47 Comments
- psylence, on 10/12/2007, -2/+29Step 1: Find screws
Step 2: Find correct screwdriver
Step 3: Unscrew screws
Step 4: Pull apart
Step 5: Repeat 1-4 as needed
There, I saved you the time. - Yoshi39, on 10/12/2007, -1/+27You forgot
Step 6: Throw away after you realize you can't put it back together - 4thgeneration, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19What's with all the negativity? It's a young resource, it needs help from people to grow. Quit being an ass and help or don't comment on it.
- stuffhappens, on 10/12/2007, -6/+18Submitter should open apart the covers of a dictionary and check spelling before posting.
- isemism, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Dont forget to pry the plastic tabs and yank cables.
- isemism, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10I like how you can disassemble a PC power supply, but they don't show you how to discharge the caps... Someones going to get zapped.
- Ravenhaft, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10This looks really handy, anyone that has ever had to take some electronic piece of equipment apart will appreciate this site.
- isemism, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8http://www.takeitapart.net/archives/playstation2/
Research, my friend, research... - tomkinsc, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Greetings,
My name is Chris and I am the creator of TakeItApart.
Welcome! I'm really excited that digg has promoted TakeItApart to the mainpage.
As 4thgeneration mentioned, TakeItApart has only been around for a short time and needs your help to grow as a resource. If you've a screwdriver and a passion for getting inside gadgets, we welcome you to snap some pictures and upload a disassembly guide to our wiki. ( http://www.takeitapart.net/wiki ). It's powered by MediaWiki, the Wikipedia software, so its syntax should be familiar to many of you. You could also register in the forum ( http://www.takeitapart.net/forum/ ) if you would like to discuss taking things apart, modding, or pretty much anything else.
Also, if you think you can spare the time to take things apart on a regular basis, we are still looking for regular contributors. Drop us a line at jobs [at] takeitapart [dot] net if you're interested. Like I mentioned on one of the recent entries, we cannot pay as we are merely college students, but we hope to grow TakeItApart into the most helpful resource possible. We can use as much help as we can get.
With the recent promotion to the digg homepage as well as mention on the BBC, I'm just hoping my bandwidth usage doesn't get too out of hand and that visitors going to patronize advertisers will save my hosting bill.
Thanks and enjoy the site,
Chris T-T. - tohaan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Definitely not pointless. On a similar site I learned how to take apart my Creative Zen Micro. That saved me money and weeks with no mp3, all due to tacky soldering.
Digg - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Great site, I actually had a similar idea when I was looking for detailed instructions in taking apart my slimline PS2. I took pictures while I did so, with the intent to create the article that I couldn't find.
Now we need a Put-It-Back-Together.com, because I always have leftover screws... - frank3000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3i don't think the point of the site is to show you how to take apart stuff
(or at least thats what i take away from it)
- its to show geeks like me the guts of things which i cant afford/cant afford to take apart and ruin. later, when they have a vast library of electronic guts, it will me a great resource just for browsing, not research into which screw goes where. - Clemenceau, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Amazing! I am in total Tinkerer Heaven. This is a big step from the Tinkerer Purgatory I went through after frying my harddrive putting together my old comp the wrong way.
- slicedoranges, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I would've dugg if you proofread the title.
- tomkinsc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3If you looked closer, you might notice that many (most, I would say) of the devices shown require types of screwdrivers beyond simple slotted and Phillips. We've used Torx (T5, T6, T7, T10, T15), Tri-Wing, Hex (Metric and SAE), socket screwdrivers, security hex, as well as one instance of square drivers.
- caliform, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Yes, link470, why do we even have the "Check Spelling" option there anyway? And on our computers? Ah, to hell with grammar! I love incoherence on news sites!
- thecandyman, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4for the ibook you could use pbfixit.com
- refujee, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I like how they show you to take apart a desktop power supply and a laptop LCD, both extremely dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. The laptop submitter calls the inverter a POWER SUPPLY THING. Yes, it supplies the power to your frontal lobe when you get shocked by it.
- bsummersett, on 10/12/2007, -10/+12What's with the lack of spelling skills on Digg?
- tomkinsc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@mozy
You claim that there is not sufficient detail for the images to be of assistance. This is a subjective opinion, yet I will entertain your assertion.
Let us assume I were to use the full-size, 8.2 Megapixel images. Here's a little math.
To clarify, the total size compressed JPG full-resolution images for devices posted to TakeItApart as of 21 July 2006: 2.4GB. Averaged over the 32 devices which make up that amount of data, that is 76.8MB per device. According to server statistics, each user visits 6.57 devices (average) per visit. That is approximately 504MB per user per visit. Average that over the 40,000 users which have visited in the month of July, that is 19,710GB of data. My web host charges $3/GB for bandwidth beyond what has already been paid for. That amounts to $59,130 in bandwidth usage for _one month_. Over the entire year it would be $709,560 in bandwidth usage. I'm a college student. I don't have that kind of money. In order to adjust the site to operate against your assertion of "not enough detail," it would cost a bit less than three-quarters-of-a million dollars per-year.
If you're willing to pay that, great. If not, please do not criticize the operation of my website.
I do not appreciate the patronizing and antagonistic tone. I'm also not inclined the validate criticism from someone who joined digg less than two days ago. (Have you been blocked too many times on other accounts?)
I think you are also missing the point of TakeItApart.
TakeItApart exists to fulfill the curiosity of whomever stumbles across it. It exists to satisfy anyone who might wonder, “Hey, I wonder what’s inside this thing,” or, “So how does this thing work, exactly?.” It was made so we can show folks what the heck everyday gadgets look like on the inside, and how to take things apart. Curiosity is the primary reason we made it. It is a site for individuals who took things apart when they were kids, for people who have never thought about what makes their favorite gadgets tick, and for those who merely find it to be a curious website. If a disassembly guide helps someone fix a gadget, great. If it just provides a few moments of entertainment, then that is fine too.
Good day. - fantastcandy10, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2as somebody who loves tinkering with vintage fenders, I know how serious those little guys are. 500 volts in something as big as a D battery, ouch.
- tomkinsc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Ok, noted. It isn't a site for you. It still may prove helpful for a great number of other individuals.
If you want pictures with higher detail, I would be happy to mail you a full 8.2 megapixel photograph. Until bandwidth becomes free, image quality must remain limited to control costs. Clearly you have no concept of web hosting. - carpespasm, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2yeah, i'd appreciate being told about an up and coming site with potential rather than being told "hey, there's this site that does a hack every day, hackaday, they've been around for about a year and a half now, they're cool."
- gadgetsguy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It seems somebody took apart your WordPress...
I am getting a Wordpress error page
:( - tomkinsc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Also, those numbers take into account overhead from HTML, CSS, and Javascript.
- dupswapdrop, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hammer and a Screw Driver that's all you need.
- mannoo2009, on 04/10/2009, -0/+1very nice..
http://www.webhostingreviewz.com/explain-web-hosti ... - caliform, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Here's a walkthrough:
1. Download service manual.
2. Read. - computerdan000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Assuming you dont want to put it back together
- eryx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Square" screwdrivers are called Robertson screwdrivers. They are one of the greatest Canadian inventions ever.
http://www.robertsonscrew.com/company.html
I wish that American manufactures would get with the program, it is a far superior screw! - gfixler, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Didn't catch it before the edit cutoff, but it /used to be/ retrozone.com.
Now it's http://www.retrousb.com/ - gfixler, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I have a growing number of disassemblies, too. Mine are more about shooting shiny, clean pads at high res (7.2MP), with sharp focus, and very nice softbox lighting. Oh, and all were reassembled with no problems :)
Btw, RetroPads are real pads with a small USB chip and new cable installed to make them work on PCs - http://www.retrozone.com/ (not affiliated with them - just own many)
NES RetroPad:
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/107068/
Canon PowerShot Elph SD500 (not nearly a full take-apart - chickened out :)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/1603176/
Flipsiders "Checkered Flag" game from 1987 (not an electronic device)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/1735276/
NES Max RetroPad
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/1784875/
Gamecube Wavebird Wireless
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594051163804/
broken Nintendo DS (friend donation)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594053509585/
NES Advantage RetroPad
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594053744274/
SNES RetroPad
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594063066942/
WingMan Cordless (didn't get far with this glued-together thing)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594063104237/
black 20th Anniversary Rubik's Cube (reassembly)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594065054337/
white and black Rubik's "Assembly Cubes" (assembly)
http://flickr.com/photos/garyfixler/sets/72057594089454051/
And tonight I took apart and put back together a Game Boy Micro. I had to make my own screwdriver, as they have a proprietary miniature form of the triwing Phillips that seems to be unavailable anywhere online, including Ebay. Basically, I just filed an already very tiny triwing I had down even smaller. I'll have to get that set posted soon. - caliform, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Very nice article, it reminds me distantly of Make, and it has some nice tips. Dugg, although the spelling bothers me.
- supraman97, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0What site would this be?
I have the same problem. - damnthatsfunky, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0No snes instructions? Buried as ***** lame as *****.
- carpespasm, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2what's the deal with everyone reaming somoeone over an additional 'p' on digg? digg itself is misspelled. it's for news, not english comp. people mess up sometimes.
- eryx, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2I am sorry but everything I looked at on this site was retard simple (everything was even done with a Philips driver, no hex heads or those stupid diamond screws you find on children's toys at McDonald's.
usually when you take something apart it is to fix or improve it!
when takeitaparts starts telling me how to turn my electric tooth brush into a radio frequency inhibitor maybe I'll go there again. - mozy, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0Nope, I have absolutely no concept of web hosting, thats why I typed up my last sentence for no reason at all. Because hosting these stupid undetailed pointless pictures which basically show you "places to stick your screwdriver into" is much more useful than typing up "the screwdriver goes here"... no really. For the people who will actually RELY on your site for "guidance" on taking apart anything costly or important, I hope they have their receipts handy. But for those seeking to view "insides" of interesting electronics, they better look elsewhere for any kind of detail. Good luck.
- mozy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+0Not to be too negative, but this site isn't something I'd ever use. If I need to take something apart, I do it myself. Some site telling me to "unscrew here" or "take off this cover" isn't really something I'd turn to, ever. I've taken apart more things (and yes put them back together) than most people, and the secret is actually pretty easy: the secret is common sense. If you don't see screws, but see rubber/pastic pads, chances are the screws are under those pads. If you're trying to pry something apart and it's not coming apart, it's probably some latch holding the thing together. Sometimes it's hot glue. Sometime's its something you wouldn't consider first (like DB9/DB25 screw-mounts holding a case together). But my point is practice builds your knowledge on how to take things apart. But I guess there's always that chance of this site taking apart something brand new (like my VAIO UX180P) or something you don't want to play around with too much like an iPod. On another note, the fact that there isn't enough detail in the pictures makes the site more useless. Speaking of the pictures, how exciting is it really to see the same old "unscrew here" stuff? Come on, boring. A few lines of text to give you a hint wastes less bandwidth.
- neodon, on 10/12/2007, -11/+5It's "apart" dumbass. No digg.
- curiosa863, on 10/12/2007, -8/+1I did two searches, PSP, iBook. It had neither of them. What a waste.
- Pseudorious, on 10/12/2007, -21/+14I'll bet they can spell "apart" too.
- Pacotheparrot, on 10/12/2007, -10/+2Cute but utterly pointless. No digg :(
- curiosa863, on 10/12/2007, -11/+2Playstation 2 controller... no PS2... how terribly useful.
- link470, on 10/12/2007, -13/+2I entered the string of comments here just to see if someone actually pointed that out, and I'd digg them down if they did. Oops, dugg you down. gg.


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