Compaq Portable III disassembly

[USSEnterprise]

I picked up a Portable III at a flea market today, which seems to have a power supply problem. I've been trying to get the supply out to have a closer look, but I haven't the slightest idea how. I removed the back cover, the main board, monitor board, and the drives. How does the power supply come out?

 

[FishFinger]

There are some screws behind the screen. You can reach to bottom two if you tilt the screen all the way up. The top two you might need to loosen the screen to reach unless you have an angled screwdriver.



The HP website doesn't have a service manual for the III, but it does have one for the Portable 386, which is virtually identical case-wise.

 

[nige the hippy]

And you need "Torx" drivers

 

[Bobthearch]

Just a few weeks ago someone posted on here about Portable III hard drive model numbers. So I opened mine up and checked (even though the OP never posted again...). Anyway, I don't recall it being that difficult to access the drives. Not sure about the PSU though...

http://www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum/showthread.php?t=17501

Loosen some screws and most of the internals pull out of the cage from the end. The real chore was getting the cage back in - this one seemed bent or tweaked and didn't re-insert smoothly.

I think I opened 'er up one other time too, years ago, to replace the 5.25" floppy drive with a 3.5".

Regarding the torx screws, T15 is the size you'll need. If you don't have a screwdriver set, Craftsman has a decent inexpensive package that includes a Torx selection too. Keep your eyes open over the holidays; they're often on sale.

http://www.craftsman.com/shc/s/p_10155_12602_00946502000P?keyword=screwdrivers