rebuilding the A1211

[Applicator]

I got my hands on an A1211 (MBP2,2) for a decent price, but it's in less-than-mint condition.
Today, I took it apart and made a quick list of issues and spare parts needed.
It's the most powerful pre-8600mGT spec: 2.33GHz, 3GB, 256MB X1600, and it needs a new battery, a new display + top case, a new bottom case, new fans and a new HDD ribbon cable.
So after some quick math its obvious, that a second unit would be the most economical solution, but
which parts are interchangeable between different generations?
I'd love to take a dead-gpu-A1260 for spares and upgrade the Display to LED and swap in the multitouch Trackpad.



A smokers device.... yuck! Some tiny bugs found a way between the backlight and the LCD and left some dark spots, too.

Seriously: How did he manage to melt these edges?

 

[bobesch]

Oh, I happen to owe a defective A1211 for spare parts ... it's a remnant from the time I didn't know a lot about the subtle differences between the early-intel 15" MBP with silver keyboard.
Logicboard is defective. GPU 2.16GHz. RAM 2GB. No Harddrive. State of optical drive unknown. Frame screws are missing.
So the parts that *might* be ok are: display-assembly, keyboard-assembly, RAM, fans, speakers, left i/o-board (power in). Bottom plate has some nasty scratches and one plastic-knob is missing.
It's a real eye-catcher. It's a dust-catcher ... I cannot remember why I even went for that auction - maybe because of an excitement about the post-Powerbook-G4 era and the early-2008 15" MBP.

 

[Applicator]

@bobesch
sorry, been so busy at work for the last weeks...
thanks a lot for your reply, I might hit you later or make me an offer first

in the meantime, I had an eye on the usual marketplaces, but It seems like all the A1260s either went into the dumpster or the showcase. Only a few worn-out examples are available or the prices are ridiculous (still talking about ones with dead logicboards).

 

[bobesch]

@bobesch
sorry, been so busy at work for the last weeks...
thanks a lot for your reply, I might hit you later or make me an offer first

in the meantime, I had an eye on the usual marketplaces, but It seems like all the A1260s either went into the dumpster or the showcase. Only a few worn-out examples are available or the prices are ridiculous (still talking about ones with dead logicboards).

Sorry for You: there has been an auction for an A1211 recently - starting at 30€ and won for 31€.
I just made the starting bid - unfortunately it looks like that you haven't been the other bidder/lucky winner ...
Well, I do not want to go for anything early-early-intel anymore and I have this all-in-one "parts" of an A1211 to find another happy home and I've spent 30EUR for it.

 

[Applicator]

Finally!
Weeks went by, and there was pretty much nothing in "the bay", but this week, I managed to get my hands on an A1260 on the cheap (11,50€). GPU fried, as usual, but apart from 2 dents on the left, and a little rub-off below the Trackpad, it's in a decent condition.
I spent my saturday's evening taking both devices apart and interchanging parts. I finished my work today, and I'm very satisfied. I achieved exactly what I mentioned in the first post.

-replaced the entire chassis
-replaced the Display, i.e. upgraded to LED-backlit
-got working multitouch Trackpad
-swapped out the whining fans


I usually asort my screws an pieces, but in this case, both MacBook have been mistreated before and all screws were mixed up anyways


now that's, what I'd call "minor signs of usage"


booting up fine


Perfectly white screen (compared to the yellow piece of garbage)

BTW: the bottom shell is not fully compatible, as there are two spot-welded standoffs below the logicboards, that slightly differ in their position. They could be carefully removed and glued into the right spot, but I didn't bother and just removed them.
The inverter cable and the iSight need to be reused for the A1260 Display assy!

 

[CooperBox]

Good job you did there! I did similar with a 2002 M8407 PowerBook G4 Gigabit Ethernet model, which was my first ever foray into pulling a laptop apart. And the passion has grown since then, and I've purchased so many 'defective' Macs and restored them to their former glory that I've lost count of how many. So be careful, the bug can bite......

 

[rampancy]

Fantastic job! It's so, so, so gratifying to get old hardware working again. A few months ago, a pair of A1211s also fell into my lap and luckily they were pre-8600m GT models, too. I had a lot of fun getting those machines back up and running.

 

[Applicator]

And the passion has grown since then, and I've purchased so many 'defective' Macs and restored them to their former glory that I've lost count of how many. So be careful, the bug can bite......

I think I passed this line ages ago 😅
I'm currently sitting at 28 Macs and I can't tell how many went through my hands in the past. Probably in the 60s 😎

I appreciate your positive feedback ☺️