Equipment

[kagman]

Careful now, don't overload them in one day. Maybe we need to make a Multimeter 101 post with short lessons.

That would be great guys... I mean it...

Hey, keeperofthecode, thanks for the short info..

 

[NYJimbo]

I would be dead without my multimeters. From the very basic stuff like checking a customers AC adapter to looking for voltages or continuity on the motherboards, I must spend 30 minutes a day or more with one of those meters in my hand.

Just this morning I was trying to find the fault on a DV1000 motherboard and it turns out the CMOS battery holder solder point on one side was broken off. There is a cable that raps half way around it and it was tight, if you flex the chassis a little it strains the surface mount point and in this case snapped it off. It looked fine from a few inches away but there was no voltage coming from the cmos. Pressing it down made it work again, so I just resoldered the holder to the mobo and relocated the wire and VOILA, working machine again.

 

[vdub12]

I don't use mine that often but when you need it you need it. I use it mostly for testing power supplies. I have a power supply tester to but I have found that its unreliable. I have seen power supplies pass the power supply tester then fail the multimeter.

 

[sjlplat]

I would be dead without my multimeters. From the very basic stuff like checking a customers AC adapter to looking for voltages or continuity on the motherboards, I must spend 30 minutes a day or more with one of those meters in my hand.

Just this morning I was trying to find the fault on a DV1000 motherboard and it turns out the CMOS battery holder solder point on one side was broken off. There is a cable that raps half way around it and it was tight, if you flex the chassis a little it strains the surface mount point and in this case snapped it off. It looked fine from a few inches away but there was no voltage coming from the cmos. Pressing it down made it work again, so I just resoldered the holder to the mobo and relocated the wire and VOILA, working machine again.

Jimbo, I think you're a very talented and well-rounded tech, and I really value your input on a wide variety of topics. You do a lot of things that I simply can't see myself doing. Generally I'll call a module dead and replace it. I don't have the knowledge or skillset to perform these kinds of repairs, but when I read about some of the things you do, it's encouraging to know there are some alternative approaches when you have established a certain skillset.

 

[coreyspeed]

i feel that all computer techs should have at least a basic knowledge on how to solder, espically if you are repair motherboards and laptops. laptop boards solder issues are so common

 

[Styxbound]

Vom

I've learned something here_ didn't know you could do repair without a vom. I'd feel like I'd lost an arm without one. For me if it involves electricity I need the meter. Computers, household appliances, power tools, automobiles....

 

[sjlplat]

i feel that all computer techs should have at least a basic knowledge on how to solder, espically if you are repair motherboards and laptops. laptop boards solder issues are so common

Basic soldering knowledge doesn't make a person capable of soldering a lot of the small components found in laptops.

 

[NYJimbo]

Basic soldering knowledge doesn't make a person capable of soldering a lot of the small components found in laptops.

+10

If you work on laptop motherboards you have to get in real small. I am now comfortable with things like power regulators, BIOS chips, tiny ceramic capacitors and resistors but it took months to get there. You need several kinds of soldering irons, including a real precision soldering iron, several kinds of magnifiers and light sources and know the tricks to dealing with really fast surface contact work.

Anybody can do it, honestly, but you have to put in alot of time and spend some money buying the gear.

The reward for this effort is out there, trust me.

 

[sjlplat]

+10

If you work on laptop motherboards you have to get in real small. I am now comfortable with things like power regulators, BIOS chips, tiny ceramic capacitors and resistors but it took months to get there. You need several kinds of soldering irons, including a real precision soldering iron, several kinds of magnifiers and light sources and know the tricks to dealing with really fast surface contact work.

Anybody can do it, honestly, but you have to put in alot of time and spend some money buying the gear.

The reward for this effort is out there, trust me.

It's a lot like welding in that aspect. I can weld about as good as I can solder. I know the basics, I have the equipment, and I can stick a couple pieces of steel together; but I wouldn't trust my welds on a car that's going to be driven on the interstate.

I've been looking into buying some good soldering equipment. Once I accumulate some old boards to practice on, I'll start working on my skills.

 

[keeperofthecode]

I'm fortunate that I have a tech that is master at soldering. I have a great soldering station that includes a soldering iron, desoldering iron and a scope for the real small stuff. The soldering iron station is about a $500 dollar one but I lucked in on it on ebay broken for $100 and fixed it with about $20 worth of parts and the scope we paid like $400 for new. It was one of the best investments I probably ever made except for maybe my 2 user, 8 system KVM. They all pretty much paid for themselves thousands of times thanks to my employee that specializes in component level repairs.