Broken Pin on Power Supply

[watso]

I am a first time poster so please pardon the inexperience. I have a Dell Latitude 100 L. I believe the pin on the power supply is broken. If I play around with the power adaptor and drape it over the front of the computer at the right angle with just the right amount of tension, it will power up and run fine. If the wire is bimped or slioght ly moved by other means, the computer shuts down from a lack of power. Can the pin be replaced at a reasonable cost? I feel confident that I can disassemble the conmputer to get at the part.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Watso

 

[darroll]

When you take laptops apart, you can break things.
Please ask for help if you try this.

 

[detox1]

is it the pin or the power cord?

 

[Steve6375]

Do you mean the that the AC adaptor power plug is faulty or the power socket in the Dell laptop is faulty?
Can you visually inspect both to see if there is any problem?
I would suggest you first clean both using a cotton bud if possible and meths or alcohol (something that will not leave a residue). Also try bending the centre pin in the socket slightly so it makes better contact with the plug.
The most common cause of problems with these plugs/sockets is that you let the AC adaptor hang (dangle) from the laptop. This puts a strain on the plug and only very small contact points can supply all the current. This causes the socket to overheat and melt. Then damage is done to the solder mounted socket on the circuit board in the laptop. The manufacturer will usually replace the whole mainboard to fix this which can be expensive. If you try to fix it yourself, you need to be very careful as taking laptops apart is not easy!

 

[watso]

Steve,
Thanks for the help. I've replaced the power cord and it didn't solve the problem so I assume it is the pin. I've tried the leaning and benting that you suggested and it didn't work. I'm not interested in spending the money for a new MB so I am willing to take it apart and replace the connector. I have a friend that has done a lot of soldering so replacing the power socket seems like the logical next step. Do you know if these power sockets are standard or do I need to check for compatibility?