Frustrated with the extent of the goop on the motherboard of the Apple ][+, I started pulling out the chips, with the idea that I would just take the motherboard home and stick it in the dishwasher. There are a lot of chips. Eventually I got them out, with no new casualties beyond the broken pin from before.
It took a long time and a lot of effort to get the keyboard disconnected from the motherboard, the keyboard connector having been very close to goop ground zero, and once I got it out, it seems to have very goopy pins. But at least I didn't lose any.
I put it in a big static shielded bag and was preparing to go, when it occurred to me that there is a shower in the basement men's room in my building.
Oh, what the heck. One thing I am not (and this could wind up being the death of some of these machines detailed here on this blog) is patient. I'd have to bring the board home, then bring it back, keeping it from being damaged on the T in the process. Why not just put the thing in the shower? That's a rough approximation of a dishwasher. So, off I went to the shower.
Before:
After:
Interestingly, that goop that just wasn't coming up through long, annoying scrubbing with alcohol and Q-tips washed right off in the shower. Oh the time I wasted. The SE/30 boards are going straight in the shower next time I crack those machines open, at least assuming that the Apple ][+ winds up ultimately working.
Unfortunately, I also discovered after the board shower that I somehow missed a chip. So, maybe that was a casualty too, though I don't know how specifically this would have damaged it. I pulled it out anyway.
The little lab space I have all this stuff in, being in a basement, has been equipped with a dehumidifier, so, I set the motherboard upside down on some paper towels to drain (after having shake-dried it and patted it down with paper towels), with the blower of the dehumidifier pointed at it. And went home.
Next time, I'm going to have to start dealing with the chips, a few of which (near the original home of the goop) have some pretty dodgy-looking legs. Maybe I'll just soak the legs for a bit in alcohol to loosen whatever it is and try to wipe them off. Hoping that will work. The amputated leg from the 74LS194AN is still sitting in the socket, and I may have to try to get that off. Oh, and actually, there was one socket (why did I not record which one??) that I actually accidentally pulled slightly off the board as well. It slid up in much the same way that chips slide out of their sockets, and there was no visible damage when I pushed it back down. It felt as if it were sliding back into place. So, I'm hoping that I didn't permanently break some necessary connections. I think there may still be a bit to do with this machine even after I put the chips back in, particularly with respect to the broken 74LS194AN and its socket, but I feel like the time when I can actually turn this machine on and see if it powers up is now within sight.
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