T61 hinges

I just got a T61p, and has anyone replaced the hinges in a T61 before?

My main question is that i buy some new hinges (like off ebay or somewhere) will these be better than the original ones or will they start the crap out and get some play in them like how they are now?

Coming from a T43, then handling multiple T60s, the build quality of the T61 came as a bit of a shocker.

 

I think you're either easily shocked, or trying for dramatic effect - because I also went from a T43 to a T61 without noticing anything with the hinges (or in fact the build quality overall).

 

I agree with mochaultimate. The only Thinkpad I've had has been a t61p and I've had no trouble with the hinges.

Renee

 

Easily shocked? Dramatic effect?

here is a video of the same problem that someone else had:
YouTube - Lenovo ThinkPad T61 - Loose Screen Lid / Hinge

Here is a write up that a different person did on the hinge issue:
http://ventilatorxor.wordpress.com/2011/01/08/fixing-loose-thinkpad-screen-lid-hinge/
Other things i noticed, the keyboard does not feel as solid on the left side, in fact it actually sounds hollow if you hit the keys right.

Also with the display, there is noticeable backlight bleed at the bottom with dark backgrounds that stands out over the rest of the screen...this is on the 1920x1200 display.

Also on the right palm rest, there is a gap between the plastic and whatever is underneath which sometimes causes a tapping noise.

The T60 and and T43 were perfect, i just didn't see that in the T61p.

 

Personally speaking the hinge quality is actually better on the T6x than on the T4x.

I would recommend you get the new hinge from IBM parts, they only cost slightly more than the ebay ones, but you do get the assurance of it been a new part rather than a used part or used part passed off as refurbished one.

Given the price drop coming from T4x to T6x laptops, there are also more people purchasing it, which drives up the no. of Thinkpads in circulation.

Finally, the T6x hinges are made by the same two companies as the T4x hinges, which are Reel and KATO.

Regarding keyboard, the only difference between the T4x keyboard and T6x keyboards are the key feel, but i haven't experienced any hollow sound effect. But what you said could occur since there is more room under the T61p 15.4 inch keyboard for better air circulation, and if you hit the key right you can set up a resonance frequency to give that hollow sound.

 

thanks, yea i was kinda leery on getting parts from ebay, I'll check them out on lenovo's site.

 

After viewing that YouTube video on the T61 hinge "wiggle", mine also wiggles, but not THAT bad. It has about a 1" of "play" in the screen.

Funny, because my X301 has NO play on the hinges. (Then again, it also cost 3X as much lol).

 

Yea mine has quite a bit of play in it (like the youtube vid). I have recently bought:

2 T60s w/ 15" wide
2 more T60s w/ 14" 4:3
1 T61p w/ 15" wide

and I have my T43 w/ 14" 4:3

The only one that has any play is the T61p

All of the others are tight and perfect.

 

So your t6x you bought are second hand?

 

Yep, as well as the t43 a few years ago.

 

see with second hand stuffs it is very hard to say what sort of usage they have gone through before it was resold to you. But generally, those Thinkpad hinges are the best in the business class laptops at that time. There is too many variables involved with second hand equipments to allow you to draw any meaningful conclusion, especially when your sample size so small.

 

Yea well, threads like these:

"Play" in T61 screen - Lenovo Community

http://forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/253348-wobble-spot-hinge-2.html

tell me it was a lil more than it just being "second hand" as for some it showed up after the original purchase.

 

Your ability to copy and paste links from all over the Internet to substantiate your claims is noted, and I also think you have your response from the community here.

I don't think you're going to get approval and agreement from the community here that the hinges on the T61 series are as horrible as you have no doubt been trying very hard to prove.

The T61 has been around for 4-ish years now, and if there are widespread issues (like the Nvidia gfx card), they would certainly have surfaced by now.

As someone else mentioned, the T61 probably sold in much greater numbers than the T4x series, and is more likely to have instances of isolated complaints (especially to someone looking real hard for them all over the Internet).

The question is, what are you trying to achieve here? Swapping the hinges with aftermarket (or otherwise) parts sounds counter-productive if a little wobble bothers you so much (which I can certainly understand, mind you). Serious question.

 

Wow, thanks for being a ....

 

For the record, I don't think he's being a ... . I also think you're being a bit hypersensitive because someone is disagreeing with you, firmly, but IMO, respectfully.

I think two small threads out of thousands of T61 owners have convinced you that there is more of an issue than there really is, else you wouldn't have posted them, followed by:

Personally, those two small threads tell me that a few people had an issue, and that some of them may have had a perception of an issue based on what they expected from their T61. It doesn't tell me there was a widespread problem with ThinkPad T61 systems.

By the way, I have a T61 which I have passed on to my wife when I bought a T400. It is nearing three years old, and its hinges are just fine. My T400 has probably a quarter inch of play in its hinges; it's a year and a half old, it isn't loose or wobbly, and I don't see that as a problem. If your T61 has half an inch or less of play, I'd call it normal wear, and if it has an inch or less, I'd still be unfazed, especially when you consider having gotten it secondhand.

 

I don't think i was directly calling it a "widespread" problem..but if someone has a write up on it, and someone else posts a video about it...among other threads...it makes me think that it was just more than just a couple of people with it.

And yes, it's pretty annoying given what I'm used to with thinkpads I have handled (or laptops in general really), and having this one whose display flops around when handling it (about as much play as in the video).

Granted some laptops may have some play in their screens (most are pretty tight though, and if they are loose they may be dampened a lot better so that it isn't very noticeable), it isn't like what it is on this model.

I think why i may have such a problem with this unit is because the actual hinge resistance is really high. I can easily tilt the whole machine back by pushing on the top of the lid, I can even do it quickly and it will pick up the base of the laptop and the hinge won't give.

That isn't a complaint.

But when that is combined with about .5" of really loose play (like in the video) and you can feel the lid *hit* the hinges' resistance as it bounces back and forth during normal handling which sends a *thud* throughout the whole thing....it's pretty obvious and would be real nice to fix.

Hell i wouldn't be surprised that he strength of the hinge resistance is what's contributing to the loose play, or wear in the hinge that causes it. I know my T43 isn't near as strong. I don't think the T60s were like that but I will have to check. The two at work would be a good comparison as they are also 15" wide.

And on i DON'T think it's counter productive to replace the hinges as I find it fun and rewarding. Hell I may even swap in an N mini card if i find the antenna arrangement will work out.

Nevertheless, i don't think people should come in post crap like what's in post 2, which contributes absolutely nothing in an almost in defense of "brand x" stance. If one doesn't have anything constructive to post, don't post anything.

ing A. lol

 

Lot of people have the t61 class machines on the forum, these hinge play is not a common problem in new machines and the hinge play only affects a small no. of new machines. Most of the hinge play problem will crawl up after 1 or so of use, but usually these are minor problems that does not deteriorate further.

FYI the t60 machine had equal probability in developing such hinge play problem.

 

No offence to the OP, but I still don't see what the big deal is. Mine, as I said, has a bit of play in the screen, but so what ? Life does go on.

 

My T61p is going on it's fourth year, travels every two weeks with me, and the hinges have not changed since I unboxed it the first time.

What I see is the difference in the way people treat their laptops - some treat it with a bit of reverance and respect for an expensive piece of equipment that they want to keep around.

Others, particularly those of young/college age, treat it like it's something they will be replacing soon anyway, so don't worry about being careful. They pick their laptops up by the display to show it to others, or quickly jerk the display open or slam it closed. The younger people I deal with don't seem to have the same respect for equipment, or the money it takes to buy it, that us old curmugeon's (sp) do. A self inflicted problem, it would seem to me. (I'm sure my Depression era parents think similar thoughts about my generation, but at least they taught us to take care of valuable things that cost real money.)

I open mine carefully, and I never pick it up by the display - only by the base. If you do feel the need treat a laptop roughly, maybe you should confine your purchases to Toughbooks. With proper handling, I have experienced no change in hinge condition since new. TPF

 

The hinge on my T61 does wobble a bit but it still holds the screen so i'm not that fussed for now. I only plan to replace them should the whole LCD screen goes as well (i'm looking forward to this day as it means I can justify taking the awful Samsung panel out!).

Strangely the hinges on my ThinkPad R61e is still as solid as ever. Despite being thrown out from my car to a ditch from a motor accident a few weeks ago there's no leeway and feels tight.

Overall I wish there was an element in the design where you can just get a torx screwdriver and just retighten when needed instead of replacing the whole hinges as it would be a lot more easier to service for the end user.

 

"Funny, because my X301 has NO play on the hinges. (Then again, it also cost 3X as much lol)."

I doubt you paid $9800.00 for your X301.

Renee

 

Actually, it cost darn near close to 3X as much. My T61 when new was around $900 3X that is $2700. My X301 was a bit north of $2,000 (got it brand new ).


Ok, ok, 2.1 times as much lol

 

Well my T61p was about $3200.00 US Dollars new.

Renee

 

What screen is that exactly? i have the 1920x1200 and I can say that I hate it. Primarily because the rez makes everything too small for comfort. That and there is a lot of backlight bleed in the bottom quarter.

heh, I remember paying like 1100 for a HP ZT1260 which i liked a lot a the time...until it started falling apart and having problems in various ways. I really hated that thing, and HP in general.

Reminds me of this dead HP DV6500 i have here in my room (graphics related). Used to be my sister's, i've since replaced that with a superb T60 4:3.

 

My screen is the 14.1" Samsung WXGA+ LTN141WD-L05 (FRU:42T0412) panel, it has a good resolution (1440x900) but that's the only positives I can think of. It's quite dim so it can look lost on bright surroundings (especially in battery mode) and the viewing angles is awful. Slight tilt will cause color distortion so you have to constantly adjust the screen making it no good for work which require color accuracy.

Given the chance I probably opt for the 220 nit LG-Philips panel (FRU:42T0406) should the Samsung panel gives out.

 

Ah that's cool. I had a friend buy a T61 from the same seller i've been buying from. He ended up with a 14" wide model with 1280x800 screen, not sure what panel it is. I must say it is pretty bright, brighter than my T60 1024x768, and brighter than the 15" wide T60s at work.

 

Hah, so I ended buying and replacing the hinges on my T61p.

Picked up the hinges for super cheap off ebay (did it out of cheapness, convenience, exploration, and was curious on the product).

The construction was obviously different in comparison to the original hinges (which were metal fatigued in a couple of areas). Main frame casting didn't seem to be as high quality in the cast itself, and maybe material. Not sure if this was a difference in the two available brands of hinges as listed on Lenovo's site or whatever or not.

I actually had a problem with the original screws threading in with a good bite into the new hinges, I had to use the longer screws to get them to bite properly.

In the end the hinge action is way better, its nowhere near as stiff, and the play is none. As a result it doesn't come off as shoddy anymore and that is major.

Another bonus was that I got to examine the wifi card more closely and saw that it is very easy to swap in an 802.11a/b/g/n card.

What was interesting is that there were 3 antenna cables, one unused. Since this shipped with an a/b/g card I would think one antenna was for 5ghz, and the other was 2.4ghz...the third cable being for cellular maybe?

I guess I will review the maintenance manual again.

EDIT:

Oh back to the keyboard knocking sound. Before this even i removed the keyboard and placed two pieces of duct tape on the heat sink which supported the left side of the KB. This worked great and made it super solid but introduced some flex that made the "D" key stick (underlying mechanical). So this time around i removed one piece of duct tape which solved the "D" key sticking issue, loosed up that area beneath the KB but it is still much better than it was originally.

EDIT 2: OH almost forgot, I think having the LCD assembly apart seems to have really improved the backlight bleed issue on the LCD in the bottom 1/4 of the display (must have been display assembly fitting etc.). It used to be real bad in near black areas, now it is a lot better lol. Didn't expect that.

EDIT 3: Should also note that my original hinge design was not identical to that in the link i posted earlier in this thread. His appeared to have 1 fatigue point where mine had 2. My new hinges reflect the design of his on the bolt/LCD mount side, but they didn't have the bolt into main frame viewable from backside feature. Kinda interesting (design changes).

 

the third antenna cable was for the intel 4965 which used the three antenna setup.

There are two manufacturers for the hinges (which are slightly different), and design do change overtime due to different manufacturing processes or there are flaws discovered on the old design.

This is the first time i have heard some one is having keyboard clacking issue on the T61 laptops.

 

I have been using my T61 15" for three years as my work laptop. It has been subjected to a lot of use, a lot of travel, a lot of daily use and general moving around.

Not to mention the attentions of my kids. What is it about expensive electronics that draws the attention of infants, toddlers and young pre-teens?

And with all that attention, use and abuse my hinges are just as tight as they were when I unboxed it.

Nor has there been any hinge related issue across my whole company with any T61 that has been issued.

Durable little laptop and one I am very impressed with and plan on holding onto when I get a new one later this year.

 

On my T61p the hinges were bad from day one right out of the box with like a 1 inch wiggle. I understand that there was a whole batch of bad ones where some plastic thingy was wrong.

Never really bothered me, but had it fixed nevertheless after 3 years shortly before the warranty expired.

 

I'm sure it was our particular hinge design batch which seems to vary per time or manufacturer as I've seen a few different ones now. It IS much much nicer not having a lid that flops around.

The KB thing with mine is just a fluke thing where there is a bit of excess gap between the bottom of the KB and the top of the heatink with the pad on it.

On the plus side it looks like upgrading to 802.11n capability is pretty easy. I forgot that the original "a" capability means it comes with 5ghz antenna...not that it even matters since the majority of n APs are 2.4ghz only anyways.....I'm guessing that additional white antenna might be for MIMO functionality.

I just picked out a 14" wide T61 for my friend and his unit was solid. I really like the 14" wide models a lot more than my bigass 15" wide T61p lol. Just the portability part....was thinking about picking up another one (or T60) for server 2k8 exchange and virtualization testing.

 

It is. I upgraded my SO's T61 from the original a/b/g wireless card to a (Lenovo-branded) Intel 4965AGN.

Note: My T61 was likely one of the Santa-Rosa refresh models, as it came with a first-gen Penryn (T8300) processor. The third antenna lead was already there. I don't know that you'll find the third lead on early T61 units; you might either have to install one (which will be annoying) or settle for only having two antennas.

If yours is an early system, make sure it has the latest BIOS before attempting the upgrade. I don't know if the earliest BIOS revisions have the 4965AGN card whitelisted.

 

Mine does have the spare white antenna cable not hooked up to anything.

I'll check on the BIOS updates, thanks.