|
I have been dealing with one of the great mysteries of computer technology. We can build a robot that motors around Mars and sends back pictures; We can reduce the computer to the point that it is also a hand held computer; We can develop OS that operate 16 desktops at a time - next year 28; We can build a computer that runs on touch and needs no keyboard; but we cannot create a power connector for a laptop that will not fall out if you jiggle the laptop typing!! I've given serious thought to epoxying the plug into place. My plea: Has anyone come up with a way to keep the plug installed in the power port? |
|
Depending on the type of plug, and the device which you are plugging into, perhaps some of the following will provide you with some notions for a solution... 1.) Caveman had to rub two sticks together, or wait for a lightning strike to harness fire, but in the modern era we have matches. I've used the flap of a matchpack to shim between the battery and the sliding back cover of cellphones in the past when I had jiggly connections causing some of my cell phone models to arbitrarily lose power during conversations. A paper match itself is a great shim, and if it's too thick you can tear it in half length-wise, like the convicts in jail do to create two matches out of one - strip off the sulpher tip though ;) 2.) I like to call these "Marshal Stack cords" - the typical plugs that you stuff into the power supply of a PC. Why? Coz I always seem to be carrying around accessories and spare parts for repairing computers and electronics with me - including the power cables. I coined this terminology because once, when my guitarist (I'm a vocalist) showed up for a gig at the Whiskey A Go-Go without his power cord, I looked at the back of his head (amp) and noticed that the male pattern was the same as that for a computer power supply. Following a quick trip to the trunk of my car, he was soundchecking about five minutes later :) try cutting a thin strip of black camera tape (very cloth like, and not as messy as old, gooey, duct tape), and wrap it around the head of the female plug. Trim and size to fit - it should stick nice and snug for years to come. Visit Talley, or Belkin, and if you must, eBay, and get a cable and then you can epoxy that self-created dongle (about three inches should do it and allow you to safely tuck your laptop into your case) into your laptop or other device. Then plug the manufactured plug into that one. A little research and perhaps a soldering iron might be required, but with care, it should suffice nicely. Hope that helps! Kindest regards, Bradley . |
|
Working off the hint from TallShip using a paper match as a shim, I simply built up the edge of the hole in the side of the computer with a small amount of epoxy. Once dry the epoxy is as ridged as the body. I now have to squeeze the plug through the hole to the jack, but it doesn't fall out any longer. Thanks all for the ideas. |
|
Seems like you might have loosened the female side (the part inside the laptop) of the connection from the wire being pulled numerous times. I am wary if suggesting anything involving solder to somehow enlarging the plug itself. What I would do it it reall drives you that crazy is try looping a rubber band around the bend (or if it is straight around the taper in the wire and wrap the rubber around the screen pushing all the way down to the base of the screen. [url=http://www.freeimagehosting.net/image.php?254bf8c29e.jpg][img=http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/th.254bf8c29e.jpg][/url] |
|
Here is a fix for this problem |
The model of laptop might help people suggest ideas.
Personally if you had a recent enough Macbook (pro or otherwise) then you'd have the magnetic power adaptor :-)