Discussion PC Restoration Saga

[NightHawkRMX]

Every now and again I see older or computers in otherwise rough states come up for sale locally and I have started a bit of a hobby of wanting to restore them.

I will start this thread out with a computer I purchased today for the grand total of $10 on Facebook marketplace. It was advertised as just a case but was actually an entire system (ended up not having a hard drive) as I could see from the photos.

I am already part way through restoring it but here are some photos of it right after I got it.

The photos were pretty unclear but when the seller handed to me I immediately thought "what am I getting myself into." It was in way rougher shape than I thought.

https://imgur.com/dlRrH5o

View: https://imgur.com/dlRrH5o

https://imgur.com/csMiBWa

View: https://imgur.com/csMiBWa

https://imgur.com/jIILpjq

View: https://imgur.com/jIILpjq

https://imgur.com/dyAI5VL

View: https://imgur.com/dyAI5VL

https://imgur.com/NfTtM1W

View: https://imgur.com/NfTtM1W


However that only scratches the surface. Notice how none of the panels line up properly? When I opened the case I noticed all of the front bays seemed bent.

https://imgur.com/BYO2lax

View: https://imgur.com/BYO2lax


I went to pull the front panel off. It screws on, but the 2 bottom screw standoffs in the plastic had already been snapped off.

https://imgur.com/BJilZgB

View: https://imgur.com/BJilZgB


And once I pulled off the front panel I saw the horrors that explained the issues prior.

https://imgur.com/rg1XLsq

View: https://imgur.com/rg1XLsq


The chassis looks like it was thrown off a cliff. I don't know how this occured...

It is a store built computer from a computer store called Platinum Micro Electronics in Manassas Virginia. I am told by someone from the region it's basically a mom and pop store that is still around to this day.

It has a sticker on the back which tells the specs of the computer, however the information is not all correct.

I will finish restoration soon and update.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

but why?
if you plan on donating to homeless shelters or foster care centers that'd be awesome but why spend any money on doing this for any other reason?

really just curious as i've seen others going this route thinking they were getting some awesome forsaken product they could turn into a modern gaming system or something and eventually realizing it wasn't possible.
am positive this is not your thinking here, but am still curious as to the reasoning.

 

[Tac 25]

how old is this pc?

it does looks like it fell from someplace...

goodluck in restoring it.

just like the previous poster, Is your restoration purpose just a hobby?
well, the backup Q9650 pc on my sig is pretty old too. I restored it for the purpose to serve as another backup archive for photos of family and friends, as well as a bit of light gaming. So I'm curious for you reasons on restoring old stuff.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

how old is this pc?

The PC was assembled on 6/16/04, but really seems a bit older than that, perhaps it was made from parts the store had on the shelf for awhile.

if you plan on donating to homeless shelters or foster care centers that'd be awesome

It would not be suitable to donate for a couple of reasons, but mostly just due to age. As it sits, this computer wouldn't even be able to run Windows 7 without upgrades. Although I could donate some of my other stuff I need to clear out, that's not a bad idea.

but why spend any money on doing this for any other reason?

I bought this one since I needed a case for a system of this era, not realizing the case was in the state it was. For $10 its not that big of a deal. Mostly just doing it for hobby and the enjoyment of restoring something.

I am not sure what I will do with this yet once I finish cleaning it up. The case might be salvageable actually.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

well, the backup Q9650 pc on my sig is pretty old too. I restored it for the purpose to serve as another backup archive for photos of family and friends, as well as a bit of light gaming. So I'm curious for you reasons on restoring old stuff.

https://pcpartpicker.com/b/jXx6Mp

I have a Q9550 system for late 00s gaming and it's case was taken from another Facebook mystery computer that was in a very sorry state but ended up being a great computer for the money once it was fixed up.

However in this case I knew it was nothing special as I could see the motherboard model number in one photo, but I wanted the case so I bought it anyhow.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

another curiosity;
when fixing up these systems are you having luck finding the proprietary power supplies, motherboards, etc when needed
or do you plan on modding the layouts to accommodate standard components?

 

[NightHawkRMX]

This is all standard parts. I have come across proprietary stuff but generally how I handle it is all circumstance driven.

In other words, it depends.

One scenario that happened was a broken Alienware I got. Diagnosed, it needed a motherboard. The motherboards we're stupidly expensive. Although it was seemingly standard I didn't know if any other board would be able to communicate with the other elements of the case like the board that controls lighting and case fan speeds, even though that communicated with a normal USB header.

So I threw it all into a normal atx case with a standard Mobo I had lying around.

 

[Tac 25]

https://pcpartpicker.com/b/jXx6Mp

I have a Q9550 system for late 00s gaming and it's case was taken from another Facebook mystery computer that was in a very sorry state but ended up being a great computer for the money once it was fixed up.

However in this case I knew it was nothing special as I could see the motherboard model number in one photo, but I wanted the case so I bought it anyhow.

oh, a Q9550 is good too. I guess that thing was lucky you were the one to find it.

mine was originally an e8400 purchased it from a Korean second hand store at 2014. That time I had no money, and just needed something to edit photos and use for chatting with friends on social media. So the e8400 served me well. Fast forward to 2020, I decided to upgrade the e8400 to a Q9650, and give it a decent GPU and new power supply to extend the life of the old thing. With money being so hard to obtain these days, having a backup pc is important... so if my more powerful gaming pc equipped with 1050ti suddenly bites the dust (lol), I still have the backup pc to use for chatting with friends and a little entertainment on gaming.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

I was able to bend the chassis roughly back to where it was.

https://imgur.com/q8Ok7SI

View: https://imgur.com/q8Ok7SI


After bending and a lot of cleaning.

https://imgur.com/Zuq2EsN

View: https://imgur.com/Zuq2EsN

https://imgur.com/nPjri0Z

View: https://imgur.com/nPjri0Z

https://imgur.com/6O55qy7

View: https://imgur.com/6O55qy7

https://imgur.com/DGAb1Pb

View: https://imgur.com/DGAb1Pb


I might try to make the rear less bent but it is better now. Overall it looks a lot better but still not perfect.

This is the systems internals before I did any restoration.

https://imgur.com/JBfnQDM

View: https://imgur.com/JBfnQDM

I am in the process of cleaning the interior as it sits.

The specs are a 2.4ghz Northwoods Celeron, 256mb Samsung DDR333 and a MSI 845GVM-V Motherboard.

It does work, but the power supply is downright scary so that's going to go at a minimum. It's an Eagle (Deer) 350w unit that I wouldn't even trust as a doorstop since it's so light.

 

[DRagor]

The chassis looks like it was thrown off a cliff.

I'd say it took few kicks during its life. You know, people who lose at games and have problems with anger control lol. If the internals still work that would be a proof old hardware was tougher then most people think.

 

[RetroGamer2022]

I was able to bend the chassis roughly back to where it was.

https://imgur.com/q8Ok7SI

View: https://imgur.com/q8Ok7SI


After bending and a lot of cleaning.

https://imgur.com/Zuq2EsN

View: https://imgur.com/Zuq2EsN

https://imgur.com/nPjri0Z

View: https://imgur.com/nPjri0Z

https://imgur.com/6O55qy7

View: https://imgur.com/6O55qy7

https://imgur.com/DGAb1Pb

View: https://imgur.com/DGAb1Pb


I might try to make the rear less bent but it is better now. Overall it looks a lot better but still not perfect.

This is the systems internals before I did any restoration.

https://imgur.com/JBfnQDM

View: https://imgur.com/JBfnQDM

I am in the process of cleaning the interior as it sits.

The specs are a 2.4ghz Northwoods Celeron, 256mb Samsung DDR333 and a MSI 845GVM-V Motherboard.

It does work, but the power supply is downright scary so that's going to go at a minimum. It's an Eagle (Deer) 350w unit that I wouldn't even trust as a doorstop since it's so light.

I think that’s a pretty good computer! I’m a bit biased because mainly play simulation games from the ‘90s - mid 2000s. Windows 98 and Windows XP are alive and well at my place!

If I were restoring it, I’d check to see if the motherboard was cracked. It probably isn’t but it is obvious the machine was dropped. I worked in computer forensics before I retired and a coworker dropped an expensive forensic desktop and unfortunately destroyed it.

Good luck with bringing it back to life!

Bending the case into shape, re-applying thermal paste, changing the CMOS battery, reinstalling the OS - all good clean fun! Enjoy!!

 

[NightHawkRMX]

If the internals still work that would be a proof old hardware was tougher then most people think.

I were restoring it, I’d check to see if the motherboard was cracked. It probably isn’t but it is obvious the machine was dropped.

The intervals work perfectly, even the junk power supply which had the shell bent from the impact.

The motherboard is on a removable tray that sits a good bit aways from the side panel or top of the chassis where the impact happened. The tray was shifted slightly and had a slightly bent part, but I fixed that easily. The motherboard was unharmed.

https://imgur.com/lHJmd1V

View: https://imgur.com/lHJmd1V

https://imgur.com/apzEGVG

View: https://imgur.com/apzEGVG

I'll throw in a CMOS battery from a junk board since it seems to need one.

I'd say it took few kicks during its life. You know, people who lose at games and have problems with anger control lol.

I don't think much gaming was ever occuring on this. If they did try to run games that would explain the anger.

The CPU is basically a Celeron D but a generation before they were called a Celeron D. It's one of the slowest and oldest 478 Pentium 4 CPUs but with 3/4 the cache removed. I already have another identical celery in storage. Miserable CPU. Also 256mb ram was not much at all, and the onboard Intel "Extreme" graphics are not as good as the name would suggest.

The chipset supports later presscot CPUs but has no AGP support. The board has a spot where the agp slot should go as well as controls for agp voltage in bios. It even says "extreme 8x agp" on the bios splash screen, but there is no agp slot at all.

Generally this PC belongs in a landfill, but I have plans for it.

The case is a lot better now than it was, but I don't think it's good enough to house my "nice" 478 parts.

For that reason I think I'll just clean up what's in here, give it some upgrades, maybe a pci graphics card, and it will be fairly decent.

 

[RetroGamer2022]

Generally this PC belongs in a landfill, but I have plans for it

That’s what everybody says about my legacy PCs! It’s wrong, though because if it has a use, it has value.

It‘ll run Armored Fist 3 and M1 Tank Platoon 2!!!

 

[NightHawkRMX]

I upgraded it using some parts on hand. I don't have any pci GPUs, so I'm going to be on the lookout for a cheap one. I have an SSD with adapters in there temporarily but I might buy an ide spinner drive for it.

The only power supply from this era that I have is a 250w Dell (lite on) one. It's nothing special but it is a safe unit, which is really all I care about at this point, so I swapped in that.

This board has a cap of 165mhz FSB. I have a couple of spare Pentium 4s on hand and decided on a 2.26ghz Northwoods model since it had a 133mhz fsb. Little slower frequency but likely faster overall.

The next upgrade was to a 2x1gb ram. I opted just for some basic ram.

https://imgur.com/RKL5wpt

View: https://imgur.com/RKL5wpt

https://imgur.com/xIZfe85

View: https://imgur.com/xIZfe85

 

[RetroGamer2022]

After completing a rebuild like yours, I run memtest for a few hours from a boot CD or floppy and Prime95 in Windows for a few hours after that.

PCMark02 thoroughly tests hardware after that. It’s free!

https://benchmarks.ul.com/legacy-benchmarks

SAFETY:

Don’t leave the thing unattended while running any of those tests. I’d feel bad if the PSU caught fire!

The good news is that if it makes it through those programs, it’s probably quite reliable.

 

[JeffreyP55]

I wife own two assisted living homes. I have resurrected a few old PC's for residents. i775 DDR2 RAM and intel's best in the day + a vid card if needed on the cheap. Didn't make a penny but it left me with a good feeling.

 

[Kona45primo]

Makes me want to get my old PC up and running again... Old amd 4000+ with a Nvidia 6800 GS. Had an Abit board with an external lcd. Ahhh the good ol days.

 

[Tac 25]

Miserable CPU. Also 256mb ram was not much at all, and the onboard Intel "Extreme" graphics are not as good as the name would suggest.

that's actually the same amount of ram that the Athlon pre-built my mom bought at the mall way back in 2001 or 2003 I'm not sure on the year. Back then, that amount of ram was enough for me to play Starcraft - fun times. And I was so happy when a technician who visited us upgraded the ram to 1GB, to 2GB, and eventually we had a 4GB by 2009 or 2010. Today in 2021, 4gb of ram feels so small... because games are much more demanding.

 

[John Chesterfield]

Nice project

And you are right, that was a miserable CPU

 

[NightHawkRMX]

And you are right, that was a miserable CPU

Was and is more so in current day.

After looking at PCI GPU prices and the performance they don't offer, I think i'll just stick to the onboard GPU. I have some 478 boards with AGP that I could swap in here, but I feel if i change the motherboard its not really the same PC anymore.

I will grab a cheap IDE hard drive and call it a system I guess.


Oh I should mention the optical drive is completely toasted. It sounded like something was rattling around in it and then when i tried to put an XP Install disc in it today it made a horrible grinding noise that I can only compare to a palm sander. I tore it open and the bearing for the motor that turns the disc is completely destroyed.

I'm in the process of transferring that beige faceplate to a black ide drive I have.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

After completing a rebuild like yours, I run memtest for a few hours from a boot CD or floppy and Prime95 in Windows for a few hours after that.

PCMark02 thoroughly tests hardware after that. It’s free!

https://benchmarks.ul.com/legacy-benchmarks

SAFETY:

Don’t leave the thing unattended while running any of those tests. I’d feel bad if the PSU caught fire!

The good news is that if it makes it through those programs, it’s probably quite reliable.

Can't really run many tests until I get some thermal paste. I am waiting on paste in the mail. I didn't apply new paste with the new CPU since I don't have any on hand atm.

As far as the PSU catching fire? That's a bit of a stretch for running some benchmarks isn't it?

The original unit I wouldn't trust, but this one, while as old as the PC, should be of fairly decent quality and certainly passing safety tests etc.

 

[RetroGamer2022]

View: https://youtu.be/-L0vnZXlm4o

I’ve heard of PSUs popping capacitors, sparking, smoking, etc. it has not happened to me but if it did, it’d be a catastrophe. I’m pushing my luck with 20 year old PCs , too. I just don't leave them running and pull the power when I’m done.

Prime95 and Memtest aren‘t really benchmarks. They’re more like stress tests even though Prime95 does have a benchmark function.

Prime95 stresses the CPU and cooling (don’t run it unless you’ve got good case ventilation and fresh thermal paste on your heatsink.)

Memtest is a thorough RAM tester. I noted it heats up my PCs quite a bit.

Most here probably know more than I do but I wouldn’t leave a PC unattended while running Prime95 or Memtest.

I just run those to make sure I did the rebuild right.…and just for the fun of testing electronics,

 

[RetroGamer2022]

Info on early 2000s Capacitor Plague

Oh, you might want to visually inspect the capacitors. If any are bulging or leaking, bad caps can fix it. I’m sending in a 2008 era computer with leaky caps right after the holidays.

Probably more info than you wanted, but I consider capacitor inspection/replacement to be part of the restoration. (If needed)

if you do have bad caps, you just ship ‘em your motherboard and they’ll send it back better than new! I’ve used them before and am glad they’re still around.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

Caps on the board are fine. I might have to check the PSU.

 

[RetroGamer2022]

Enjoy your salvage project! I get why you’re doing it!!! Drive on!

I just restored a 1996 Packard Bell desktop And an IBM Aptiva from 1999. The Aptiva is really my baby. I hopefully got a little more airflow in the case by adding an IBM blue LED case fan. Then I got on eBay and rounded up two Voodoo2 video cards that I put in SLI mode and installed.

Welcome back, Windows 98 (and welcome back to a bunch of games that just won’t run on modern equipment)