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Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

T20-T23 Series and T30. NOT for T25-Retro.
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cadillacmike68
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Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#1 Post by cadillacmike68 » Thu Nov 03, 2011 9:12 am

Well I really d!cked this one up... Murphy's law is alive and well :x

I got some new CR2032s to slide in to the tabs on my T series that have dead CMOS batteries (3 or 4 machines).

First, those tabs are welded on with the strength of hercules! I didn't break the wires off, but i did manage to pull the whole contraption out of the tiny socket on the machine.

After i finally got the tabs off and taped back to the new battery, i attempted to re-attach the tiny white tab to the nearly hidden connector. I think i got it lined up and pushed the back of the connector against the receptacle with a flat blade screwdriver. What was Murphy's law on this ? -

"If it jams, force it, if it breaks it needed replacing anyway"

Well, I broke of the little white receptacle and it's rattling around inside the machine. :(

It still boots, but if I power it off it will reset to dafaults in the BIOS and will need date / time updated. That's not too bad, but I'm also concerned that if I put a POPW or Supervisor PW, it might Fubar the BIOS.

Is this fixable if i can get the machine apart? darn engineers :twisted:
600 600X
760LD FUBARd
T21 2647 T22 2647 1@ 1GHz SXGA+ 4 more; T23 2647 1@ 1.2GHz SXGA+ 3 more
T30 2366-88U 2GHz; 2366-83U 1.8G; 5@ 2366-LU0/66U; 2367-KU6 FUBARd
T41 T42 T43
T60 T61 8897 2.4GHz SXGA+; 8898 2.4Ghz; 6463 2@ WSXGA+; 7658 2.5GHz; T61p; 6 more T61s
T500 2
T530 W530

RealBlackStuff
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Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#2 Post by RealBlackStuff » Thu Nov 03, 2011 11:01 am

Yes, the connectors from e.g. T20/T21/T22/T23 are identical.
You can solder the replacement connector back onto the mobo (needs full dismantling).
Lovely day for a Guinness! (The Real Black Stuff)
Lenovo: X240, X250, T440p, T480, M900 Tiny.

PS: the old Boardroom website is still available on the Wayback Machine
.

cadillacmike68
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Posts: 1494
Joined: Fri May 27, 2011 9:19 pm
Location: Florida

Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#3 Post by cadillacmike68 » Thu Nov 03, 2011 11:34 am

Thanks,

Do you have any hints for getting the battery's little white connector back on to the mobo connector without breaking off the next one???
600 600X
760LD FUBARd
T21 2647 T22 2647 1@ 1GHz SXGA+ 4 more; T23 2647 1@ 1.2GHz SXGA+ 3 more
T30 2366-88U 2GHz; 2366-83U 1.8G; 5@ 2366-LU0/66U; 2367-KU6 FUBARd
T41 T42 T43
T60 T61 8897 2.4GHz SXGA+; 8898 2.4Ghz; 6463 2@ WSXGA+; 7658 2.5GHz; T61p; 6 more T61s
T500 2
T530 W530

RealBlackStuff
Admin Emeritus
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Posts: 23809
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:17 am
Location: Loch Garman, Éire

Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#4 Post by RealBlackStuff » Thu Nov 03, 2011 5:09 pm

Bend the battery cable in a 90 degree angle immediately before the plug.
Then use thin pointed tweezers to hold the cables with the plug in the correct position over the socket and gently push it down.
Use a small flat screwdriver to put it down all the way.
Worked for me when I had my T30 machines.
Lovely day for a Guinness! (The Real Black Stuff)
Lenovo: X240, X250, T440p, T480, M900 Tiny.

PS: the old Boardroom website is still available on the Wayback Machine
.

cadillacmike68
ThinkPadder
ThinkPadder
Posts: 1494
Joined: Fri May 27, 2011 9:19 pm
Location: Florida

Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#5 Post by cadillacmike68 » Mon Nov 07, 2011 9:45 am

Well it looks like i'll be taking this one apart soon, because every time i remove the power cord, the BIOS loses it's settings and it goes to setup defaults.

And that blows off the no-1802 BIOS update, which blows off my Intel 2200BG WiFi card, so i effectively can't use those cards until i get the CMOS connector re-soldered.

Can i use the same connector that i broke off (it's rattling around in the laptop!) or do i need to buy or use a different one (from say a T21)??

I guess i'll have to use less force next time i try to connect one of these.
600 600X
760LD FUBARd
T21 2647 T22 2647 1@ 1GHz SXGA+ 4 more; T23 2647 1@ 1.2GHz SXGA+ 3 more
T30 2366-88U 2GHz; 2366-83U 1.8G; 5@ 2366-LU0/66U; 2367-KU6 FUBARd
T41 T42 T43
T60 T61 8897 2.4GHz SXGA+; 8898 2.4Ghz; 6463 2@ WSXGA+; 7658 2.5GHz; T61p; 6 more T61s
T500 2
T530 W530

RealBlackStuff
Admin Emeritus
Admin Emeritus
Posts: 23809
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:17 am
Location: Loch Garman, Éire

Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#6 Post by RealBlackStuff » Mon Nov 07, 2011 10:00 am

If all the bits are still there, you should be able to resolder the old one back.
I soldered a T23 CMOS connector onto a 701c mobo, on which the old connector had corroded away, worked perfectly.
Lovely day for a Guinness! (The Real Black Stuff)
Lenovo: X240, X250, T440p, T480, M900 Tiny.

PS: the old Boardroom website is still available on the Wayback Machine
.

cadillacmike68
ThinkPadder
ThinkPadder
Posts: 1494
Joined: Fri May 27, 2011 9:19 pm
Location: Florida

Re: Broke off the CMOS battery connector in one of my T30s

#7 Post by cadillacmike68 » Mon Nov 07, 2011 11:15 am

I'm going to see if i can persuade someone in my G6 to do it. They have the tiny solder guns, and better eyes & steadier hands!
600 600X
760LD FUBARd
T21 2647 T22 2647 1@ 1GHz SXGA+ 4 more; T23 2647 1@ 1.2GHz SXGA+ 3 more
T30 2366-88U 2GHz; 2366-83U 1.8G; 5@ 2366-LU0/66U; 2367-KU6 FUBARd
T41 T42 T43
T60 T61 8897 2.4GHz SXGA+; 8898 2.4Ghz; 6463 2@ WSXGA+; 7658 2.5GHz; T61p; 6 more T61s
T500 2
T530 W530

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