Powerbook G3 Pismo (2000) Firewire Repair Manual
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This manual is presented as a guide in order to help you repair problems on yourpowerbook. Working on a powerbook can be dangerous if not done properly. We atPowerbookmedic.com take no responsibility for any damage or harm done to yourself or
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Identifying the Pismo Powerbook
If the writing under your display only has the word “Powerbook” as shown, then you
have a Pismo.

The design of the rear ports is as in the picture below. Note the two Firewire andUSB ports. Of all the G3 powerbooks, only the Pismo G3 has firewire ports.

Identification of Parts

Display / TFT / Screen

Logic / Motherboard

Heat Sync /Transfer
Processor /Daughter Board

Heat Shield
Power / Charger Board

Sound / AC Board

Required Tools
Torx T8 Screwdriver – available from www.powerbookmedic.com

Flathead Screwdriver & or Philips Head ScrewdriverKeyboard and Processor Removal

Pull the two keyboard tabs
back and flip the keyboard
back. (Flip back thekeyboard while pressing in
the two tabs. The picture
only shows the left hand tab
being pulled back.)

Grab the keyboard ribbon
cable with thumb andforefinger, and gently
wiggle from side to side toundo it from its
motherboard connector.

Remove the three Philips
screws as shown. (Note thatthe one on the far left islonger and will take moretime to remove than the othertwo.)

Using a torx T8 screwdriver(available fromwww.powerbookmedic.com)
remove the two screws fromthe processor as shown.
(Replacement note: Don’t get
the two torx screws confusedwith the Philips screws in theprevious step.)

The processor heat shieldshould now be removed. If it
is difficult to remove, use aflathead screwdriver togently pry it up as shown.

Processor Removal

To remove the processor, put
the flathead screwdriver on
the right hand side of theprocessor as shown. Thengently pry up until theprocessor pops out. *Do not
use too much pressure. If theprocessor does not easily
come out, simply try anotherlocation in the bottom righthand corner. It should be
relatively easy to pop out.

Remove the processor as
shown, and place on a static
free surface.

Ram Replacement
Note – To change the ram in
the upper slot you do notneed to remove theprocessor. You only need tofor the bottom slot.
Using either a flat headscrewdriver or yourfingernail, pry back the metal
fasteners holding in the ram
as shown. Do this on eachside. It’s easier if you dothem at the same time. To
install new ram, align thegrooves, slide in, and pushdown.

Hard Drive Removal & Replacement

Using your thumb and forefinger,
grab the orange cable as shown in
the picture, and gently wiggle backand forth until the cable is loose.
You should now be able to pull thehard drive out using the plastic tab.

*Note: If the hard drive does notcome out easily, then the hard
drive sled may be holding it in on
the back near the power button. If
this is the case, use a flatheadscrewdriver as shown to pull thecage towards you while liftingfrom the plastic tab. The hard driveand cage should now come out.

Remove the four black Torx
screws (2 on each side) with yourTorx T8 Screwdriver.

Then remove the hard drive cableand hard drive from the hard drive
sled. You must now remove theorange cable going to the harddrive. To do this, grab the cable asshown, and gently pull straight up.
Note: If you use too much force or
do not pull straight up, then you
will bend some of the pins and will
have to straighten them with aflathead screwdriver later.

Screen Removal and Replacement

Tilt the display back, and pull thepower button clutch cover
upwards. (This can sometimes takea lot of force. The more tilted thedisplay, the easier it is to take off.)

Using your Torx T8 screwdriver,remove the four flathead torx
screws on the back of the unit asshown. (Replacement Note: Thesefour screws have flat heads, not therounded heads like the other torx
screws, do not get them confused.)Now, remove the round torx screw
next to the ribbon cable as shown.

Using your thumb and forefinger,
grab the inverter board as shown,and gently push it towards thedisplay and up. It will snap rightout with ease. Do this on the left
hand and right hand sides of theinverter. There are two snaps. Grab
the cable from the inverter asshown, and in a gentle wiggling
motion, remove the cable from its
connector.

Then, grabbing the orange cable asshown, remove it from its
connector. Repeat for the multicolored inverter cable.

Now, pull the display back up so it
is perfectly vertical. Place yourhands on the right hand and left
hand side of the monitor, and lift
the display out of the casing.

Display Disassembly
Skip this section if you are repairing something other than the display!
To begin, there are six screws thatneed to be removed from the front of
the display. These screws are locatedat the positions shown in red. Notethat at each of these locations there
is a screw covering that must first be
removed to get to the screws. The
top four screws have a rubber
stopper, and the bottom two screws
have a very thin plastic covering.

Begin by removing the screw
coverings. This is done by getting aflat head tool (such a flatheadscrewdriver or plastic nylon tool)and prying up from the sides of thecoverings as shown. They shouldcome out easily.

Be careful with the bottom twocoverings. These are very flimsy andeasily damaged. (If damaged, it is only
a cosmetic issue.)Now, remove the 6 philip head screws
located at the 6 positions under thescrew coverings.
With the screws removed, you canremove the back lid of the display.

Start at a bottom corner, and pull theback lid apart from the top lid. You
will have to use a little force to pullthe back lid off. You may also need tostart off by prying the two pieces apartwith a flathead screwdriver or nylon
tool if you are having a great deal oftrouble.

Put the back lid aside.

Right Hinge
The right hinge is simple to replace.
First remove the 4 philips head screws inthe positions shown.

Pull the display apart from the front
bezel two reveal two torx T8 screws.
Remove these.

The hinge will come out easily.

First remove the two silver Philips headscrews on the metal piece that the airport
cable runs to. (You need to remove these
now or they will be very difficult toremove later. (If only replacing thedisplay cable, you don’t need to remove
these screws!)

Remove the 4 philips head screws in thepositions shown.

Pull the display apart from the front bezel
two reveal two torx T8 screws. Removethese.

You need to remove the display cablefrom the hinge to replace the hinge. Beginby finding a strip of orange tape in thelocation shown.

Pull this strip of tape around and around
until it comes off of the hinge.

Unwrap the cable from the hinge bypulling the cable towards you and thenunder the hinge.

Pull the cable off the hinge, and the hinge
will be free to replace, or you can continue
to remove the display cable and LCD.

Remove the two pieces of orange static
tape in the locations shown.

Remove the multicolored cable from theorange display cable.

Now disconnect the display cable from theLCD.
The Display cable can now be set aside orreplaced.

LCD Removal
Remove the piece of orange static tape in
the location shown.

The LCD will now easily lift up and out ofthe front bezel.

Bottom Casing Removal

Modem RemovalRemove the black torx screw as shown.

Then using a flathead screwdriver,gently pry up the modem as shown.

After the modem is loose, remove thecable from the modem, and place themodem on a static free surface.

Trackpad Removal

Remove the 4 torx screws as shown.
(There are 3 long silver screws, and 1
short black one.

Using your forefinger, slide the black
plastic sheet from under the trackpad asshown.

This reveals the orange trackpad cable.
Using your thumb and forefinger, gently
wiggle the orange connector cable from itsconnector.

Pull this cable back to expose one
silver screw. Using your torx T8screwdriver, remove this screw
along with the visible one to theright of it. (Both are long silverscrews.)

Remove the last torx screw asshown.

Remove the seven torx screws asshown. (Replacement note, the twolonger torx screws go on the farleft and right hand side of the area
under the trackpad as shown)Remove the two cables from the SoundAC board as shown. (Note these areharder to remove than previous cables.
Using needle nose pliers, and grabbing
on to the connector and then pulling
towards you may help. If you do this,remember to be gentle.)

The casing will now easily come off.
Work your way around the entire unit
pulling up on the casing as shown. Start
at the back right-hand corner, and work
your way around to the back left-handcorner. Be gentle. If it doesn’t come up
easily, then double check to make sure
you didn’t miss a screw.

Before the trackpad can come off, youmust remove the orange airport cable.
Using your thumb and forefinger,
Gently wiggle off the airport connector
from the motherboard.
Now the trackpad can be taken off.

Charger Board Replacement

Remove the two long sliver screws
from the charger board as shown.

Then, grab the charger board asshown, and gently wiggle it out of its
connector. The board should comeout with ease. Place the board on a
static free surface.

AC / Sound BoardReplacement

Remove the black torx screw thatwas located underneath the charger
board as shown.

Remove the short black torx screw
located to the right of the PCMCIA
card cage, and the short black torx
screw located next to the Prambattery.

Pull the rib frame out and fold backas shown,

Then remove the cable coming fromthe modem port.

Now gently pull the sound board up
and out as shown.

Logic Board
Replacement
Disconnect the Pram battery andfan from their connectors. Remove
the small torx screw located next
to the fan connector.

Slide the trackpad release freefrom the motherboard as shown.
(Replacement Note: the springcomes loose simply attach it backto the black connector. Make surethe screen release button works
before putting the unit back
together.)

Next, remove the nut as shown in
the picture. You can either use asmall allen bit or needle nosepliers as the screw is not on verytight. If you elect to use needle
nose pliers, make sure not to let
the pliers slip!

Now grab the board as shown, pullup and out.

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