Louis's famous words: "Do not screw the board if the board does not wish to be screwed. If the board wishes to be screwed in that hole- it will consent by having a screw that's the proper size for that hole. Do not put a screw that's three times as long for that hole into that hole. And if you are screwing that screw into the hole- and if you are screwing that screw into the hole and you feel resistance -> Don't (Shoving in hand actions) and keep screwing it into the hole. Don't do that to your relationships; Don't do that to your marriage; Don't do it on a date; *and definitely don't do it to the MacBook* . *It's wrong in all areas of life.* " reference: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZBkHRY6fhA8.html
Many years ago, I bought a dead laptop from someone on eBay. (Intentionally. I knew it was dead, I bought it with the intention to attempt a repair) It was dead because some idiot (probably the seller) reassembled their laptop with the screws in the wrong holes, and ran a screw completely through the hard drive logic board.
I did this with an iPhone 6S years back, I still feel like the biggest dumbass in the world all these years later. Thankfully it was my own device (purchased for repair, also). I discovered the problem and could've easily fixed it, too, if I didn't jam a screw through the fucking board. Sorry for your loss.
you would be surprised how many patients actually show up with ridiculous diagnostic or treatments , it exactly look like this when the professors get the files lol. sometimes even some curse words louis style
My old boss when he started his company, told me the story of why he went in to business for himself, a semi-popular pc repair shop in my area (ogden, utah) would take advantage of ignorant people that didn't know anything about computers. They'd come in for example wanting a new graphics card charge them for a specific model (I think in the case that he told me, they asked for and bought a Geforce2 TI) and instead of installing that component the owner put in a MX400 which was inferior to the TI. He lied to the customer, charged for a higher end part, and then put in a lower end part. They are still SOMEHOW in business. My old boss successfully ran a computer shop after that for 15 years, but then moved to real estate a couple years ago, and is now making a high six figure income.(go him) but one of the things he instilled in to me, is the honesty and transparancy that made him open the business in the first place. I learned more in my two years of working there, than I ever did in college for PC Repair. So my advice for anyone who watches this, and reads my comment.. Always make sure you know what it is you're buying, and what it is you got afterwards. Some PC Repair shops are every bit as shady as the auto shops that are commonly known.
@@ExarchGaming my friends dad took a laptop that had the display destroyed to geeksquad. They replaced the damaged display but instead of properly reinstalling it into the chassis they tapped it in. First time closing the laptop the screen fell out. He's not the smartest consumer out there. He blamed his daughter and claimed she taped it back in and it wasn't geek squads doing. If you've ever bought a computer from best buy they always try to make you buy useless shit such as anti virus software that hasn't been updated in a decade making it effectively useless. He bought that garbage
@@jamestor6700 We bought one computer back in the early 2000s from best buy, when I was like 14, they werent' as bad back then. I've built every computer since myself. This was a computer shop called Superior Computers.
Hi Louis, just wanted to thank you from the UK for many years of your content. Its gotten to the point I watch your videos to sleep even though I dont understand most of whats going on. I have picked up a few things for sure and my little ones are now dissembling things in the house, would love to see you go back to basics and show in laymen terms what settings you use to test what and how you go about blind diagnosing something you have no knowledge about. Would be an awesome vid for my little ones. I believe the greatest way to win this battle is to create a thinking and aware generation who know how to fix things Thanks
I have had people tell me I am wasting my time by drawing rough sketches of a device to lay the screws where they go on the sketch. This crap is exactly why I do that. Most of the time it wont matter if you use the wrong screw in the wrong spot as long as you don't force them to go in but every once in awhile you find a device like this where it really can cause damage. The valve body in the transmission I was recently working on it another such example. If you lost track of what bolt went where, there are 20 of them at 7 different sizes. You could probably guess where they all go by the lengths of the bolts. But there is one hole you could fit a longer bolt into and still get a good seal. On the other side of that hole however is a pair of gemini chains which would be up out of the way while your working on it. But through driving they will droop down a little bit when tension is release and tap the tip of the long bolt. You wouldn't even hear it through the fluid but a few months down the line it would wear the chain so bad it will make that chain fly apart. Guessing it is a common mistake considering the repair manual specifically points out this scenario.
Don't think it's large enough for a transmission, but the iFixit magnetic project mat(?) is great for that since it has a "whiteboard" surface you can write on.
I work in metal industry, and i always mark holes and the bolts that belong to those holes. Reason being sometimes the tools/machines i work with are few decades old, and they haven't been opened in years.. vibration and punching have made the holes to match the bolt, or otherway around, so the bolts will not go to ANY other hole than the one it used to be in.. So if you have ~20 bolts and you don't mark them, its gonna take you a long time to find out where each individual bolt belongs... and sometimes, you can put Bolt (B) to hole (A), and after you have placed all the other bolts, you have bolt (A) on your hand, but it fill not fit the hole that is free on the tool/machine... And this is one of the times that you wonder why did you even born.
We learned something send your machine to Louis' shop because they genuinely have a giga shit ton of working experience at what they do. Sharp technicians with a honed skill set. 👍👍👍
"You can get mad at a mom for drinking during pregnancy, but you can't get mad at the child" You certainly have a way with words that get the point across.
Louis, your passion for fixing hardware is immeasurable! You wouldn't last this long in the industry if you didn't absolutely love what you do. And it shows. Thanks for your dedication and honesty.
He got the board too hot with a heat gun and likely stopped just before the board popcorned. This is where it gets too hot and the layers start to seperate, with the top on actually blistering! This often if most not tears or opens traces in the middle layers of the board, pretty much giving you a paperweight.
This was an amazing video showing how easy it is when you have the right tools and the right knowledge. I was always scared of embedded PCB soldering. I now know I just need to add 1 milliPaul of flux...or a gallon. Those bad solder joints looked like the dude had a microscope and soldered each trace and pad individually...like he didn't understand how solder and flux work with heat.
How to keep screws from falling out: Put locktite on each screw before you put it in. After you screw each one in, torque it down to 300 ft lbs. Make sure you put the long screw in the short hole to ensure you have a good grip. If you have lost a screw, grab a welder and weld the board down. If you don't have a welder, a soldering iron and some solder will also work
I fixed a notebook (real tiny notebook from back in the day) screen (replacement) for a friend, only charged for the screen because generally easy job back then (no GLUE!) but I did get a single screw head snap off. For them I spent 30 mins getting it drilled out and replaced perfectly. For free, for a friend. Yet a paid for service, leaves it broken. :/
I made this mistake the very first time I ever cracked the case on a computer way back in 1983. It was a Timex-Sinclair ZX81. I was flat broke at the time and it was my only computer. I shamelessly returned it for a replacement without mentioning that I had damaged it :-/. Of course I was only 17, not that that excuses it.
the main problem of the zx81 was the keyboard also they a fault when did print 0.125**2 or something like that and the answer should be 0.0654 and the zx81 would give out 65.560 so they would just change the zx81 for a new that could be reason you got a new one anyway I know you were happy getting a new zx81 until the keyboard died again about 12 months time :-)
Just felt sorry for the owner of that botched Mac repair. It's sad that so just to earn they gamble the repair in the expense of the owner. That person should sue the tech store or whatever it was and have them pay for what they did. If they are just honest and admit that they can't do the repair then that device could have still been salvaged and be a happy Mac again. Now the only use for it is more of a paper weight - a very expensive one. 😞
Macbook: “N-No it won’t fit in that hole! It’s too long!” Bad 💻 repair guy: “Don’t worry, daddy’s gonna make it fit!” Many Hours later... Louis: “Damnit, not another one! I’m so sorry they hurt you.” MacBook: 😥
Levin Soh he usually uses about two to three times as much as necessary. But the flux expires fairly quickly and the total quantities are tiny so it’s not as wasteful as it looks like.
I know locksmiths have "pinning trays" to keep all their parts organized. Seems like something microsolder ppl could use to prevent long screw damage and other problems.
Don't know if you've noticed, but Louis has similar tray under this macbook for the entire video. That black mat (about the size of Macbook) has nice pockets on top to keep stuff organized.
While I understand that you dont choose the ads that play during your videos, the irony of The Google pixel 3 ad that played at the beginning made me laugh.
I repaired my wife's screen on her old Iphone 6 so she could get her old pictures. Noticed the Tmobile repairman that serviced it last had forgotten to put in a screw on the front button plate and put a long screw in the short hold and a short screw in the long hole elsewhere. Why...
Maximos Respectos Louis. In 7 days it will be the one year anniversary of me saying good bye to my kitty. I'm sad but happy since I have many great memories with my buddy.
Can you please make a worldwide list with independent repair shops? We only have iPhone repair people here. But they don’t give a shti about the quality of parts. Just using the cheapest lcd they can find. They really destroy the reputation of your industry
There was a "computer tech" in my area of the world that did some really terrible things. I was called in to fix things that guy broke or could not fix. I gathered evidence after realizing he was not just terrible at being a computer tech but that he was stealing parts and replacing them with inferior and more often than not smaller sized parts such as ram and hd. After I had enough evidence I turned it over the law enforcement. I can only assume he no longer does that or got fined or something because he no longer lives in the area and no longer works on computers that I can tell. People can be horrible.
I stay in South-East Asia, and they are extremely good in fixing stuff, probably much better than the average shop in Europe or the USA (except for you Louis). The guy just had bad luck, he should have gone to a more specialized shop.
it sounds to me like the customer went to an unspecialized shop and gave the guy instructions on what to resolder because he didn't have the shop and tools himself
Hi Louis, I have been fixing my friends electronics for a couple of years now, especially Apple products since sometimes they would like to fix the devices but can't afford it so they take into account that I might f it up. It is mutually beneficial - fun for me, cheap repair for them, well like 90% of the time :D I will probably never go into business of fixing electronics, but wanted to thank you for the work you do. You are an immense source of help, knowledge and inspiration. Fcuk haters and SOLDER ON :D
I fucked up repairing a phone once (not really my main job, kinda like a hobby). I had to pay for it, I did tell the customer though either he wanted the same phone or equivalent money. He chose the phone though. 1 month later I figured out it's just a grounding issue to the touch microcontroller. "Free phone" I guess
Only if my screw is long and thick enough for said hole. Otherwise, it will be totally lose and won't damage anything at all. And I am a small screw person, so...
I had to pause at 6:30 and laugh my ass off "And because this board was touched by a fucktard"...I seriously fucking love this man and can identify with him on so many professional levels.
This is why we Turkish guys dont buy apple, the technical supports are garbage. If I get one, as a software engineer, and if the mac stops working, I cant diagnose or I cant trust any support in action. This is why I always use desktop windows/linux byop machines, easy to diagnose, easy to switch parts, you are in controll. I feel you brother, sorry for that. And great job Louis, I wish to work with you...
Louis-ness is not defined by the amount of (Physical) Louis existing within a person. But rather, it is defined by the amount of character that is similar to Louis.
Dude My macbook air display stopped working around 7 months ago. Me and my dad sent it to the local computer store who diagnosed it for over a month! I had a presentation to complete in that timeframe. Anyway i used my dad's work laptop for my presentation. After that month the guy said that the laptop had a cracked lcd and costed us 749 USD to fix it. Again it is a 2017 macbook air which is cheap. We took it back home and decided to take it to an apple store. They fixed it for us for free on the same day.
hey man, thanks again for your videos and your time. quick question, what do you use to clean the flux from your mat? im using baby wipes and a bit of alcohol
I have used a heat gun to reflow solder joints for older PS3's.... Fixed several, one was unable to be fixed that way... Now I just refuse reflows. Hell, I only take basic computer repair now. I wouldn't work on most macs outside of replaceable ram and hard drives or os repair. Most everything on macs are soldered on now.
Both microphones were great, but holy heck, I looked at the price for the d:fine 4066 you used to use and WOW that's expensive. $600! I'm fine with either mic.
Louis, I found this microscope new for $50 and it's portable. not going to post the yt or shop link but what do you think about budget portable microscopes? it was called "Portable Digital HD 1080p 3.6MP Video Scope Magnifier Microscope w/4.3" Screen" in the shop. I want to buy it but idk
OMG, I just watched a guy soldering for 20 minutes! I loved it.... I understand you all were joking about the amount of flux used, but to my uneducated eyes, it looked like he used about whole toothpaste tube worth
