Fixing Vinegar Syndrome on a PB 540c

[TheBasement]

Hey all, I was inspired by @Ron's Computer Videos to have a go at fixing the vinegar syndrome lcd screen on a rather crusty PowerBook 540c.
The process was made a bit more complex by the addition of industrial amounts of corrosion.
Thankfully I had a 520c parts machine that was able to donate a few bits and pieces to make the 540c factory fresh again.
Here’s the video of the journey.

 

[Daniel Hansen]

That's a clever solution for the annoying glue on the polarizer --- how does the display compare now the to the other 540c?

 

[TheBasement]

That's a clever solution for the annoying glue on the polarizer --- how does the display compare now the to the other 540c?

The off axis view angles are worse due to the gap between the polariser and lcd, and the display is glossier but that’s due to the semi gloss polariser I ordered. Next time I’ll buy matt. Sticking it to the panel would really be the best solution but I couldn’t figure out a way to do it without all the weird glue halos. When the display is on and viewed straight on, there’s no discernible difference.

 

[croissantking]

This is a brilliant effort and I enjoyed your video. I have a PB 180 that I’d like to replace the polariser film on as it got damaged during baking to resolve the tunnelling issue. I hope we can find a method for sticking these down reliably in future .

 

[croissantking]

Also, my 540c came with the same hard drive that has the same issue with stiction, it even makes exactly the same ‘stuck’ noise as yours. While watching your video I was begging for you to find that all it needed was a tap to get going, and then you did just that!

 

[techknight]

The off axis view angles are worse due to the gap between the polariser and lcd, and the display is glossier but that’s due to the semi gloss polariser I ordered. Next time I’ll buy matt. Sticking it to the panel would really be the best solution but I couldn’t figure out a way to do it without all the weird glue halos. When the display is on and viewed straight on, there’s no discernible difference.

I just did a toshiba T1000 LCD and ran into the same problem with the bubbles. To fix it, you need an applicator fluid, the type of stuff used for laying down vinyl graphics for large format printing.

But you gotta remove the panel away from the backlight assembly, lay it down on a table and just soak it in applicator fluid. Get the film down and squeegie it all out of there. Sometimes you may even need a little bit of heat.

Then, itll be perfect.

 

[TheBasement]

Good to know. I tried using different fluids on some test pieces and windex sort of worked but the film kept lifting up again. I actually reached out to the supplier and asked about the method to stick it down and they just told me to go watch more YouTube videos.

 

[techknight]

Good to know. I tried using different fluids on some test pieces and windex sort of worked but the film kept lifting up again. I actually reached out to the supplier and asked about the method to stick it down and they just told me to go watch more YouTube videos.

Yup, this is why for example with window tinting (similar adhesives) you have to use an applicator fluid, and heat to get it to work along with a squeegie (credit card or etc) to get the bubbles out and work them out while its still semi fluid. or it wont work. There are various formulations like a mix of alcohol and baby shampoo, or dawn, or etc.

But also, if you already peeled it up and trying again, its ruined. you cant re-stick it down like that after its peeled or it just keeps curling up. Ive gotten that situation to work but it looks nasty post-facto. Also peeling will create a static electric charge which attracts dirt and debris. debris on the LCD surface wont hurt becuase the fluid will push it away. but if it gets on the film prior to application, thats a problem.

You have to do the application fluid and heatgun method on a fresh peice while using the squeegie to get the fluid, bubbles, and debris out and the heat allows it to conform and dry the fluid. The fluid has to be the right alcohol mix so it dries with heat as you are working it down with the squeegie without ruining the plastic film by distorting it, etc... Its a juggling act. Takes practice.

 

[starlite]

I saw your T1000 video that you had up on your twitter and saw what a pain that was to fix - man. Just another thing that's gonna make laptops harder to collect in the future. We're all gonna eventually need to get good at doing these repairs or we're screwed. Given enough time, storage conditions aren't gonna matter, right? They're all gonna go bad.

I'm lucky. I have dozens of laptops and none of mine have gotten VS yet.

 

[techknight]

Yeah exactly! and that was my first attempt. even did a video on it. I went back and ended up redoing it.

 

[Scott]

For those who have done this repair...does anyone want to do one for me? I have an iBook G3 (clamshell) developing this and would love to have someone give me a hand with it!!