Thread
My SE Restoration(Pic Heavy)
Hello everybody, I've been a longtime lurker of these forums as I dream about collecting vintage macs but I've finally made an account now that I actually have one 
So last Friday when I'm walking back to the dorms I see a compact sitting out on the curb in the snow and rain. I briskly picked it up and carried back to campus with me. Upon first inspection its an SE Superdrive with no serial number sticker. The case is pretty badly scuffed up and was bending out of the left side.
Knowing that it almost certainly wouldn't boot, I didn't even attempt to turn it on before I had the back cover off and begin disassembling the components. Things inside are incredibly dirty but it seems that everything is intact.
Analog board and power supply don't look too bad, and look theres the serial number so here's the breakdown
CRT is out and is in great physical shape, though it may still have other issues. Note that is just tape on the front and it's already been removed.
Hard drive(left) and floppy out(right). Hard drive is 20mb and looks like it might be ok, still looks to be sealed. However the floppy is almost certainly toast on account of the rust.
Now for the logic board, the underside doesn't look too bad with some evidence of mold in places
But the top side is a completely different story. Good thing is some previous owner removed the PRAM battery, but also took out whatever chip goes in the socket. If anyone knows which chip this is let me know, as I have yet to find a good diagram yet. The ports are fairly rusty and will likely need to be replaced if I can salvage this board.
So my plan is to fully restore this SE to complete functioning condition, although I am learning as I go so please let me know which things I should be checking for leaks/functionality. I've already done some preliminary cleaning of the case/chassis and CRT, though I will be going back in more detail to really make things look nice. My next step will be to start cleaning the individual components, such as the logic board. I was thinking of carefully going over the board with a vacuum to remove as much dirt as I can, then give distilled water and alcohol baths. How does this sound?
So last Friday when I'm walking back to the dorms I see a compact sitting out on the curb in the snow and rain. I briskly picked it up and carried back to campus with me. Upon first inspection its an SE Superdrive with no serial number sticker. The case is pretty badly scuffed up and was bending out of the left side.
Knowing that it almost certainly wouldn't boot, I didn't even attempt to turn it on before I had the back cover off and begin disassembling the components. Things inside are incredibly dirty but it seems that everything is intact.
Analog board and power supply don't look too bad, and look theres the serial number so here's the breakdown
CRT is out and is in great physical shape, though it may still have other issues. Note that is just tape on the front and it's already been removed.
Hard drive(left) and floppy out(right). Hard drive is 20mb and looks like it might be ok, still looks to be sealed. However the floppy is almost certainly toast on account of the rust.
Now for the logic board, the underside doesn't look too bad with some evidence of mold in places
But the top side is a completely different story. Good thing is some previous owner removed the PRAM battery, but also took out whatever chip goes in the socket. If anyone knows which chip this is let me know, as I have yet to find a good diagram yet. The ports are fairly rusty and will likely need to be replaced if I can salvage this board.
So my plan is to fully restore this SE to complete functioning condition, although I am learning as I go so please let me know which things I should be checking for leaks/functionality. I've already done some preliminary cleaning of the case/chassis and CRT, though I will be going back in more detail to really make things look nice. My next step will be to start cleaning the individual components, such as the logic board. I was thinking of carefully going over the board with a vacuum to remove as much dirt as I can, then give distilled water and alcohol baths. How does this sound?
yes, I think its great that you rescued that Mac.
maybe that floppy drive will still work, run a disk in and out of it… if the drive mechanics are sticky or jamming oil it.
i've personally never seen that much filth on a mainboard like that.
but that is ok take it to the kitchen sink spray it down with windex get the hot water rolling and used the sprayer and get all that
filth off there
I think you have a fun project on your hands there.
blow the hd off with a compressor.
Its ok the previous owner didn't appreciate it. I am sure once its working you will.
maybe that floppy drive will still work, run a disk in and out of it… if the drive mechanics are sticky or jamming oil it.
i've personally never seen that much filth on a mainboard like that.
but that is ok take it to the kitchen sink spray it down with windex get the hot water rolling and used the sprayer and get all that
filth off there
I think you have a fun project on your hands there.
blow the hd off with a compressor.
Its ok the previous owner didn't appreciate it. I am sure once its working you will.
i just noticed the board is missing the VLSI Chip there.
i wonder how the board worked with out that … maybe they had a accelerator installed?
i see the filth is all in the socket so it had to of been running, w/o out that chip in its socket.
i wonder how the board worked with out that … maybe they had a accelerator installed?
i see the filth is all in the socket so it had to of been running, w/o out that chip in its socket.
maybe it was a headless server?
yeah i bet that is it. pulled the VLSI to kill the video.
never mind i dunno. i forget all of what that VLSI chip does.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/printpage/Inside-the-Macintosh-SE/1724
yeah i bet that is it. pulled the VLSI to kill the video.
never mind i dunno. i forget all of what that VLSI chip does.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/printpage/Inside-the-Macintosh-SE/1724
Hi harryk,
Welcome on the Forum! What a great first post. I really hope you get the SE working!!
I also fixed some not working machines, but this beats them all.
Never seen a Macintosh in worst state like this.....
The SE is also one of my favorites. I has the possibilty of an expantion board. On my two SE's I have network cards, so I can connect them to Internet.
Welcome on the Forum! What a great first post. I really hope you get the SE working!!
I also fixed some not working machines, but this beats them all.
Never seen a Macintosh in worst state like this.....
The SE is also one of my favorites. I has the possibilty of an expantion board. On my two SE's I have network cards, so I can connect them to Internet.
Thanks guys 
I probably won't get around to working on it again til Friday, but for now here's a list of what I know I need to get
-Keyboard
-Mouse
-Speaker
-PRAM Battery
-The VLSI "Bob Bailey Unit" chip
-Some floppy disks
Any good sources for these parts besides ebay?
I probably won't get around to working on it again til Friday, but for now here's a list of what I know I need to get
-Keyboard
-Mouse
-Speaker
-PRAM Battery
-The VLSI "Bob Bailey Unit" chip
-Some floppy disks
Any good sources for these parts besides ebay?
Hi,
Where are you located? I might have what you need.
Please send me a Private Message for more information.
c
Where are you located? I might have what you need.
Please send me a Private Message for more information.
c
I still don't get how that could have ran with out the vlsi chip, something don't add up.
To test if system is working you don't need any of these. Only thing I'm not sure of is the VLSI chip. But maybe the headless theorie is correct.
If the system boots the floppy drive will react.Same as the harddrive. You won't see anything on your screen but it will react....
So I would clean up the motherboard and parts and test. I ounce cleaned a PowerBook motherboard in a dish washer. No problems with it after drying.
If the system boots the floppy drive will react.Same as the harddrive. You won't see anything on your screen but it will react....
So I would clean up the motherboard and parts and test. I ounce cleaned a PowerBook motherboard in a dish washer. No problems with it after drying.
Hopefully the hard drive is still functional and it can answer some questions about this computer's past. Though wouldn't it be kinda odd to use an SE as a headless unit, since the monitor is built in?
yeah I was sitting here wondering about that the whole time. I sm assuming it was parted out because the vlsi died or something. that VLSI chip is the address decoder for the entire bus the system won't run without it
yes, but the VLSI socket is just as filthy as the rest of the board.
so it looks like it must have been some how running with out it installed….
so it looks like it must have been some how running with out it installed….
Make sure you wear a mask/respirator when you blow that thing out
http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/pdf/HPS_Brochure.pdf
I'm thinking the filth may have happened after the SE's useful life. Looks like it sat in a wet barn for a while.
http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/pdf/HPS_Brochure.pdf
I'm thinking the filth may have happened after the SE's useful life. Looks like it sat in a wet barn for a while.
You do have a point. However it may have been pulled before it was stored in a harsh environment? Hell i dunno. Plug it in! LOL
i agree you should blast everything off with the air compressor.
put it back together as-is ... and plug it in and turn it on... see what she does...
put it back together as-is ... and plug it in and turn it on... see what she does...
Little Update:
Spent some time this weekend to clean the logic board and hard drive. Vacuum/compressed air did next to nothing for the logic board so I quickly moved on to washing with water and a toothbrush, followed by a good soaking in a distilled water+alcohol mix, and lastly a pure alcohol rinse and brush. It cleaned up very well, though there is still some dirt around the ports where I couldn't fit the brush, but that can be cleaned better when I will likely have to replace the ports. Disassembled the hard drive assembly to clean the board and chassis as well. Though the drive itself will squeak when the spindle is rotated, I'm guessing this is not a good sign but I have yet to open the actual drive yet and I'm not sure if I should (or at least not til after its tested).
Power supply is in the process of being cleaned. I'll see if I can get the floppy and analog board cleaned this week so next weekend can be the first test run. I've also got some parts coming courtesy of CC_333. If there are no surprises coming, it might be running within a week or two.
Spent some time this weekend to clean the logic board and hard drive. Vacuum/compressed air did next to nothing for the logic board so I quickly moved on to washing with water and a toothbrush, followed by a good soaking in a distilled water+alcohol mix, and lastly a pure alcohol rinse and brush. It cleaned up very well, though there is still some dirt around the ports where I couldn't fit the brush, but that can be cleaned better when I will likely have to replace the ports. Disassembled the hard drive assembly to clean the board and chassis as well. Though the drive itself will squeak when the spindle is rotated, I'm guessing this is not a good sign but I have yet to open the actual drive yet and I'm not sure if I should (or at least not til after its tested).
Power supply is in the process of being cleaned. I'll see if I can get the floppy and analog board cleaned this week so next weekend can be the first test run. I've also got some parts coming courtesy of CC_333. If there are no surprises coming, it might be running within a week or two.
lookin good.
Excellent job!
I hope my parts will be useful!
c
I hope my parts will be useful!
c
Wow, that cleaned up VERY nicely!
Wow - looks really good
Looks like the termination resistors of the drive have been bent, right?
I wonder if it starts up when you put all things together.
Bye,
eweri
Looks like the termination resistors of the drive have been bent, right?
I wonder if it starts up when you put all things together.
Bye,
eweri
Could you elaborate on what you mean by the "termination resistors being bent"?Wow - looks really good
I wonder if it starts up when you put all things together.
Bye,
eweri
The black things, near the interface, in the last pic, were originally standing up straight, but were bent so they are now laying down completely flat. In general, you don't want to do that to those resistors since that can snap their legs, or if you try to stand them up again, they can also snap.Could you elaborate on what you mean by the "termination resistors being bent"?Wow - looks really good
I wonder if it starts up when you put all things together.
Bye,
eweri
Thanks, I'll be more careful of thoseThe black things, near the interface, in the last pic, were originally standing up straight, but were bent so they are now laying down completely flat. In general, you don't want to do that to those resistors since that can snap their legs, or if you try to stand them up again, they can also snap.Could you elaborate on what you mean by the "termination resistors being bent"?Wow - looks really good
I wonder if it starts up when you put all things together.
Bye,
eweri
Finished cleaning the power supply and its reassembled and ready to go. Also put the hard drive back together, though I'm still skeptical that its going to work. Took the floppy mostly apart to clean but stopped after I stripped a heavily corroded screw. Not sure about the fate of the floppy since the internals are all in pretty poor shape. But for now I should be able to attempt a boot without it. Cleaned the analog board today and its in the drying process. Once its dried out I plan to reassemble for the first test. And finally, I spent the last 3 hours scrubbing away at the case with a scotch brite pad and I am actually rather surprised at how well it worked. A pretty poor case now looks fairly good.
wow it looks like new
it would be cool if it fires up and at least gives you a :?: screen.
it would be cool if it fires up and at least gives you a :?: screen.
Spent some time this morning and its all back together minus the floppy drive. Plugged it in, and prepared to flip the switch not knowing if it will magically boot up or possibly short and catch on fire. So I flip the power switch and... absolutely nothing. No sounds, no movement, no sign of life what so ever. Got out my multimeter and the power supply is not giving any output. Next step will be to disassemble the PSU again and start testing connections, though I suspect in may just be the contacts in the switch itself.
sounds like dead caps in the power supply.
Rats. It looks great all cleaned up! I'm looking forward to seeing your eventual boot-up photos.
Do you know how I can test them?
yeah if you look closely you will see the smoothing caps are leaking
Listen very closely, listen for a slight click click click, also there is a fuse in there you can check.
Listen very closely, listen for a slight click click click, also there is a fuse in there you can check.
Wow
I'm hoping it will work too, fantastic work so far.
I'm surprised how little the case is yellowed, while the apple badge has quite severe discoloration.
It cleaned up amazingly well, I hope you will get it working without too much hassle :O
Keep us updated!
It cleaned up amazingly well, I hope you will get it working without too much hassle :O
Keep us updated!
So despite my best attempts, I cannot find any obvious faults with the PSU. I can't see any visual signs of leakage though I probably washed those away. Now the plan is to replace it, so if you've got one that works and want to sell it let me know.
a) have you tried looking at the fuse?
B) your location?
B) your location?
Fuse is fine, unless there is more than one to check. I'm in Denver.
one of the se's i jsut got, had a miniscribe HD, it wouldnt spin up so i had to open the cover and rotate the spindle back and forth it was a little gooy,
anyways that was the ticket the miniscribe hd now works a whole 18.7 megs !! kinda has a cool seek noise about it
anyways that was the ticket the miniscribe hd now works
a whole 18.7 megs !! kinda has a cool seek noise about it PM sent.
c
c
This is my first post. All I can say is I'm amazed. You guys here really know your stuff. I have electronics training from the Air Force but not like the stuff you guys do.
I bought a Mac SE,1 MB RAM, 2x 800K way back when they were new. Sold it a long time ago and now getting back into it.
I have a lot of questions of you don't mind.
Within the last three weeks I bought from Craig's List and Ebay two Mac SE's.
Both have 4GB or RAM so they were upgraded from 1MB.
Both have single 800K floppies.
One has an internal Apple 50 MB HD refurbished by a guy in New Jersey named Herb Johnson, anyone know him? Found him on the web. Anyone know anyone else who does work on SE's?
I have coming from him a 1.44 floppy and a friend is selling me his board with the three 1.44 SuperDrive chips that I will remove and replace on my board, I'd use his but his battery is dead.
The other SE has an internal HD @ 30 MB.
Screens look good but both are very slightly tilted to the left but I don't want to mess with the yoke.
One also came with an 80MB external non-Apple HD which works great.
Been spending a lot of time de-yellowing an ImageWriter II, two keyboards, and mice, have pics if anyone's interested. Found many different processes but this one guy's is easiest and very fast.
Questions:
1. Both these boards have soldered batteries but one looks like it may have been replaced because on the back side the soldered joints look newer. One is 1987 and the other 1988. Will I need to replace them? They still keep time. It doesn't look too difficult, just desolder and reinstall right? Where would I get batteries?
2. I see a lot about caps, I guess they're on the other board right? The one next to the tube? Will I need to replace them?
3. On both tubes I saw what looked like black grease which cleaned up, have pics of that too. What is that stuff and how did it get there? Was right on the rubber anode cover and on the glass.
4. Any recommendations?
All I want to use one for is Comic Strip Factory, Word 5.1a, and HyperCard 1.1 as I'm running 6.0.8 and have no desire to go to SSW 7.xx.
Thanks.
Paul in Atlanta.
I bought a Mac SE,1 MB RAM, 2x 800K way back when they were new. Sold it a long time ago and now getting back into it.
I have a lot of questions of you don't mind.
Within the last three weeks I bought from Craig's List and Ebay two Mac SE's.
Both have 4GB or RAM so they were upgraded from 1MB.
Both have single 800K floppies.
One has an internal Apple 50 MB HD refurbished by a guy in New Jersey named Herb Johnson, anyone know him? Found him on the web. Anyone know anyone else who does work on SE's?
I have coming from him a 1.44 floppy and a friend is selling me his board with the three 1.44 SuperDrive chips that I will remove and replace on my board, I'd use his but his battery is dead.
The other SE has an internal HD @ 30 MB.
Screens look good but both are very slightly tilted to the left but I don't want to mess with the yoke.
One also came with an 80MB external non-Apple HD which works great.
Been spending a lot of time de-yellowing an ImageWriter II, two keyboards, and mice, have pics if anyone's interested. Found many different processes but this one guy's is easiest and very fast.
Questions:
1. Both these boards have soldered batteries but one looks like it may have been replaced because on the back side the soldered joints look newer. One is 1987 and the other 1988. Will I need to replace them? They still keep time. It doesn't look too difficult, just desolder and reinstall right? Where would I get batteries?
2. I see a lot about caps, I guess they're on the other board right? The one next to the tube? Will I need to replace them?
3. On both tubes I saw what looked like black grease which cleaned up, have pics of that too. What is that stuff and how did it get there? Was right on the rubber anode cover and on the glass.
4. Any recommendations?
All I want to use one for is Comic Strip Factory, Word 5.1a, and HyperCard 1.1 as I'm running 6.0.8 and have no desire to go to SSW 7.xx.
Thanks.
Paul in Atlanta.
Hey there Paul!
Welcome to the club !
I can at least answer some of your questions, but also take solutions of others into consideration as there are so many people here with way more experience than myself.
1.
The batteries are a bit of a difficulty, there are a few options with these:
*The older soldered ones tend to keep charge for a very long time, and are not really prone to leaking/exploding, so you can just leave them in.
*The safer option however is to just remove de-solder them, or clip the leads and just remove them.
*Third option would be soldering a battery holder to the board so it can be easily swapped out.
(I just clipped mine to be sure, and I myself don't mind setting the clock when it's been unplugged.)
2.
Caps!caps!caps!
The caps most talked about here are the logic board caps. The SE models have the older style axial caps that do not tend to leak or give much trouble.
Much worse are the SMT-style aluminium can capacitors on the newer board.
I would NOT recap your style of caps, I WOULD however cap the newer style caps in newer Macintoshes.
The caps on the analog board may also need recapping in the near future, however if you have no serious (video-)trouble and see no serious leakage, I would leave them alone for now.
The rest, I can not really help you with.
Good luck!
Welcome to the club
!I can at least answer some of your questions, but also take solutions of others into consideration as there are so many people here with way more experience than myself.
1.
The batteries are a bit of a difficulty, there are a few options with these:
*The older soldered ones tend to keep charge for a very long time, and are not really prone to leaking/exploding, so you can just leave them in.
*The safer option however is to just remove de-solder them, or clip the leads and just remove them.
*Third option would be soldering a battery holder to the board so it can be easily swapped out.
(I just clipped mine to be sure, and I myself don't mind setting the clock when it's been unplugged.)
2.
Caps!caps!caps!
The caps most talked about here are the logic board caps. The SE models have the older style axial caps that do not tend to leak or give much trouble.
Much worse are the SMT-style aluminium can capacitors on the newer board.
I would NOT recap your style of caps, I WOULD however cap the newer style caps in newer Macintoshes.
The caps on the analog board may also need recapping in the near future, however if you have no serious (video-)trouble and see no serious leakage, I would leave them alone for now.
The rest, I can not really help you with.
Good luck!
Hi Ike, thank you for the quick reply to my questions.
This is THE place to be it looks like.
This is good news to me. I appreciate it.
There is a guy here named 24bit who told me about this site. Glad I could finally join today.
This is THE place to be it looks like.
This is good news to me. I appreciate it.
There is a guy here named 24bit who told me about this site. Glad I could finally join today.
Paul,
I'd just get a new battery for your friend's board and use it. If it was originally a SuperDrive/FDHD board, it will likely have the battery holder, so you can use a generic Mac PRAM battery in it. On the 800k boards, there is someone on eBay selling a triple AA battery pack with leads for the Apple IIgs computers, which will work fine when/if the old Varta batteries do finally kick the bucket on an early SE or II/early IIx.
-J
I'd just get a new battery for your friend's board and use it. If it was originally a SuperDrive/FDHD board, it will likely have the battery holder, so you can use a generic Mac PRAM battery in it. On the 800k boards, there is someone on eBay selling a triple AA battery pack with leads for the Apple IIgs computers, which will work fine when/if the old Varta batteries do finally kick the bucket on an early SE or II/early IIx.
-J
Hi Volvo,
I think he said his was the same soldered battery and it was cut off.
Will have to wait till I see it.
Besides, I have an IC extractor coming from Ebay and it's not too difficult to remove the ROM chips right? I've done it many times in the past using a screwdriver (yikes!) but it worked.
How about this for a story.
Way back in the 80's a friend had a Mac 512 and he wanted me to upgrade his RAM.
So I got a Computer Shopper magazine, opened his cade, got the part numbers of his RAM chips and ordered some more.
Then using a piece of thin cardboard I placed each chip on top of the originals and soldered each and every leg. Took me all day but when I removed the cardboard for some cooling it worked and he never had a problem.
I wonder where that Mac is today?
I think he said his was the same soldered battery and it was cut off.
Will have to wait till I see it.
Besides, I have an IC extractor coming from Ebay and it's not too difficult to remove the ROM chips right? I've done it many times in the past using a screwdriver (yikes!) but it worked.
How about this for a story.
Way back in the 80's a friend had a Mac 512 and he wanted me to upgrade his RAM.
So I got a Computer Shopper magazine, opened his cade, got the part numbers of his RAM chips and ordered some more.
Then using a piece of thin cardboard I placed each chip on top of the originals and soldered each and every leg. Took me all day but when I removed the cardboard for some cooling it worked and he never had a problem.
I wonder where that Mac is today?
I admit it, I've had to do the small Wiha screwdriver trick... Slide it between the chip and the socket in the middle, then lift up. Ah, so his board may be a very early SE FDHD board, or an upgraded one...
-John
-John
Not sure on either, I'll have to call him.
Yeah, with the screwdriver the pucker factor can get kind of high. I'd hate to break one of these are they seem as rare as hen's teeth.
But with a real IC extractor I don't think I'll have any problems.
Gotta pull six and install three as his board will be a spare for both SE's I have.
Got an internal 1.44 floppy on order so I'll be all set.
This SE will have gone from a 1MB RAM, 2 800K floppy system to a 4 MB RAM, one 50 MB Apple internal HD with cover plate, and a HD floppy. I'm happy with that.
I wish someone would get back to my original post about some of the other questions I have.
There seem to be a LOT of technical guys on this forum. I am REALLY glad I found it.
Where is this forum located? Is it Australian? Just curious.
Yeah, with the screwdriver the pucker factor can get kind of high. I'd hate to break one of these are they seem as rare as hen's teeth.
But with a real IC extractor I don't think I'll have any problems.
Gotta pull six and install three as his board will be a spare for both SE's I have.
Got an internal 1.44 floppy on order so I'll be all set.
This SE will have gone from a 1MB RAM, 2 800K floppy system to a 4 MB RAM, one 50 MB Apple internal HD with cover plate, and a HD floppy. I'm happy with that.
I wish someone would get back to my original post about some of the other questions I have.
There seem to be a LOT of technical guys on this forum. I am REALLY glad I found it.
Where is this forum located? Is it Australian? Just curious.
The admin is based in Arizona. It's just a global community. I and a few other members are based in the Seattle area. Then there are a few members in California, Oregon, Iowa, Maine, New Jersey, Michigan, Florida, etc... Plus a few members in Europe, Asia, Australia...
-J
-J
That's cool. Looks like there's a lot of old Mac fans out there. There's something about the Mac SE, they were from a simpler time I think. I remember my original and what I paid for it. I remember being a sysop in Idaho. That was fun. I miss the days of BBS's. I have a third party modem and there is even some modem software on the SE so I was thinking about seeing if I cna still log in to a BBS. I know there's still some out there. I used to know all those command codes. Those were the days!