Rebuilding a G4

Recently the local college brought me 4 Mac G4 desktops.
The removed the Harddrives as per their rules of donating their computers, but I want to get them back up and running to give to my kids.

They are just the towers them selves, no keyboard, no mouse, no monitor.

I need to get Hard Drives for them and OSX, but I am unsure on how much I am going to have to put in them to get them back running again.

Can someone give me advice on what I will need, how to install the OS?

You didn't mention what the processor speeds were of these Powermac G4's...but I can tell you if they are in the 400-500mhz range they're worth about $30 bucks each...and that's in 100% operating condition (plug & play).

A hard drive for each of them will cost you more then each is worth...so it basically depends on how much money you want to throw at these computers.

After you get a monitor, keyboard, mouse, hard drive, maybe ram, and an operating system for each one...you're going to find that you've spent wayyy too much to get a $30 dollar computer up & operating.

Just being honest so you know what you're getting into.

- Nick

If you could, look on the back. There should be a label with the basic specs when the Mac was new and and first purchased. It might say something like 450Mhz, 256k, ATI, 56K ETC.

The older G4 Powermacs have a limit like older PC's of 128GB for the hard drive. The Quicksilver and MDD will take any sized hard drive. All use IDE (ATA) drives. Also the Memory (RAM) is different depending on which model's these are.

So find what info you can. I take it these are Mini towers? Gray case with door that opens on the side?

If you can take a pic of them and post it also.

pigoo3 said:

You didn't mention what the processor speeds were of these Powermac G4's...but I can tell you if they are in the 400-500mhz range they're worth about $30 bucks each...and that's in 100% operating condition (plug & play).

A hard drive for each of them will cost you more then each is worth...so it basically depends on how much money you want to throw at these computers.

After you get a monitor, keyboard, mouse, hard drive, maybe ram, and an operating system for each one...you're going to find that you've spent wayyy too much to get a $30 dollar computer up & operating.

Just being honest so you know what you're getting into.

- Nick

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Have to agree...unless you have parts laying around like we do it may cost more to fix them than there worth ...you could just buy one ready to go.

And with dtravis7...tell us more about theses machines...I need a zip bezel for a Quicksilver.

Gentlemen, this is not about economic rationale, but about restoring useful machines!

There are used drives galore out there, an 80 or 120 Gb one for a G4 would not cost the earth. Check out the online auctions applicable to your location.

There's also used RAM, but be sure it's the right type. Monitors - peanuts!

[rant]There's a long-standing tradition in NZ to keep just about everything going for as long as humanly possible. Mac_SK will know all about hoarding Mac parts for when they just might be needed. I never throw away an operating hard drive if its discarded host computer is less than 20 years old. Latest don't always mean greatest.[/rant]

For your guidance, download Mactracker http://mactracker.ca/. It will tell you almost everything you need to know about what the G4's will need, or can accommodate.

I think your biggest expense is likely to be a MacOS installation disk set.

Keep us posted about developments so we, the Hardy Bunch, can assist you further.

hughvane, I agree with you. I was going to say something but did not want to push anything on anyone.

As long as you know the machine is not worth much but still want to get it going, then go for it! I do it all the time. Sometimes for fun and other times to give to a friend to try to see if they like OSX. I have found 40-120GB IDE drives on Ebay from $8-15.

That is why I am hoping the OP can give us a bit more info to go on. If these machines are G4 Yikes with PCI Video, they might not be very useable with todays internet for his kids. The newer the G4 Powermac though the better it is and will do just fine for basic use his kids would use it for.

I love to mess with old computers and get them running. Like Mac_SK I do have a lot of extra parts lying around but my old hard drive pool is going fast! Need some more old drives!

"hughvane" & "dtravis7"...I certainly agree that sometimes it's not all about money...I mostly wanted the OP to be aware of the costs involved in getting a possibly 8-10 year old computer (no OS, no monitor, no HD, no keyboard, no mouse, etc.) up & running.

Plus the OP mentioned having 4 of these computers...so the costs could be multiplied by as much as 4x.

For example...let's be really generous & say the OP can get a CRT monitor ($10), used mouse & keyboard ($10), a used hard drive ($10), and a 512 stick of PC-100/PC-133 ram ($15)...for a total of $45 bucks. I think some of these prices are a bit on the "generous" side...so actual costs could be higher. And of course the toughest part is getting an OS for each computer.

But honestly...when you're aware of the cost of things...and what you can get for the money...it's just so much easier (as you guys know) to buy a computer that's 100% ready to go.

As a recent example...last Sunday I purchased a:

- Powermac G4, 733mhz
- 1.5 gig of ram (at least $10 bucks (used)/512 meg stick on e-Bay)
- 40 gig HD
- Zip Drive
- included an Airport Card ($25-$30 by itself on e-Bay)
- original "gray" install/restore disks
- the 4-CD set of Tiger (10.4) OS install disks ($100+ on e-Bay)
- and an HP 1210 "All In One" printer (plus an extra black & color ink cartridges)

---all of this for $30 bucks!

When I personally come across deals like this...this is what I'm using as my point of reference when commenting on the OP's situation.

Now of course the OP didn't elaborate on what sort of Powermac G4 we're talking about. If we're talking about some MDD (Mirror Drive Door) Powermac G4's...I certainly would consider these a better candidate for resurrection than 400-500mhz G4's.

- Nick

p.s And certainly in the "real world" of computing $45+ dollars is not a whole lot of money to spend/computer (OP has 4 of them) to get an "old buddy" up & running. Plus if it makes some kids happy in the process...then money well spent.

I really am/was hoping the OP will return and give us more info.

To Pigoo, I have nothing against you pointing out the worth of the machine. It's just at this point we don't even know which machine he has! Grin

Again I hope it's not a Yikes G4, you know Pigoo the only G4 with a G3 Blue & White motherboard with different firmware. Same slow PCI video also!

My Yikes, (Yes I own one) had bad Cache ram on the 350Mhz G4. It would KP with Panther or Tiger before I could get to the installer. Tried everything. Nothing fixed it then something told me, try your G3-350Mhz COU in it. Bingo, no more KP's. Got a 400Mhz G4 and issue was gone forever. Got the CPU for maybe $25.

But I do agree, for the average person, it's not probably a great idea to throw a lot of $$$ at a really old machine, but for us crazy computer people, it's sure a lot of fun to get a old machine working again!

dtravis7 said:

But I do agree, for the average person, it's not probably a great idea to throw a lot of $$$ at a really old machine, but for us crazy computer people, it's sure a lot of fun to get a old machine working again!

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Yeah...us "crazy" computer people usually have a bunch of spare stuff laying around to get something like the OP's computers up & running.. If we don't...we can always wait until the right used part(s) deal comes along...and then we get the parts we need super cheap!

It sounded to me that the OP didn't have spare parts...and maybe not in a BIG hurry to get them running. But when children are involved...who knows how fast the project needs to be completed...and I didn't want the OP to spend lots of bucks...and turn these 4 computers into a "money pit".

Yes...hopefully the OP will let us know what exactly we are dealing with...and what their thoughts are from a budget standpoint.

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Yeah...us "crazy" computer people usually have a bunch of spare stuff laying around to get something like the OP's computers up & running.. If we don't...we can always wait until the right used part(s) deal comes along...and then we get the parts we need super cheap!

It sounded to me that the OP didn't have spare parts...and maybe not in a BIG hurry to get them running. But when children are involved...who knows how fast the project needs to be completed...and I didn't want the OP to spend lots of bucks...and turn these 4 computers into a "money pit".

Yes...hopefully the OP will let us know what exactly we are dealing with...and what their thoughts are from a budget standpoint.

- Nick

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As we know I dig stuff out of dumpsters...have a box full of drives..memory sticks and own every Mac OS back to OS 7 "sorry no Snow..yet" and yes you can pick up big VGA monitors for $5.00 ...Ive seen them for 99 cents and windows keyboards for $2.02. But Im in no hurry to fix stuff and can wait for the right deal..just fix a HP P4 laptop I had for over a year now. I guess its only a deal if you got the stuff to fix it.. Im not a dealer so I would find homes for extra machines like the OPs as well.

Mac SK said:

As we know I dig stuff out of dumpsters...have a box full of drives..memory sticks and own every Mac OS back to OS 7 "sorry no Snow..yet" and yes you can pick up big VGA monitors for $5.00 ...Ive seen them for 99 cents and windows keyboards for $2.02. But Im in no hurry to fix stuff and can wait for the right deal..just fix a HP P4 laptop I had for over a year now. I guess its only a deal if you got the stuff to fix it.. Im not a dealer so I would find homes for extra machines like the OPs as well.

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Yeah...if you keep your eyes open...CRT monitors can even be gotten for free.

I actually have some 21" CRT monitors that I'm getting real close to offering free on Craig's List. Last time I asked $10 each for them I basically got no interest.

If someone is willing to wait to find the needed parts cheap...then rebuilding an old computer is doable on the cheap side.

- Nick

dtravis7 said:

but for us crazy computer people, it's sure a lot of fun to get a old machine working again!

Click to expand...

Thats why we are C R a z Y! My Mom said that the other day when we were digging in a dumpster for a used 2X4.;D

Mac SK said:

Thats why we are C R a z Y! My Mom said that the other day when we were digging in a dumpster for a used 2X4.;D

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Hey when I was at Home Depot the other day...I got some free 2 x 4's from the Home Depot garbage bin in the lumber area (had to ask the Home Depot person if I could have them if they were just throwing them away)

- Nick

'Scooze me, but what's a "2x4"? [nah, nah, I do know actually, it's you chaps way across the Pacific there who still think in inches. In NZ it's 100x50 - or even 50x100 (mm).] Here it can mean a quad bike with rear-wheel drive only. Now isn't that interesting.

Back to topic. To the OP ... check online auctions regularly, looking especially for the office and school cleanouts. You may have to 'take the lot' to get the 25% you actually need/want, but Nick or Mac_SK will take the balance.

I visit the recycling places. Once the staff get to know me, they cease slamming the door in my face, or running away, and let me browse the computer dump. It's staggering, alarming actually, what good material is being ditched by commercial companies. They can't be bothered advertising used goods for sale, giveaway even, because they say it's too time-consuming.

hughvane said:

'Scooze me, but what's a "2x4"? [nah, nah, I do know actually, it's you chaps way across the Pacific there who still think in inches. In NZ it's 100x50 - or even 50x100 (mm).] Here it can mean a quad bike with rear-wheel drive only. Now isn't that interesting.

Click to expand...

Thanks man! It's always interesting to learn how different terms mean different things in different places. Also interesting to learn that a 2 x 4 here in the U.S. is a 100 x 50 or 50 x 100 in NZ.

- Nick