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Replacing the screen of a Compaq Portable 486c

See post #17, the one there is the right one because if you read the text correctly it will be the one on the right. And if yours doesn't have that sticker under the feet, you can at least see how it should look.
 
Hi LCARS,

A friend printed the foot for me and it works very well! Thanks for making the model and sharing it. If anyone wants to see how it looks and works, I took a video of me installing it, and one showing it in action. https://photos.app.goo.gl/v2kGqzEkqhv37ZuN8
while the color isn't perfect, it's close enough that it just looks a little yellowed instead of a full on modern replacement. :) And this finally made me get my own 3d printer - that stuff is awesome!

Cheers
mikerofone
 
mikerofone said:
Hi LCARS,

A friend printed the foot for me and it works very well! Thanks for making the model and sharing it. If anyone wants to see how it looks and works, I took a video of me installing it, and one showing it in action. https://photos.app.goo.gl/v2kGqzEkqhv37ZuN8
while the color isn't perfect, it's close enough that it just looks a little yellowed instead of a full on modern replacement. :) And this finally made me get my own 3d printer - that stuff is awesome!

Cheers
mikerofone
Click to expand...
Very cool to see! How did you manage to click it in? (I even wonder how they did it when it was manufactured, did a lot break?) I would suggest to sand the outside with sandpaper. (first a coarse one to remove the 'steps' and then with a fine grit to get it a bit smooth.) Then paint it in the correct color. (You can get the correct color if you go to a (car)paint specialist store)
 
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Thanks! :) It clicked in easily, but I forgot how exactly I did it. It actually pops out if I flip it down while it's moved fully to one side - I forgot which. Moving it to the other side it's quite solid though!
I left it as is, since I didn't have good sand paper nor any colors. It's not perfect, but I was only going for "functional" anyways. ;)

Thanks again for making the model! By now, I have my own 3D printer, and hope to be able to contribute similar designs to the community in the future. So far, I've been mostly printing non-computery parts, but eventually I'll come back to the original idea that made me buy it, and use it to fix broken computer plastics!
 
Very cool, next thing I would like to design and print is the door/flap over the ports on the side of the 486, a lot of the 486's I come across don't have that anymore.

Klep.PNG

This is how far I currently am.

Here's an image of the original one that I borrowed from a friend to take measurements:
Klep2.PNG
 
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Mine still has the flap, so let me know if you don't have access to one. I could take some measurements and photos if needed.
 
I have a Portable 486c with a dead LCD, as well, and I’m going to attempt the replacement with a different LCD, the Mitsubishi AA104VH01.

I’ve just ordered the parts, so I’ll update the thread when my LCD arrives.

- Alex
 
ajacocks said:
I have a Portable 486c with a dead LCD, as well, and I’m going to attempt the replacement with a different LCD, the Mitsubishi AA104VH01.

I’ve just ordered the parts, so I’ll update the thread when my LCD arrives.

- Alex
Click to expand...
Just wanted to mention that I've had good luck with just recapping the original LCD's on a couple of these. So that might be worth the try for just a few cents.
Colours look really good after a recap and some tweaking of the pots, also the ghosting is almost completely gone.
 
Vinpaq said:
Very cool, next thing I would like to design and print is the door/flap over the ports on the side of the 486, a lot of the 486's I come across don't have that anymore.

View attachment 1238332

This is how far I currently am.

Here's an image of the original one that I borrowed from a friend to take measurements:
View attachment 1238333
Click to expand...

Did you successfully 3D print this back cover?
 
Vinpaq said:
Very cool, next thing I would like to design and print is the door/flap over the ports on the side of the 486, a lot of the 486's I come across don't have that anymore.

View attachment 1238332

This is how far I currently am.

Here's an image of the original one that I borrowed from a friend to take measurements:
View attachment 1238333
Click to expand...
do you have the STL files, or the measurements for it? I got a network sniffer without the side slot cover. I'm attempting to repair the backlight assembly as one of the fluorescent tubes exploded. I bought slightly shorter ones for it, and hopefully they work. The original fluorescent lights are 10in long but I got 9in ones instead. I can probably 3d print extendo end caps for the bulbs to hold them in place better, but for right now hot glue will have to do. Also wish me luck for the Fluorescent bulbs, there's no specification for what replacements you should get, so hopefully these ones don't explode.
 
CompaqSniffer said:
do you have the STL files, or the measurements for it? I got a network sniffer without the side slot cover. I'm attempting to repair the backlight assembly as one of the fluorescent tubes exploded. I bought slightly shorter ones for it, and hopefully they work. The original fluorescent lights are 10in long but I got 9in ones instead. I can probably 3d print extendo end caps for the bulbs to hold them in place better, but for right now hot glue will have to do. Also wish me luck for the Fluorescent bulbs, there's no specification for what replacements you should get, so hopefully these ones don't explode.
Click to expand...

I'm curious if they will fit, please update me, thanks!
 
hagelaars said:
I'm curious if they will fit, please update me, thanks!
Click to expand...
They didn't fit, they were too thick. I got bulbs from a hardware store similar to the Amazon ones. They worked until I screwed the screen on. They were too thick and cracked the screen. My suggestion is that you use LED strips instead. You could disconnect the high-voltage part on the inverter board on the front, and connect the LEDs to the 12v on the inverter board. Here's a picture of what happened:
IMG_20250125_040048_HDR.jpg
You can also see that 9 inch tubes weren't long enough, there's dark spots at the edge of the screen.
 
CompaqSniffer said:
They didn't fit, they were too thick. I got bulbs from a hardware store similar to the Amazon ones. They worked until I screwed the screen on. They were too thick and cracked the screen. My suggestion is that you use LED strips instead. You could disconnect the high-voltage part on the inverter board on the front, and connect the LEDs to the 12v on the inverter board. Here's a picture of what happened:
View attachment 1295991
You can also see that 9 inch tubes weren't long enough, there's dark spots at the edge of the screen.
Click to expand...
Oh that's a pity!! What a shame. Now I feel sorry for you. But thanks much for updating me instead.

I also considered to use LED-strips earlier. But that brings another question; how bright do they have to be/ how much lumen will be enough for this? Who can tell..
 
hagelaars said:
Oh that's a pity!! What a shame. Now I feel sorry for you. But thanks much for updating me instead.

I also considered to use LED-strips earlier. But that brings another question; how bright do they have to be/ how much lumen will be enough for this? Who can tell..
Click to expand...
They probably won't have to be too bright, the bulbs I got were slightly dimmer than the originals, so I'll send you what bulbs are got, and I would probably get LEDs that are slightly brighter than the bulbs I got
 
Paralel said:
According to my calculation based on the information on the box, An F6T5 6W G5 4100k 9" Frosted CCFL would be~260 lumens, +/- ~5%.
Click to expand...
how did you do those calculations? I wouldn't even know where to start. I guess If you get that brightness or a little higher it should be good.
 
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