[ltp] Re: tp600e cs4232

[Richard Neill]

Charles E Taylor IV wrote:
> On Thu, 5 Jun 2003 19:34:26 +0200 (DFT)
> Fekete Gabor <feketga@delfin.klte.hu> wrote:
> 
>>other: the original battery is cr20something and the one i can buy is
>>cr2032. do you think it would work?

All the CR20xxx batteries are 3 volt lithium coin cells. (The CR is a 
manuafacturer code - you may be able to get equivalents). The 
differences are usually in the physical size: more volume => more 
capacity i.e. more milli-amp-hours (mAh). So if it fits, it's OK.
[Do double check the voltage and polarity, though - it's marked on the cell]

As for soldering to batteries - don't overheat it, but you can do it if 
you're cautious:
*Do one wire, then let the cell cool down before doing the other.
*Pre-tin the wire with solder, then you can just press it into place 
with the hot iron. Use something like masking tape to hold it still so 
that the joint doesn't jiggle as it cools.
*Use a decent soldering iron - about 25 Watt - you want to heat the 
locality of the joint up rapidly so that you can remove the iron fast.
*Wipe the cell clean first.
*Use proper (flux core, not acid core) solder.
*Double check the polarity(!)

If you're still wary, you can probably get a repair part from IBM.

------

BTW, I replaced the dodgy power connector on a thinkpad 760 last 
weekend. It worked :-) But I had no idea that there were so many screws 
in a laptop - I had to take it apart down to the last circuit board to 
get to it! Those weird 4-pin power connectors actually only carry 2 
connections....

Richard

> 
> 
> I had to make an "emergency" repair on a Thinkpad 600 with a dead battery.
>  I cut off the yellow plastic, removed the wires from the dead battery
> (using a jeweler's screwdriver to pry the little metal contact plates
> from the old battery, and hooked them to the new battery with a
> little heatshrink tubing.  You could probably get a better connection with
> a bit of solder, but you want to avoid getting the battery TOO hot. 
> Plus, I didn't have a soldering iron handy anyway...
> 
> This was a few months ago, and the laptop's worked fine since.  I had to
> do this because the Thinkpad wouldn't even BOOT with the dead battery and
> I needed to get at some stuff on the machine RIGHT THEN.
> 
> Needless to say, this probably voids the h*ll out of your warranty. :)
>