Could 3D printing save our TiBook hinges?

[Smithwick’s]

Morning everyone,

I've got a TiBook running headless these days on account of, as is so often the case, a snapped hinge. I've been lamenting it for ages as I know the disassembly of the display assembly is insanely involved and the outcome of typical mending... less than stellar (even with JB Weld). It did get me thinking, though, could some sort of 3D printed replacement actually be a viable option for those of us suffering from this same fate? Perhaps there's a file for such a replacement already floating around and it would be as simple as printing or ordering it?

Can't say I'm an expert on the subject by any means, I've only ever admired 3D printers from a distance. But in a world where our precious hinges are becoming increasingly brittle... I feel like this is as good an idea as any (short of just gluing door hinges on the back for that rustic jank look).

If anybody has some thoughts I'd love to hear them. I've seen some impressive 3D printed objects but I haven't a clue whether there are materials which could serve this function reliably.

 

[eyoungren]

Could it? Sure. Will it? Unlikely.

Just how many old TiBooks are still around? And of those, how many are still used as laptops? By that I mean, using it on the go.

Aside from my own TiBook/400 dying, one of the reasons I moved on to AlBooks was because the Airport card in that TiBook could no longer connect to modern coffeshop or restaurant WiFi. And that was back in 2009.

Now there are ways to work around that, but then your problem is what apps to be using? We can all answer that question at home. We can all mostly answer that outside of the house. But at work? I guess that just depends on what job you have and how much freedom you have at that job.

So sure. 3D printing could probably put the lid back on your Mac at home. But my question is, aside from just restoring the Mac to a functional condition - what is the point?

Note, I'm not shooting this down. It's a viable option, if someone out there has a 3D printable file. It can be done. I just know that for myself, it's not any effort I'd put out for a TiBook.

 

[Certificate of Excellence]

There are a number of "laptop hinge" prints already but they seem more like supports that hold the screen up & open, not so much a replacement hinge. I did find a 3d printed hinge that was thick but dependent on what part of the hinge broke of course, It seems that a reasonable replacement could be made. For example, the cover part would be pretty straight forward I think. I found this guy who made aluminum clips of sorts to hold his breaking hinges together.

When I look at the Ti hinge, it looks straight forward in design but the hinges I did find were much fatter, so while 3d printing could potentially fashion a replacement, will the filament be strong enough to not snap? Only one way to find out 🙂

 

[Smithwick’s]

Could it? Sure. Will it? Unlikely.

Just how many old TiBooks are still around? And of those, how many are still used as laptops? By that I mean, using it on the go.

Aside from my own TiBook/400 dying, one of the reasons I moved on to AlBooks was because the Airport card in that TiBook could no longer connect to modern coffeshop or restaurant WiFi. And that was back in 2009.

Now there are ways to work around that, but then your problem is what apps to be using? We can all answer that question at home. We can all mostly answer that outside of the house. But at work? I guess that just depends on what job you have and how much freedom you have at that job.

So sure. 3D printing could probably put the lid back on your Mac at home. But my question is, aside from just restoring the Mac to a functional condition - what is the point?

Note, I'm not shooting this down. It's a viable option, if someone out there has a 3D printable file. It can be done. I just know that for myself, it's not any effort I'd put out for a TiBook.

I totally understand that aspect, although at a certain point it’s just about love of the game more than functionality - haha. I’ve noticed that TiBooks seem to either be a love it or meh it item in these circles though. I want to love them but they are frustrating on account of the aforementioned hinges 😂

There are a number of "laptop hinge" prints already but they seem more like supports that hold the screen up & open, not so much a replacement hinge. I did find a 3d printed hinge that was thick but dependent on what part of the hinge broke of course, It seems that a reasonable replacement could be made. For example, the cover part would be pretty straight forward I think. I found this guy who made aluminum clips of sorts to hold his breaking hinges together.

When I look at the Ti hinge, it looks straight forward in design but the hinges I did find were much fatter, so while 3d printing could potentially fashion a replacement, will the filament be strong enough to not snap? Only one way to find out 🙂

I’m not sure exactly how the metal bracket attaches to the… brace? I’m not sure of the term to use. My real thought is less about crafting the entire mechanism and focusing instead on the actual typical failure point - crafting a replacement for the L-shaped bit going from the hinge up into the screen.

Getting it set in the screen with a resin or epoxy or something could also give it a lot more resilience. Plus separating the hinge would let you lubricate it which is part of the problem in the first place.

 

[Certificate of Excellence]

I totally understand that aspect, although at a certain point it’s just about love of the game more than functionality - haha. I’ve noticed that TiBooks seem to either be a love it or meh it item in these circles though. I want to love them but they are frustrating on account of the aforementioned hinges 😂



I’m not sure exactly how the metal bracket attaches to the… brace? I’m not sure of the term to use. My real thought is less about crafting the entire mechanism and focusing instead on the actual typical failure point - crafting a replacement for the L-shaped bit going from the hinge up into the screen.

Getting it set in the screen with a resin or epoxy or something could also give it a lot more resilience. Plus separating the hinge would let you lubricate it which is part of the problem in the first place.

I dont have a Ti book (wish I did - one of the macs on my short list) so Im unsure what the actual part that breaks is. I see how they have that L bracket that the lcd sits in - search result pics seem to imply that L part breaks above the actual pin hinge bit. Hmm, that is pretty thin so not alot of space to make it "bigger/thicker" it seems. I agree that setting it in epoxy could help stengthen (Ive done this many times with hollow plastic parts that age/deteriorate over decades - gluing them back together and then filling the hollow cavity with epoxy and allowing that to set). That is of course much bigger than this tiny hinge but it *does* technically work on larger applications.

Im tempted to find a functioning unit with broken hinges to have a looksie. Ahh who am I kidding, too much going on right now to dive into a project like that but hopefully soon 🙂

Good luck! If anything, its a great reason to buy a 3d printer and start experimenting/desiging bobs n bits

 

[eyoungren]

I totally understand that aspect, although at a certain point it’s just about love of the game more than functionality - haha. I’ve noticed that TiBooks seem to either be a love it or meh it item in these circles though. I want to love them but they are frustrating on account of the aforementioned hinges 😂

Except for the Airport card and the unexpected fact that the antenna for that card is garbage when it comes to range, I never had much of a problem with the internals of my TiBook.

In fact, my old TiBook performed as a production Mac at a job I had for six months. Once the boss finally bought a G5, I was able to take it home. It held up well.

But as it got older it became apparent that 400mhz wasn't going to cut it. Along with all the other issues that PowerPC in general suffers in the modern era, I could expect that the fans were going to be operating at full speed pretty much all of the time. It did however, provide great motivation to me to create workarounds and processes that I still use today.

I never had the hinge issue. But through no abuse on my part, as the case itself aged, it started to break apart in bits and chunks, mostly around the hinges. By the time I sent it off for parts to someone else here, I could break pieces off the case easily and some of those just disintegrated into powder.

Compared to my 17" PowerMac G4 AlBook, which still looks as new as when I got it (used) off eBay, this was a pretty big disappointment. The only redeeming factor in the long run was that I never bought that TiBook. It was 2001 Christmas gift.

OTOH, I got my son a 1Ghz TiBook at some point and that Mac, despite it's dinged case was a rocket and a really good Mac. So, maybe it's down to the fact that my TiBook was the bottom of the barrel as far as megaherz goes. IDK.

I understand the love. I had a Quicksilver I loved like that. But my love starts to fade when I'm fixing the Mac more than I am using it. Especially so, when defects in the design become apparent as the primary reason for why I'm having to fix things.