—GUTTING—

So you want to make a MacQuarium? These pages will show you the steps that I went through to create mine.

1. The most important item you will need is an old Macintosh. Duh! Most preferably a Mac that has suffered a terrible death. The one shown below had one too many Cokes splashed on it. The remnants of the last Coke my Mac was doused with is still visible (lower left corner) not to mention coffee, mochas, iced tea, etc.
   (Throughout this site if you click on a small picture you will be able see a larger version of the picture.)

2. Step one in gutting the case is "cracking" the case. To do this you need a tool that at one point in time cost $17.95. That is the price—I was quoted seven years ago at a computer store, which will remain nameless, needless to say I didn't buy the tool-I made one. I named my tool the T-15 SuperSecret Mac Cracking Tool. To start, find yourself two PaperMate® pens.

3. Next, you will need a T-15 hex head bit. If you don't have one of these lying around you can get them at nearly any decent hardware store. One of these shouldn't dig into your pocket for more than a buck (at most).

4. Take the pens apart and toss the innards of the pens in the trash (unless you have those dainty little fingers that could actually hang onto the guts of one of these pens).

5. Carefully heat up (using a hand held propane torch) the T-15 to the point where you will be able to mash it into an end of one of the pens. I would strongly suggest you wear gloves and use pliers when doing this. Unless you like the burning smell of your own finger tips. I used a hand held propane torch to heat up the T-15. Be careful not to heat it too much as it will melt right the pen. (I went through a half-a-dozen pens before I got it right.) The pen on the bottom is an example of what happens when the T-15 is too hot. I found it useful to have a dish of cold water nearby to quickly harden the melting plastic.

6. Next, take the pen with the T-15 sticking out of it and in the opposite end cram another gutted pen. When you finish you will get something that looks similar to-the picture below. If you are real observant you will notice that the pen on the left is not a PaperMate® (kudos for you). Well, I kind of ran out of my supply of PaperMate® pens because I had melted one too many when attempting to put in the T-15. You are now the proud owner of a T-15 SuperSecret Mac Cracking Tool or SSMCT.

Picture of the tools I used in this step-add gloves to the picture as well.

Now that my $17.95 tool is made, and my arm hairs are singed, and I have nothing to write with, we can continue with cracking the case.

7. On to case cracking! The picture below (left) shows the entire back of the Mac—the screws that you need to remove are circled in red. The picture on the right is a close up of the handle and the reason you had to make the SSMCT.

Too much pressure can strip the tip out of the SSMCT causing the need for you to start over (not that I have ever done this, yea right).

8. After all four screws are removed you will need to take a #2 flathead screw driver and GENTLY insert it between the front bezel and the rear portion of the case. You will need to twist the screw driver to make as much space as possible between the two pieces. While twisting the screw driver pull out on the front bezel with your other hand. Be careful to not markup the outside of the case.

9. Inside you will notice several "DANGER HIGH VOLTAGE" warnings. Do yourself a favor and pay attention to those warnings as there is enough stored electricity inside this little box to light you up like New York City during the millennium celebration. Apple was serious enough about the electrical warning to have the warning in seven languages.

10. I was fortunate to have a Mac that had already had the electricity discharged prior to me cracking the case. There are several places on the web that will show you how to do this. The one I found the most useful and understandable was Dr. Webster's Guide to MacQuarium (saddly-Dr. Webster's site is no longer up). Be sure to read the disclaimer. If you are not comfortable doing this step yourself you can take your Mac to a computer repair shop and they can discharge the electricity for you.

11. After you have discharged the electricity (and hopefully not into your own body) it is time to gut this once exquisite piece of digital electronic gadgetry. When you have finished gutting it you will have a pile of seemingly useless bits of wire, glass, plastic, and metal. (I saved the guts—I'll fill you in on that later). As a side note the picture below is a sad site for me as it will be for most Mac aficionados.

12. You have finished with the gutting process. Hopefully you are still fully conscious, your eyebrows have not been singed off by electricity, and you haven't burned yourself making your very own T-15 SuperSecret Mac Cracking Tool. Below is a picture to prove to you that it is possible. The stuffed animal is my tribute to tigers (the most magnificent and beautiful animal on our little planet).

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