Spice disassembly

[Karl Schneider]

I discovered a clever method for separating the case halves of a Spice unit, after the techniques listed in MoHPC failed to work for me. I have photographed the technique, but have not yet written up an article for the tech archives.

Tie a loop of waxed dental floss. After removing the two screws in the battery compartment, place the calc face down and spread the halves apart at the top no more than an inch (watch the battery terminals). Insert the floss between the halves and slide it past all six tabs (three each side) and around the corners at the bottom so that the floss exits through the case seam at two places on the bottom edge. Internally, the floss should wrap around the long hooked bridge attached to the bottom case half.

Hold the main (top) case half in place on the table face down (use a rubber glove if you like) and gently pull the loop of floss away from the calc in order to detach the smaller back case half.

I've used this technique three times without damaging a case.

[Vassilis Prevelakis]

Really good advice. I managed to open my 33C this way.
Inside was a mess, the flat sheet with traces linking the battery terminals to the internal PSU was baddly corroded.

The trace corresponding to the (+) charging terminal was broken, but this is not a problem as I am charging the batteries externally, but the pad of the (+) supply did not make reliable contact; this is the end point of the flex connector sheet that makes contact with the keyboard assembly.

I cleaned the contacts, but both sides (the flex side and the keyboard assembly side had dark patches from the corrosion).

In the end I stole a bit of foam from the keyboard assembly and inserted it under the flex connector sheet on the PSU side. This increased the pressure with which the flex sheet is pressed against the keyboard assembly, finally making reliable contact.

BTW my 33C is the old style with the unsoldered ICs.

**vp