I'm definitely a little obsessed when it comes to coiling my cables properly. I take great pride in my wicked-awesome technique as I carefully twist each coil over the other to make a tidy, perfect bundle. Recently, however, despite my best efforts in ninja cable-coilery, my Apple 65W Powerbook Power Adapter bit the dust- a cable short in the pull relief, right where the cable exits the brick. Ugh!

With nothing to lose, I cracked, smashed and pried 'er open and managed to hack together a decent repair job. A few hours and a few screwdriver-induced injuries later, she's ugly! but working again!

Here's how:

Apple designs their power adapters to be disposable. They're not only friction-sealed like their iPods, they're physically glued shut. If you want in, you're going to have to work for it! Get a flathead screwdriver, 2 old butter knives, a few band-aids and get cracking. It also helps to have a handy partner who shares your passion for smashing things, but those can be notoriously hard to come by!

The culprit: a cable short in the pull relief.

The easiest place to start prying is near the large power plug, opposite the thin output cable; You should be able to see where the two halves meet. I'd also recommend leaving it unplugged for a few hours before you start sticking any conductive objects into an unknown power supply!

Now might also be a good time to say that I take no liability whatsoever for screwdriver injuries, electrocution, or any lost/damaged property arising from a shoddy repair job. This is only to be attempted if you know what you are doing (or can at least pretend to, like me) ok? ...good.

Cathy Wang:. Mighty destroyer of Apple products.

Apple really crams a lot into these little power bricks, so be careful. If you're using a knife to wedge the two shells apart, watch that you don't damage any components- they're closer to the plastic shell than you'd expect. You might also want to amputate the output cable before you begin, it'll make it easier to fumble with the brick. Update (06/12/08): After breaking open a second power adapter, I learned that a simple handsaw is much faster and safer than a screwdriver... Skip the flat-head and grab a hacksaw!

Something else to note: Between the outer plastic shell and the circuitry inside is a very thin metal shield. When you start getting the thing to open up, make sure you don't pry off the metal shell. (see picture.)

The pull-relief. Slowly cut away the soft plastic to expose the knot inside. Be careful!

Getting it open is 70% of the work. Once she's cracked, the rest is easy!! Find the soft plastic pull-relief. It's the small blob that stops the cable from ripping out when you yank on your power cord. Buried inside the blob, you will find that the cable is tied into a small knot. Get a pair of clippers and carefully start cutting off the soft plastic, making sure not to cut into the cable. CAREFULLY!!! Use small snips! It will take a few minutes, but once it's free, untie the knot and you'll find you have more than enough free cable to start stripping off insulation and finish the repair. Update (06/12/08): SLOWLY, dammit. If you aren't very careful, you WILL slice into the cable. I can't stress this enough...

The rest is straightforward. Strip off enough insulation to work with, and twist & solder the brick back onto it's amputated tail (no hard feelings, right?). Tape up the joint and make sure you have no shorts. Carefully inspect the adapter to make sure you didn't damage any components when you pried it open and you're done! Seal the two halves back together, get out the electrical tape and start taping.

Tada! Ugly, but functional. (Hey, just like me!)

You may also want to zap-strap a twist of cable around the body for extra pull-relief, just to make sure you don't have to do this all over again. It will shorten the adapter a bit, but it's worth it in the long run. It's also a good idea to give the thing a quick test before you tape it all up, but be careful, you've got mains current buzzing around inside!

If you want to read a bit more about the procedure before attempting it (a wise choice), there are plenty of good articles out there to be found.

Good luck!