PowerBook G4 Aluminum 15" 1.67 GHz Right Clutch Hinge Replacement

Passo 1

Use a coin to turn the battery locking screw 90 degrees clockwise.
Lift the battery out of the computer.

Passo 2

Remove the following 10 screws:
Two 3 mm Phillips in the battery compartment, on either side of the battery contacts.
Four 3 mm Phillips around the memory compartment.
Four 16 mm Phillips along the hinge.

Passo 3

Remove the memory compartment cover.
Remove the two 12 mm Phillips screws on the Aluminum bracket at the top of the memory compartment.

I had 7mm screws here instead of 12mm. Did without them till later.

gepkes -

I have an Aluminum PowerBook G4 1.67Ghz since 2006.

3/4 (from bottom to top) of the LCD becomes either black or is jumbled each time I turn on the MAC or move the screen. I need to press the LCD at several locations in order for this problem to go.... any advice ?

Polanskiman -

re: Polanskiman; this is usually caused by a loose ribbon connector on the rear of the LCD. Open up the display, remove the LCD, lay flat and re-connect the ribbon plug.

aaiverson - 24/09/14

Passo 4

Rotate the computer 90 degrees clockwise so the power receptacle faces you.
Remove the three 3 mm Phillips screws along the edge of the lower case.
When replacing these screws, you must install them in the correct order. Begin by installing the screw closest to the display hinge, then work your way toward the front of the computer.

Passo 5

Turn the computer 90 degrees clockwise so the hinge faces you.
Remove the lower 5 mm Phillips screw on each side of the hinge (two total).

Passo 6

Rotate the computer 90 degrees clockwise so the ports face you.
Remove the three 3 mm Phillips screws along the edge of the lower case.
When replacing these screws, you must install them in the correct order. Begin by installing the screw closest to the display hinge, then work your way toward the front of the computer. Also, be careful not to put the screws in the two holes on either side of the video out port.

Passo 7

Turn the computer over and open the display.
Remove the two 4.2 mm long, 1.5 mm hex screws at the top corners of the upper case (two total).
A T6 Torx driver will work, but repeated use will strip the screws.

Passo 8

Grasp the back corners of the upper case and pull up.
Do not pull the upper case off yet; you still need to disconnect the keyboard and trackpad cable.
Lift the back of the case up and work your fingers along the sides, freeing the case as you go. Once you have freed the sides, you may need to rock the case up and down to free the front of the upper case.

Passo 9

Rotate the upper case up and toward the screen, so that the upper case rests against it.

First of all, awesome guide. I am using it in July 2015, and there is no way I could have successfully navigate the typical Apple laptop Rubik's cube of Powerbook maintenance.

Second, there is a REAL trick to removing the upper case here, and it involves knowing what those stupid internal metal catches look like so you can free them without folding your aluminum case into a pretzel.

WildBill - 16/07/15

Passo 10

Remove the amber tape securing the trackpad ribbon to the logic board.
Disconnect the trackpad ribbon from the logic board by pulling up on the connector.
Remove the upper case from the computer.

in my g4 there is also a big transparent ribbon (for keyboard?), to the right of the amber trackpad ribbon, that i disconnected before removing case cover.

[deleted] -

re: ykuwabara; this is due to the differences between the Model A1095 (yours) and the newer A1138 (illustrated here). The A1138 combines the keyboard and trackpad signals into one cable.

aaiverson - 24/09/14

Passo 11

Remove the two 3 mm Phillips screws securing the left ambient light sensor. One is silver and one is black, or both black.
Disconnect the cable from the Logic board and remove the left ambient light sensor from your computer.

Passo 12

Remove the 4 mm hex nut securing the left speaker.

Passo 13

Disconnect the left speaker cable.

Mine did not have a plug here, the speaker is soldered on.

Simon Baldwin -

Passo 14

Remove the four Phillips screws from the PC card cage.
The two longer screws go on the right side of the card cage.

Passo 15

Disconnect the PC card cable from the logic board.

Passo 16

Lift the PC card cage up and remove it from the computer.
When replacing the PC card cage, make sure you attach it to the post on the metal eject button.

I couldn't disconnect the cage from the eject button here. Possibly because the speaker is still attached but its hard to see how the button is attached to the cage.

Simon Baldwin -

Passo 17

Close the display and turn the hinge side of the computer to face you.
Remove the remaining 5.2 mm Phillips screws on either side of the hinge (two screws total).

Passo 18

Support the display with one hand as you remove the remaining T8 screws.
Remove the upper two full thread 10 mm T8 Torx screws from each side of the display, then the two lower shanked 13 mm screws (four screws total).
When replacing the display, make sure that the correct screw pins down the ground loop from the display data cable.
Disconnect the two antenna cables from the airport/bluetooth card (shown in yellow circles), as well as the display cable (wide connector right hand upper corner) and the cable on top left corner of the logic board (shown in blue square).

Passo 19

Lift the display assembly off the lower case.

Passo 20

Remove the two 6mm long, 1.5 mm hex screws near the lower left and right corners of the display.
A T6 Torx screwdriver works just fine.

Passo 21

Insert the flat end of a spudger between the front display bezel and the plastic rim attached to the rear bezel near the lower left corner of the display.
Do not insert the spudger between the plastic rim of the rear display bezel and the aluminum rear display bezel plate.

Passo 22

With your spudger still inserted under the front display bezel, run it around the lower left corner of the display.
Rotate the spudger away from yourself to pry the rear display bezel off the aluminum tabs on the front display bezel.
Work your way down the side of the display until the rear display bezel has been separated from the front display bezel.

Passo 23

Insert the flat end of a spudger between the rear display bezel and the clutch cover.
Twist the spudger to unclip the rear bezel from the clutch cover.

Passo 24

Repeat the previous steps to separate the right side of the rear display bezel from the display.
Use your spudger to pry the plastic retaining clips on the rear display bezel over the raised aluminum tabs on the front display bezel.
At this point, the clips on the left and right edges of the rear display bezel should be free from the raised aluminum tabs on the front display bezel. If they are not, use a spudger to pry them past the front display bezel.

Passo 25

Slightly lift the lower edge of the rear display bezel and push it toward the top edge of the display, releasing the clips along the top edge of the rear display bezel.
Rotate the rear display bezel toward yourself and lay it flat on the table.

Passo 26

Disconnect both antenna cables from the rear display bezel.
Remove the rear display bezel and set it aside.

Passo 27

The inverter is an extremely thin circuit board that is very delicate and easily cracked. Take care when handling.
Use a spudger to raise the end of the inverter out from the clutch cover.
Lift the inverter enough to access both cable connectors.

Passo 28

Disconnect both inverter cables by pulling their connectors away from the sockets on the inverter.
Remove the inverter from your display and set it aside.

Passo 29

Remove the five 2 mm Phillips screws securing the LCD retaining bracket to the front display bezel.
Lift the LCD retaining bracket off the front display bezel.
Some machines do not have this bracket. If your machine is missing the bracket, remove the five screws and proceed to the next step.

Passo 30

The clutch cover is constructed from aluminum and is held on to the clutch hinges with metal clips that require a good deal of force to remove. Proceed with caution.
Use your thumbs to push the clutch cover away from the clutch hinges.
While pressing with your thumbs, rotate the clutch cover toward yourself about its long edge to pop it off the clutch hinge.
It may be necessary to wiggle the clutch cover while pressing it away from the clutch hinges to release the retaining clips.

Passo 31

Repeat this process for the other side of the clutch cover. Once the clutch cover is completely free from the clutch hinges, lift it off the front display bezel.

Passo 32

Remove the three 5.7 mm T8 Torx screws securing the right clutch hinge to the front bezel.

Passo 33

Remove the right clutch hinge from the front bezel.