TiBook Repairs

[Gamer9430]

So my TiBook was having some issues lately. It would go to sleep during startup, then after waking it up, it would have a very messed up screen. The fans ran constantly and let out extremely hot air. Lastly, it would just go to sleep at random and then have messed up graphics again. @LightBulbFun, @bunnspecial and a few other users in my iMessage Group Chat helped to narrow it down to the machine overheating. So i went about taking it apart and when i finally took off the logic board, i was greeted with a rock solid green "thermal paste" on the CPU. It took 15 minutes of effort to remove most of the green stuff from both the CPU and heat sink. I then reapplied some Arctic Silver 5 and sealed it back up. @LightBulbFun and I then went on to stress test the machine to confirm that overheating was indeed the issue. It didn't show any signs of overheating after 10 minutes, so the concluded that was indeed the issue. I then went on to back up the machine to my G5 which took a few hours. The fans were running the entire time, and when i came back to it, it was still running perfectly.

Anyway, I have a quick question. Is it possible to redo the glue on the bottom plate with superglue? The more than a decade old glue has long since dried and cracked, thus making parts of the bottom plate hang down. Also, for future reference, is it possible to redo the paint on the machine in the common place that paint loss occurs? I want this top of the line and completely maxed out 1GHz TiBook to last awhile and stay in good condition.

 

[bunnspecial]

Nick, I've always used epoxy on the bottom plate of these.

 

[Gamer9430]

Nick, I've always used epoxy on the bottom plate of these.

so that would work better than superglue or gorilla glue? Figured superglue would be easy since it has a brush and holds up well.

 

[bunnspecial]

The original glue was sort of "space filling", and superglue tends to not work well unless the surfaces already have a close mechanical contact. Plus, most over the counter cyanoacrylates give you very little working time.

I suspect the original was some sort of epoxy, which is why I use it on repairs. Most epoxies will give you a while to get it right, too.

 

[Gamer9430]

The original glue was sort of "space filling", and superglue tends to not work well unless the surfaces already have a close mechanical contact. Plus, most over the counter cyanoacrylates give you very little working time.

I suspect the original was some sort of epoxy, which is why I use it on repairs. Most epoxies will give you a while to get it right, too.

Ah ok, that makes sense. Any recommendations on what brand epoxy to use?

 

[bunnspecial]

I'd go to the hardware store and buy their "house" brand, although JB Weld would probably be a good match to the factory color and is likely one of the strongest readily available on the market.

I would suggest a avoiding a "fast" epoxy and instead go for a more conventional 24h one-in my experience they are more durable.

 

[SecretSquirrel]

So my TiBook was having some issues lately. It would go to sleep during startup, then after waking it up, it would have a very messed up screen. The fans ran constantly and let out extremely hot air. Lastly, it would just go to sleep at random and then have messed up graphics again. @LightBulbFun, @bunnspecial and a few other users in my iMessage Group Chat helped to narrow it down to the machine overheating. So i went about taking it apart and when i finally took off the logic board, i was greeted with a rock solid green "thermal paste" on the CPU. It took 15 minutes of effort to remove most of the green stuff from both the CPU and heat sink. I then reapplied some Arctic Silver 5 and sealed it back up. @LightBulbFun and I then went on to stress test the machine to confirm that overheating was indeed the issue. It didn't show any signs of overheating after 10 minutes, so the concluded that was indeed the issue. I then went on to back up the machine to my G5 which took a few hours. The fans were running the entire time, and when i came back to it, it was still running perfectly.

Anyway, I have a quick question. Is it possible to redo the glue on the bottom plate with superglue? The more than a decade old glue has long since dried and cracked, thus making parts of the bottom plate hang down. Also, for future reference, is it possible to redo the paint on the machine in the common place that paint loss occurs? I want this top of the line and completely maxed out 1GHz TiBook to last awhile and stay in good condition.

When I had TiBooks years ago, I looked into repairing the off-white paint which had worn away. Never got round to it (TiBook died ) but I recall that a version of Honda Frost White was thought to be the nearest thing to the original colour.

 

[MacCubed]

When I had TiBooks years ago, I looked into repairing the off-white paint which had worn away. Never got round to it (TiBook died ) but I recall that a version of Honda Frost White was thought to be the nearest thing to the original colour.

A company made this thing called "TiPaint" which replicated the original white.

 

[CooperBox]

When I had TiBooks years ago, I looked into repairing the off-white paint which had worn away. Never got round to it (TiBook died ) but I recall that a version of Honda Frost White was thought to be the nearest thing to the original colour.

This I find interesting, as I've been wanting to touch-up the hinge covers on my TiBook. I purchased a small spray can, the cap-colour (Ref: Light Grey USAF) seemed to be a perfect match put against the computer. I hope to find time to perform this within a day or two, and report back. Failing an acceptable colour match, I'll try Honda Frost White.
[doublepost=1453231168][/doublepost]

A company made this thing called "TiPaint" which replicated the original white.

Since reading this I've done a number of searches, and although 'TiPaint' gives a number of hits, the company associated with this - or at least their web-site - appears to be no longer in existence. If anyone knows otherwise I'd be pleased to hear.
My fall-back plan is to contact some colleagues at a nearby aviation constructor, as knowing titanium components are frequently used/get damaged/need touching-up, I should be able to get an idea of who their Ti paint distributor is.

 

[MacCubed]

This I find interesting, as I've been wanting to touch-up the hinge covers on my TiBook. I purchased a small spray can, the cap-colour (Ref: Light Grey USAF) seemed to be a perfect match put against the computer. I hope to find time to perform this within a day or two, and report back. Failing an acceptable colour match, I'll try Honda Frost White.
[doublepost=1453231168][/doublepost]

Since reading this I've done a number of searches, and although 'TiPaint' gives a number of hits, the company associated with this - or at least their web-site - appears to be no longer in existence. If anyone knows otherwise I'd be pleased to hear.
My fall-back plan is to contact some colleagues at a nearby aviation constructor, as knowing titanium components are frequently used/get damaged/need touching-up, I should be able to get an idea of who their Ti paint distributor is.

Yeah it's not produced anymore

 

[CooperBox]

Following my post #9, here are the attempts to touch up the TiBook hinge covers using a small aerosol can, the cap colour of which seemed a near-perfect match.
Results whilst an improvement aesthetically, are not as good as I'd wished for.





I now plan to look around for a better matching aerosol.

Following that, I must find a solution to re-attach the screen/hinge supports (the photos show that both ends have fractured and torn away from the screen assembly).
What may possibly work is a gradual build-up of epoxy and then reform the reworked pieces to fit inside the screen assy, and epoxy in final position. Bit of a bodge-up I guess, but the alternative is to replace the screen, not only a very unpleasant task, but one which would not be cost effective, as this TiBook was a freeby.
Over the last 2 days I've had both seized hinges soaking in WD40. Even afterwards it was almost impossible to get them moving (with end-piece held in a vice). Then cleaned off the WD40 and applied a few drops of Break-Free (a very effective gun lubricant). After a few hours I was able to get some movement from the hinges, so although freed-up, the friction & torque to move them is still very high. Whether the screen assembly after an epoxy build-up repair would accept this torque without fracture, is another question. Must be a little mad to bother, but I guess that's why we're all still here!

 

[bavbavis]

Any updates or recommendation for a colour match for the TiBooks?

 

[1042686]

Yeah, not a perfect match but it does look much better. Nice job on the spray.

 

[California]

Following my post #9, here are the attempts to touch up the TiBook hinge covers using a small aerosol can, the cap colour of which seemed a near-perfect match.
Results whilst an improvement aesthetically, are not as good as I'd wished for.

View attachment 612438 View attachment 612440

View attachment 612439 View attachment 612441

I now plan to look around for a better matching aerosol.

Following that, I must find a solution to re-attach the screen/hinge supports (the photos show that both ends have fractured and torn away from the screen assembly).
What may possibly work is a gradual build-up of epoxy and then reform the reworked pieces to fit inside the screen assy, and epoxy in final position. Bit of a bodge-up I guess, but the alternative is to replace the screen, not only a very unpleasant task, but one which would not be cost effective, as this TiBook was a freeby.
Over the last 2 days I've had both seized hinges soaking in WD40. Even afterwards it was almost impossible to get them moving (with end-piece held in a vice). Then cleaned off the WD40 and applied a few drops of Break-Free (a very effective gun lubricant). After a few hours I was able to get some movement from the hinges, so although freed-up, the friction & torque to move them is still very high. Whether the screen assembly after an epoxy build-up repair would accept this torque without fracture, is another question. Must be a little mad to bother, but I guess that's why we're all still here!

Get a set of Pantone swatches or paint swatches from a local paint dealer and approximate the color? I did have the Tipaint back in the day... it was actually not perfect either because the tibook paint gets a lot of oxidation and color loss/color change over time. I'd go for the paint swatches and eyeball it indoors and outdoors and get the most exact match you can find.

 

[bunnspecial]

Get a set of Pantone swatches or paint swatches from a local paint dealer and approximate the color? I did have the Tipaint back in the day... it was actually not perfect either because the tibook paint gets a lot of oxidation and color loss/color change over time. I'd go for the paint swatches and eyeball it indoors and outdoors and get the most exact match you can find.

To take it one step further, a month or two back I visited an automotive paint store to get some touch-up paint for one of my cars. I have references that give the factory color code, but the problem was that every code I gave(the store sold PPG paints, but when the PPG color didn't match I started cross referencing to other makers codes) looked to be just a little bit off-both for the color on the outside of the car and the color in places like the engine bay that were likely original. With the quality control and general moral at British Leyland in 1970, it's also entirely possible that it didn't quite match the "correct" color when it was new . I knew that the car had been repainted probably 20-25 years ago. I had driven the car there, so finally I had them color match it electronically. Rather than the factory "Dark British Racing Green" it registered a near perfect match to "Jaguar Racing Green." The colors are close, but just different enough to be noticeable. They mixed up a bottle of the Jaguar paint, and it was a perfect match.

I say all of that to suggest that the best course of action might be to take the computer to a paint store and have them color match it. Virtually all paint stores these days have the equipment to do this.