Macbook Air - STRANGE Problem with boot.

I have the strangest problem i've ever seen with a computer. I'm fairly capable of hardware and software installs. I used Slackware linux for nearly 10 years before switching to Mac. I've also repaired laptop screens, hard drives, etc. I've built tons of desktops. I've switched wireless modules and modded my old laptop to increase wireless range for kismet and WPA/WEP cracking. In short, I'm very capable of fixing hardware and working on laptops. However....

I have NEVER seen an issue like this one. I recently replaced my macbook air HD with a SSD drive and I ran into the typical issues and considered them resolved after a few hours of work. The laptop has been working perfectly for nearly 2 months. Then I rebooted it for an update and the dreaded flashing folder came up. Then things got a little strange...

I tried to boot from CD and fix the issue, but the SSD was no longer recognized. I thought maybe it got banged around or something and the cable disconnected?? I was really out of ideas. I turned the laptop off, unscrewed the back, unplugged the battery, and inspected the SSD. No problems. Plugged the power back in. turned the computer on WITHOUT putting the case together and the computer booted fine. No problems. Thinking the problem is magically now resolved I put the case back together (by "case" I mean the bottom of the laptop (8-9 screws)). Guess what? Now the folder icon comes up! It won't boot or recognize the SSD!

I take the case off and try again. No case - boots fine. Case on - won't recognize SSD. lol. For the life of me I can't figure out what the **** is going on.

Now, if I take the bottom of the laptop off and press the power button it works perfectly. As soon as I put the laptop together, no go.

INFO:
Macbook Air - 2009 version
AMP SSD 64 GB

Any suggestions?

Sounds like a failure related to wiring, grounding or a short. You will need to isolate whatever is moving during the assembly. Good luck.

yea..

Yea, I looked into that. No progress. Any other thoughts? Anyone had any kind of similar issues?

Having been in the electronic repair business I've seen this with everything from consumer electronics to complex expensive government equipment. In almost every repair case, it was pretty much as XJ said in the previous reply.

Look for grounding shorts, pressure on the connectors, etc. Just keep at - use a magnifying glass, wiggle things around, and so forth. You'll find it eventually.