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Ack! Power adaptor tip broke off inside my iBook!!

pseudobrit

pseudobrit

macrumors 68040
Original poster
I have about 50% charge remaining to find out what to do. The little tip of my power adapter on my iBook (500 MHz dual USB 2001) broke off inside the female end. It won't take a charge now and the little nib is stuck somehow inside.
I need to get it out.

Power running out... must go... back later... TIA
 
Sounds like you're in a pickle. The only thing you can do is have Apple fix it. You'll need to get a new power adapter, too. Hope you have AppleCare.
 
-pseudobrit

Ok, here's what you can do - this is a MacGyverism.

Tools needed:
Krazy Glue or binary-liquid epoxy (epoxy is stronger - recommended)
Q-tip

(1)
Cut the cotton tip of a Q-Tip off in such a way to preserve as much shaft as you can. Flatten the end as best you can - be sure to not leave any dust or bits on the end.

2)
Glue: dab a drop on the flat end of the q-tip, a drop about the same diameter of the Q-Tip shaft

Epoxy: Mix the binary liquid onto wax paper and wait for it to get warm. Then dip the end of the Q-Tip shaft in the emulsion - you don't need much and you should take care not to use more than absolutely necessary.

3)
Insert (like a surgeon) the glued/epoxy'ed end of the Q-Tip into the aperature you wish to extract the tip (target) from. Contact the tip (target) with the Q-Tip firmly, and hold. Do not move for 10 or so minutes.

4)
Without twisting, pull the Q-Tip straight out the same way it went in. Hopefully the bond will be strong enough to pull the tip (target) out as well.

Note: Epoxy is the strongest solution, once set, it's damn near indestructable. But, it's messy, and you have to be careful to only touch your target.

BTW- This works on stuck keys as well 😀
 
Bah. It was totally stuck -- sideways and jammed in good.

I ordered another DC in board for $60. Mine was already a little beat up/bent out of shape, so it's not a bad idea at this time. I next-day-air'd it, so it should be here tomorrow. I've already got the iBook disassembled and ready to put the new one in.

The old DC board and its pigtail are sitting on top of what I'm using now. I'm typing right now from the good ol' reliable Rev. A Bondi iMac 233 that I pulled out of the mothballs, though I'm not that excited about using 9.22 right now.
 
JEEEZZ PAT

Got any other mac related McGyver tricks up your sleeve?

Can I use a torn peice of aluminum from a coke can to update the graphics chip in my FP imac?
 
To update the graphics chipset, simply run an alligator wire from the #RESET pin on the G4 chip to either pole on the AC side of the power supply.

JOKE!
 
I had the exact same problem happen to me, only this is the 2nd AC adapter I've had. The yo-yo type used for the 500Mhz iBooks SUCKED.
Anyway, I was able to just rotate the plug until the battery icon showed that it was charging, that fixed the problem- at least temporarily.
What was your sollution, a new board?
 
Originally posted by 5300cs
I had the exact same problem happen to me, only this is the 2nd AC adapter I've had. The yo-yo type used for the 500Mhz iBooks SUCKED.
Anyway, I was able to just rotate the plug until the battery icon showed that it was charging, that fixed the problem- at least temporarily.
What was your sollution, a new board?
Click to expand...

I got a new DC in board and I'm happily typing from my iBook now after surgery.

I ended up with 8 "extra" screws but I think they were mainly for holding down the metal guards.

While I'm at it, I need to take a trip to my local reseller and get some quotes on a caps key scissor and an escape key cap as well as some rubber feet.
 
BTW, MacAddict saved my life on this one. They published an article awhile back about doing stuff to your iBook and had detailed disassembly descriptions without which I would not have been able to complete the task without breaking stuff.

Thanks, MacAddict.
 
Re: JEEEZZ PAT

Originally posted by frescies
Got any other mac related McGyver tricks up your sleeve?

Can I use a torn peice of aluminum from a coke can to update the graphics chip in my FP imac?
Click to expand...

You could try to overclock the GPU with a pencil tip. But we all know what happened to MOSR....
 
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