adamus@remus.rutgers.edu (Sharon Adamus Caraballo) (04/02/91)
My C128 keyboard has been dying for a long time, but it has finally met its end. I could live without the left shift key, but when the spacebar gets flaky and the letter i refuses to type, that's it. Anyway, I need a new one. Immediately. Anyone want to sell one? I just need the keyboard, but I'm willing to buy the whole unit. Note: I'm talking about the older 128, not the 128D. Also, I have two 1541 disk drives for sale. One is like new. The other is fairly old, but it works perfectly, and is permanently wired as drive 9. Make me an offer. Please respond via email: sharon@demon.siemens.com or adamus@remus.rutgers.edu If you prefer, you can call me at 609-734-3654. Thanks, Sharon
rknop@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Robert Andrew Knop) (04/02/91)
adamus@remus.rutgers.edu (Sharon Adamus Caraballo) writes: >My C128 keyboard has been dying for a long time, but it has finally >met its end. I could live without the left shift key, but when the >spacebar gets flaky and the letter i refuses to type, that's it. >Anyway, I need a new one. Immediately. Anyone want to sell one? I >just need the keyboard, but I'm willing to buy the whole unit. Note: >I'm talking about the older 128, not the 128D. Before you spend the likely $60 to get a new keyboard unit, try cleaning your keyboard. I had my A key die, and called around looking for a new keyboard unit, and they were ridiculously expensive. Eventually I found a guy who said that the problem is often dirty contacts. To do this, first take your 128 out of its case- remove the five screws from the bottom and pop it open. Disconnect the keyboard from the main circut board (pull out the n-wire cable). Remove the large number of small phillips head screws from the back of the actual keyboard unit. At this point, you will need to either de-solder the three "sticky" keys (shift lock, 40/80 col, and caps lock), or figure a way of bending them through their holes. Then you can remove the back board from the keys. On the back board, you will see a whole load of contacts. The keys make their electrical contact by connecting the two open spots on the circut board with a piece of graphite, which is on what is known as a "key stem" or "key plunger." (This will make sense if you take the keyboard apart and look at these pieces I'm talking about.) What you need to do is clean the contacts on the circut board. A good first order way to do this is just "erase" all of them with the back end of a pencil. That's what I did, and got my A key working again. If you need to go farther, you can clean it with alcohol and a tissue (just make sure it's dry before putting the 128 back together). Does this make sense? Try taking your 128 apart and looking, and if it still doesn't make sense, ask me to say more. -Rob Knop rknop@tybalt.caltech.edu
XWUU@PURCCVM.BITNET (04/02/91)
While is it "usually OK" to use an eraser to clean contacts, you should be aware that most erasers contain a weak acid as part of their chemical base. It is part of the stuff that holds the synthetic "rubber" together. This acid can accelerate the wear and tear on your contacts and may lead to premature corrosion. Also, most alcohol from the drug store is "OK," but make sure you get a bottle that is only isopropyl alcohol and water; the higher the %alcohol, the better. Some manufacturers put in a dab of glycerine to help prevent the drying of the skin, but this leaves a film on the contacts and prevents proper drying of the alcohol after cleaning. Kirk A. Janowiak XWUU@PURCCVM
cs4344af@evax.arl.utexas.edu (Fuzzy Fox) (04/02/91)
In article <1991Apr1.193121.18966@nntp-server.caltech.edu> rknop@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Robert Andrew Knop) writes: > >Before you spend the likely $60 to get a new keyboard unit, try cleaning your >keyboard. I had my A key die, and called around looking for a new keyboard >unit, and they were ridiculously expensive. Eventually I found a guy who >said that the problem is often dirty contacts. Unfortunately, this is usually not the problem, at least in my experience. The reason that keys have died on me is because the contacts underneath have become so flattened or worn out that they will simply not conduct electricity anymore. My other 128 still has this problem, despite cleanings. If anyone finds a source of cheap 128 keyboars, I would like to know. -- David DeSimone, aka "Fuzzy Fox" on some networks. /!/! INET: an207@cleveland.freenet.edu / .. Q-Link: Fuzzy Fox / --* Quote: "Foxes are people too! And vice versa." / ---
rknop@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Robert Andrew Knop) (04/03/91)
cs4344af@evax.arl.utexas.edu (Fuzzy Fox) writes: > The reason that keys have died on me is because the >contacts underneath have become so flattened or worn out that they will >simply not conduct electricity anymore. My other 128 still has this >problem, despite cleanings. If anyone finds a source of cheap 128 >keyboars, I would like to know. In this case, you can replace the key stems- which will be cheaper then getting a new keyboard. Or, of you do get a new keyboard, keep the old one around, for parts- so that if key stems die in your new one, you can replace them with sill working key stems from the old one. -Rob Knop rknop@tybalt.caltech.edu