How would I replace the aluminum exterior of my Powerbook

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Wrxified

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I can't deal with it. I loved the look of my Powerbook new. My wife managed to supposedly "drag lightly a plastic laundry basket" over the top of it. I couldn't even begin to understand the basics of what she what saying I wrote it off as her not giving a crap about anything I own and have not even attempted to reason with her on it. Basically I grounded her from the Mac priviledges, removed her user rights and reminded her where the PC is down in the basement.

So now I have a 15" Powerbook that looks like it has had a run in with a brillo pad. Does Apple offer some type of replacement service for the exterior?
 
You can get a replacement for any part of the case but it wont be cheap.

Also you will have to pay a labour charge to change this should take nolonger than 1 hour.
 
The finish is just a standard beadblast. If you can remove the cover and take it to someone who does sandblasting it should be easy to refinish.
 
That's awesome. I have a friend who has a sandblaster. Are there any user tutorials to remove the top assembly piece.

The link above is a good option too but if I can avoid $225 I'd be satisfied. Thanks!

(Lamont) said:
The finish is just a standard beadblast. If you can remove the cover and take it to someone who does sandblasting it should be easy to refinish.
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Wow. Great site, bobw!

*bookmarks*

lol. I'm kind of interested in the situation as to how the PowerBook GOT that way, though... where would a PowerBook ahve to be for a laundry basket to get dragged across it? Weird.
 
If the freakin thing is on the floor would you even try to reason with the person who put it there? Not worth it. There are certain things you can't reason through with people. And for me to get into a huge argument with her over it was tempting but not going to accomplish anything. I simply told her I would let her know how much it was going to be to fix the damage so she could plan accordingly to adjust her personal spending this month. That ticked her off enough.

adambyte said:
Wow. Great site, bobw!

*bookmarks*

lol. I'm kind of interested in the situation as to how the PowerBook GOT that way, though... where would a PowerBook ahve to be for a laundry basket to get dragged across it? Weird.
Click to expand...
 
Wrxified said:
That's awesome. I have a friend who has a sandblaster.
Click to expand...

Just a fair warning, sandblasting isn't something that's an easy DIY type thing...at least not without experience and a lot of it. This is especially important considering it's aluminum you're blasting...very thin aluminum.

Make sure you friend REALLY knows what he's doing before you let him tackle this. Otherwise, you will wind up with a severely damaged shell (burn through, warping). I've seen people use those 'home kits' you can buy with a very small air compressor (low PSI/CFM) and easily mangle aluminum parts (rims, trim). The aluminum they use in automotive rims/wheels is a lot harder & thicker than what they use in your PB's shell, yet it's insanely easy to cut groves it in with a sandblaster.

You definitely don't want to use a normal sand blaster. They make fine detail models that are for delicate work...most hold a cup or pint of medium on top of the gun and operate at very low PSI/CFM settings. Snap-On tools makes one like this.

A trick which might be worth using to avoid warping or cracking...put down a layer of cellophane (continuous sheet, no gaps) on the inside of the shell and pour some plaster of paris in there (on a level surface). Fill it even with the edges and let it dry. When you blast it, lay it flat on a hard surface (thick plywood board). That should give the shell some extra support.
 
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