--- flawed jai <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > dragoth, sorry to crush your illusions about the > aluminum or magnesium > spacer frame, but, no, I really think it ain't light > metal. it's crummy > plastic, colored like light metal. metal rings when > you tap it. this > stuff doesn't even sound like pot metal. it wiggles > and wibbles like > plastic and there are no metal tear marks where it > gave way under the > force of 'godzilla's tearing at it, to get the hard > drive out. it just > snapped off like plastic does. no tool marks on it > like metal shows. > what a neanderthal!. couldn't even use a screwdriver > to undo the screws. > just tore and pried and broke it off!. a person like > that doesn't even > deserve to own a computer!
Dragoth is close to correct; the Duo frame stiffener is cast magnesium alloy. As a Mensa brain should know, "metal" is an imprecise term for about 80% of the known periodic table. They share a few common chemical properties like forming positive ions and basic oxides and hydroxides. To varying degrees, most share the physical properties of malleability, ductility, and conductivity (both heat and electrical). Gallium or mercury don't fit your paradigm, e. g. Magnesium alloys can be barely more dense than plastic (there is even a proprietaryindustrial technique, "ThixoMolding" that allows granules to be essentially injection molded), but conduct heat very well, which is why the stiffener has a big contact patch that fits over the CPU-- small on '030s, bigger on '040s, and attached to a foil butterfly on 603e's. It may flex by itself, but firmly fastened to the plastic shell, it adds quite a bit of strength and rigidity. If not for the thermal properties I imagine the stiffener wouild have been molded into the shell, as the plastic by itself is fairly rigid. The coloration is oxidation; if you scratch it with something sharp and hard, it should be whitish and lustrous. It should react fairly explosively with many acids, and if you get it hot enough it will burn spectacularly (kids, do not try this at home). The type of damage you see is typical for corporations and government agencies that are more concerned about physically destroying the hard drive than the computer's residual value, which is minimal when you consider that the cost has already been amortized and deducted for tax purposes. I've seen plenty where the entire bottom right corner has been torn off, case and all. Good luck getting it operating. BC __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax http://taxes.yahoo.com/ ---------- Duo/2400 List, The friendliest place on the Net! A listserv for users and fans of Mac subportables. FAQ at <http://www.themacintoshguy.com/lists/DuoListFAQ.shtml> Be sure to visit Mac2400! <http://www.sineware.com/mac2400> To unsubscribe, E-mail to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To switch to the DIGEST mode, E-mail to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Need help from a real person? Try. <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ---------- Dr. Bott | 10/100 Ethernet for your 2400 is finally here! MPC-100 | <http://www.drbott.com/prod/mpc100.html> RoadTools $30 PodiumPad available at Apple retail stores, $20 Traveler CoolPad at Staples. Both in white for iBooks at <http://roadtools.com> Midwest Mac Parts ][ <http://www.midwestmac.com> After-market parts for Macs. ][ 888-356-1104 ][ MacResQ Specials: LaCie SCSI CDR From $99! PowerBook 3400/200 Only $879! Norton AntiVirus 6 Only $19! We Stock PARTS! <http://www.macresq.com>
