trackpad/mouse button. Could have been that the cable worked its way loose?

 

[sos_nz]

Interesting that is was the cable at fault killing the trackpad/mouse button. Could have been that the cable worked its way loose?

 Unfortunately, because I swapped out the whole assembly, I don't know this.

It may have been the button (although mechanically it seems hard for it to fail) or the cable, as there was a small damaged looking section of it, although it was on a differerent trace from the button mechanism.

 

[Elfen]

My experience with faulty Mice buttons (PCs & Macs) have broken or cracked solder joints from years of the board flexing from people pressing hard on it. Desoldering the joint and then resoldering usually fixes it. Note - USUALLY... A couple of times I ran into the trace itself being broken from the board flexing from years of hard button pressing. Its that some people out there have King Kong Fingers when on the computer.

 

[CC_333]

I had a 190cs that someone gave me, and the mouse button literally fell off due to broken plastic everywhere. I spent several hours over several different tries to get everything to hold together reliably, and I think I did it.

What a pain, though >

c

p.s. The button was fine electrically, but I mention it because it might be a structural problem with the button actuator itself?

 

[Elfen]

Now there's a difference! That plastic gets brittle and will kill a good switch. I had the same thing happen to a 190 as well.

I'm saving up for a 3D printer and maybe I can get some broken parts recreated.