Apple iMac G3 DVD CD Drive Repair

This is a step by step Apple iMac G3 DVD CD Drive Repair.

This is part 2 of the Apple iMac G3 renovation.

This second Apple iMac G3 I acquired has been sat in the corner for long enough. This Graphite model comes with 600Mhz Power PC processor, 512Mb of ram a DVD/CD drive.

Sadly when inserting a DVD into the drive it seems to struggle loading the DVD and then won’t eject it.

Lets disassemble.

Disassembly

First place the Main unit screen down on a towel and remove the two screws marked.

Next remove the top flap to access the remaining case screws.

Remove the four case screws marked

Starting at the top gently pry the case apart.

Next pry the bottom of the case apart

Remove the case to reveal the RF shielding.

Remove the 6 screws around the edge of the RF shielding shown here

This next bit is a bit tricky as the shielding is tightly held in and also you need to be careful not to damage the VGA port at the bottom.

Start by prying away at the top of the shielding

Try to pry the the shield working from the top to the VGA port at the bottom. Try to work the shield away and over the VGA port at the bottom.

DVD HD Chassis

With the RF shield removed the DVD HD chassis is revealed which can easily be removed by removing the cable from the motherboard and two screws next to the speakers.

The chassis is easily removed by lifting first the cable end and carefully lifting the whole unit out.

With the unit removed the cable can easily be removed

To separate the DVD drive just remove four screws. Two are marked and there are two on the other side

Remove the bracket by removing the four screws, two on each side

The cable connector circuit board at the back by just pulls away once the two screws have been removed

Next remove the dvd drive top case which is held together by these two tiny screws, one on each side.

You will need to pry the top of the case away from the front first as there are tabs holding the rear.

Once the front is separated then slide the top case forward to expose the tabs at the back.

The top case can then be removed

The DVD was stuck in the drive but could was carefully removed by sliding it out.

To access the ejection roller just remove the black and white panel by removing two holding springs with tweezers, one on each side. The springs can be left attached at the bottom and just rested to the side. The panel can then be lifted up at the front and removed.