Flyback in my iMac G3 broke. How to make the best of a bad situation?

[alexanderasher]

Long story short the flyback in my strawberry G3 broke and that sucks!!

Replacing it seems off the table as I’d either need to salvage another G3 or somehow find a place that still manufactures the bits. I don’t want to break another G3 just to maybe repair this machine if I’m honest. Plus I don’t trust myself with opening a CRT.

So I’m wondering, what can I do with the shell of this thing?
I’ve seen mods where people replace the screen with an LCD and turn it into a monitor for their laptop/desktop, would that be easier/safer than repairing the flyback?

I’d rather not go the fish tank route lol

 

[TheShortTimer]

Long story short the flyback in my strawberry G3 broke and that sucks!!

What exactly happened? The long story might help you receive an answer that helps you more.

Replacing it seems off the table as I’d either need to salvage another G3 or somehow find a place that still manufactures the bits.

They're still available but they tend to be expensive and we'd need to know which model you have in order to identify the flyback transformer required as they vary across the range.

Plus I don’t trust myself with opening a CRT.

Do you know anyone who is skilled in electrical engineering or is confident in using a soldering iron? Again, a lot of this hinges on what's happened to the flyback transformer. It just might need re-soldering.

 

[alexanderasher]

What exactly happened? The long story might help you receive an answer that helps you more.

I caught it’s exact moment of death on camera because it occurred during a test recording, here https://vm.tiktok.com/ZT83KT2Sr/
Warning, the sound it makes is painful 😭😭

Now it powers on with a chime, button turns green, and I hear the CRT try to start but then it clicks and powers off. From what I can tell all signs point to a busted flyback.


Not sure on specific model number but it’s a tray loading strawberry G3.

As for a friend who’s comfortable, I know someone who may be okay with giving it a shot. Depends on how expensive parts are tbh

 

[TheShortTimer]

I caught it’s exact moment of death on camera because it occurred during a test recording, here https://vm.tiktok.com/ZT83KT2Sr/
Warning, the sound it makes is painful 😭😭

Thanks for the warning! I've heard worse.

Now it powers on with a chime, button turns green, and I hear the CRT try to start but then it clicks and powers off. From what I can tell all signs point to a busted flyback.

Yes, this is confirmed by the description of symptoms in the link that I shared in my first reply:

Boot failure
When pressing the power button the light may turn orange, and the boot chime may be heard. Shortly afterwards the light may change to green, and the iMac may shutdown accompanied with a static popping sound. The iMac may not boot again for some time, but if it does the symptoms will reoccur.

Not sure on specific model number but it’s a tray loading strawberry G3.

As for a friend who’s comfortable, I know someone who may be okay with giving it a shot. Depends on how expensive parts are tbh

Again, quoting from "iMac G3 Issues and Care":

Tray Loading iMacs

I haven't worked on tray loading iMacs to confirm this but the flyback transformer model used in these machines should be 6174Z-1003G for the Revision1 board, and 6174Z-1017D for the Revison 2 board.

• The 6174Z-1003G model is equivalent to the HR Diemen HR46176 or HR 46176.
• The 6174Z-1017D model is equivalent to the HR Diemen HR46455 or HR 46455.

You'll have to disassemble it and check which revision board you have and then you'll be able to see whether you can track down the correct replacement FBT. To reiterate the author's warning, they're difficult to find at what I consider to be a relatively decent price. It may come down to how much you're invested in reviving the computer. There's a company that stocks the HR 46176 but they don't appear to have the HR 46455 but if you need the latter, it might be asking them if they can recommend other sources.

There is also the option to gut another iMac G3 for its parts but given the age of these machines, it may suffer from the same issue. If you do consider that route, you might be better off just keeping your existing iMac as a donor machine for its working parts.

Good luck and let us know how you get on and if you have more questions.