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%% The Emulation Rambler                              By:  Jason Compton %%
%% A quick Make-It 486 bit...                      jcompton@bbs.xnet.com  %%
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I told you I'd run a review on the Make-It 486 upgrade chip in the C= 286
bridgeboard.  I've done so.

I couldn't get it to work.

First off, I don't suggest you even TRY unless you're good at handling
boards.  Having already successfully taken apart the 2286 board is another
big plus, because it's not easy.

Why not?  It's got a nasty daughterboard which is held on the main board
by three sets of connectors.  Tight connectors for a close board.

The Make-It 486 resides on a small circuit board.  The processor socket to
receive it is under the daughterboard.  Begin to see the problem?

It's damn hard to get that 286 chip out, even with the included puller
tool.  Once you do, putting in the 486 board is easy, if you get the
direction right.  But putting the daughter back on...it just doesn't fit,
not without bending the board to the point that I was afraid it might
crack.  So I tried to get it settled as well as I could and power up.

The computer reported that janus.library couldn't be opened.  The
BB wasn't being recognized properly.

I'll watch for success stories, but for now, the Make-It 486 seems like a
nice idea, but not implementable for us.  (Someone on c.s.a.emulations
suggested ribbon-cabling the daughterboard and putting it somewhere else.
Neat idea, but it may not work.)