MP 1,1-5,1 Repairing a damaged cMP casing

[JedNZ]

I just bought another cMP 4,1 8-Core (2.26GHz) - Apple 5870 1GB GPU - 22GB - original BT card on an auction site - a steal! It was delivered by a courier company, and my excitement all evaporated as soon as I took the packaging off. F#$kers!



Damn!! Bloody criminals.

The couriers are likely to only pay what I paid for it - which is half what it's worth. Of course I was going to upgrade it (to two X5680s, and install a Metal GPU, NVMe PCIe, USB 3.0 or 3.1 PCIe, BCM94360CD 802.11ac/BT4.0 mini PCIe etc), and then sell it all for tidy profit, so I don't just want my money back - it's still a damned good machine with plenty of potential.

The cMP works perfectly - I've upgraded it from the original 81.x firmware up to 144.0.0.0.0. It's otherwise in PERFECT condition. So it's such a disappointment to have a broken foot spoiling the looks of it.

Couple of questions:
Q1: What is the best way to straighten/panel-beat the feet so the cMP doesn't sit on a lean? Any techniques or advice? Rubber hammer? Pry bar? (I'd remove the CPU tray first of course)
Q2: Are there any long term issues swapping the CPU tray from this cMP into my kids hexa-core cMP (both upgraded 4,1 models to 5,1 and FW 144.0.0.0.0)? I've swapped the trays between my hexa-core and 12-core a number of times, just to sort out issues - but never for more than a couple of restarts.

 

[crjackson2134]

Wow... Sorry for your loss... :-(

 

[tsialex]

Couple of questions:
Q1: What is the best way to straighten/panel-beat the feet so the cMP doesn't sit on a lean? Any techniques or advice? Rubber hammer? Pry bar? (I'd remove the CPU tray first of course)

If I remember correctly, someone here had the same problem and got it level again, maybe you will find the post he describe what he did.

Q2: Are there any long term issues swapping the CPU tray from this cMP into my kids hexa-core cMP (both upgraded 4,1 models to 5,1 and FW 144.0.0.0.0)? I've swapped the trays between my hexa-core and 12-core a number of times, just to sort out issues - but never for more than a couple of restarts.

Single CPU or dual CPU, it's the exactly same backplane, PSU, case, fans - absolutely no difference. You can replace a single tray with a dual without any worries.

 

[majus]

Since it is one piece of metal wrapped around the core, there isn't any way to fix it without leaving noticeable marks. If it were my problem I would file the claim, hope they pay everything I paid, then look for another one. The person who sold it should have packed it better. Ideal would be the original box, second choice would be the special box OWC sells just for shipping MacPro cheesegraters; around $49.

 

[MIKX]

You could try putting a metal slab as long as the length of the top of the case - on the top ( above the DVD drives area ) with foam rubber upper & lower and then a suitable car jack to gently lever the handle up into position.

I under stand your evaporation.

Hope this helps.

 

[zipgs]

Depending on the shipping company, generally they will pay out and let you keep the item, but only if it was packaged well, which is unlikely given the damage. If it was, ask the seller to file a claim, maybe they'll give you $100-$200 or something for the damage. That should cover a case if you wanted to repair it.

I've tried, and was never able to get it to look much better, you can bend it and hopefully make it stand up straight and allow the side to be removed, but that's about the best you can hope for.

I did learn later that you can actually remove that entire metal piece (the one side and the feet and handles), that'd give you the best chance of attempting to straighten it, but that's a lot of work to remove and put it back on, and you still couldn't make it look good, the bent metal is going to be discolored, and the one side broke loose, it'd just be a little less bent that what you can do without removing it.

 

[macguru9999]

I had one here that had been dropped. The bottom rails were bent so i cut them off with a hacksaw and epoxied two rails on the bottom to about the same overall height. They were wood. When the computer was on the ground it looked fine.

 

[edgerider]

just did one my self,
as I was selling one of my machine, of course i dropped it in front of my customer when opening my booth...
it was in a protective case and i kind of grabbed it before it landed but same **** : a bent handle.

so basically first thing first get some loctite 3450 liquid metal , some true acetone , 2 pièces of 2x4 , and some really sturdy pressclamp, and some rachet strap.

the issue here is that the aluminum is very springy .... and you absolutely cant pry on the case or you will bend the case also.

you want to attach the un bent side with a piece of 2x4 slided in the handle to a pole, and use the ratchet strap to pull on the bent handle.
you want to give some good pull, then slowly by slowly pry it back.

once it is realy close, wipe with aceton, and glue it.

if it is still 1/4 inch apart the glue isn’t strong enough, you have to get it very close to make it stay.
use tape to mask all area because this gue is a mess.
before it gets to tacky remove the tape, result should be good.

the idea is to recreate the inverse motion that have bent the machine....
so you need a way to have the machine really well attached to something very strong , and use the rachet strap to exerce the opposite force to the one that bent the handle.

dont use anything close to a hammer and hit the case. you will definitely hurt the machine.
to un bent the flat part of the handle, while in tension with the rachet strap,
use a pair of vise clamp , 2 pieces of wood and a 1/2 » drill bit to exert pression on the bend. place the drill bit on top of the bent, and clamp it to exert pressure on this bump while pulling with the rachet strap.

 

[Nabru50]

to un bent the flat part of the handle, while in tension with the rachet strap, use a pair of vise clamp , 2 pieces of wood and a 1/2 » drill bit to exert pression on the bend. place the drill bit on top of the bent, and clamp it to exert pressure on this bump while pulling with the rachet strap.

My method was similar. The handle in the back was bent a little bit from what looked like a small drop, so I undid the screws on the inside of the case at the top. Then I wedged a ruler (I think just a wooden ruler or similar) between the gap so the ruler was underneath the un-bent part. Then I used a steel clamp to slowly bend the otherside back into the right spot. It left just a tiny ripple, but it looks way better now.

 

[rpmurray]

If you don't mind a few scuffs, scratches and rub marks then there's eight cMP cases going for $100 each with free shipping on eBay.