Soldering help, making a post

Dan, Thanks. I don't know how to get you directly so this was a hail mary.

I hate Apple doesn't really share. Never has though the ][ was so easy to figure out. I believe Right To Repair goes to all levels...

You're right. Having a reference board I'd just put it in this A1280 and be done with it. However, until my next stimulus comes in and I get the M1 mac mini, this is all I have. Goodwill doesn't see many of these.

The repair question remains. There are points I cqan tell either connect a component or were where the original connector was. But they are flush with the board. Any soldering I've tried won't take.

How can you solder to a flush level point on the board ? Be it a trace (copper) or hole. There has to be a way to connect a wire to those points.

As bizarre as it sounds, I could get a dremel tool, make a hole and run a hard point there then attach there. Come to think that's a good last ditch effort lol.m What's the name of a thin point/wire to put into the hole I drill ? Isn't there a real piece like that ?

Yes, it's randomly trying points, but what's the worsst that can happen ? It's already dead.

@capwalker666 - Sorry without knowing what the given trace is you're just assuming the line is correct. Drilling or cutting won't do either as again you would only end up damaging other lines.

Logic boards are like a multi layer cake! think of the frosting as copper foils that are sandwiched within the layers as well as on the top and bottom. But unlike our frosting model imagine you have lines of different color frosting in stripes going across and going in a wave! At some points the upper layer color and the one below are the same color and a "Via" hole was drilled and filled with a conductive wire or coating linking the two. Now I'm made a very small example of what a multi layer PCB is like in your mind Now think how difficult it would be to travel across the country by car without a map or any signage or even a compass it would be very difficult! Thats what we face here No idea where in the layers are or where they go!

Sadly, its time to get a new board there just isn't any way you can fix this.

@danj around 1983-1984 after I got my apple ][//// certificate I was put into the Epson QX-10 cert track. The only study materials were the schematics and results to expect at test points. Somehow I passed even having little electronics background. It wasn't until the PC and compatible that I went to pure logical (no schematics) troubleshooting. I remember IBM cert in Boca where the instructors simply bent a pin under on memory chips lol. I decided then to study up and got my Ham license. I even went beyond General Class.

@danj Them 2 meter got interested in packet radio. Getting an RF modem we could participate in TCP/IP and real internet over the air. I found a package called GRINOS where we had open source internet over the air. Of course you'd have to understand C to modify it.