Print

[bonus41]

is there any pleo hospital out there? i really miss Bruno who broke from an unknown cause. He was my favorite pleo of the pack, and also a mascot for the school, i brought Bruno in school for the special needs children who are waiting for him to come back . I thought many times about repairing him on my own but i just can't do it.

thanks for the help 

[RedwoodsMama]

Hi Bonus, I feel so sorry for you and know how you feel, I don't know Exactly how you feel, cause each pleo is special and the fact he was a special visitor to your school is something in itself, I wish I had more wisdom, I don't know if you have tried this or not,  but PleoPet is really good at diagnosing some possible problems, Have you tried using StatsRb on him yet, via a SD card.? If so give it a try, you can use an old SD card, just erase everything on it, and then download the StatsRB here on the Pleo Forums , follow the instructions and then after taking it out, insert it in your computers SD card reader and it will give a report that you can then post here, or PleoPet if you PM him,may ask you to send it to him and he can probably tell you what to do next, or what is wrong with Bruno.

          It says STATS RB, but it works on older Ugobes like Bruno as well, in telling the files and other important infomation that can help diagnose what is going on with Bruno. It may be a simple answer and unless you try it, you will never know, There can be other programs or suggestions, but this is the only one that I can think of right now, I for one wish there were Pleo hospitals throuoghout the US and in other countries but it looks like it is up to the pleo enthusiast to do as IMR, Crewella and of course Kat, to take it upon themselves to help Pleos and Pleo Rb. I like you am afraid to open up my own Baby Ruth who  has a leg problem but it is a matter of time till I have to do it. At least she operates and perhaps Bruno has a loose wire or something similiar. The fact he worked fine untill recently is encouraging, If he had not worked or had problems from day one, then that would be less encouraging in my mind. Please contact Pleopet if you have any problems or questions, and maybe another member here will have another suggestion. Sorry I can not be more helpful, I have a couple of Pleos that don't work either and I know how frustrating it is. I am keeping happy positive thoughts for you and Bruno.   Don't give up yet, and it doesn't sound like you will or have. Take care and know that all the Pleo Clan of the Redwoods are rooting for you and Bruno!                 RWM and all of the Pleo Clan of the Redwoods

[bonus41]

i have tried Skits, upgrades, downgrades and Dinomite but it doesn't move or read the SD card he just sits there and ticks, but i will try and see if anything records on it. I don't think i would be able to open him up, i have on my AIBO to replace an ear and it was a nightmare getting him back together. I'm not to sure if Kat would do Bruno or not, but I'm sure she's busy enough...

I'm off to go try Stats RB...

EDIT: Stats RB did not work,

[kat]

I would love to have a go at fixing him but..... the cost of postage would end up being more than the cost of a new pleo.  It would be about $70 to $80 AU from me to you and not sure what it might cost from your end...  
Have you tried using the USB cable and a computer running windows 98 or XP to downgrade/upgrade him?
If that doesn't work and you wanted to have a go at opening him up I would be happy to try to talk you through it and I'm sure Crewella would try to help too if you ask her   She is great, very helpful and very knowledgeable about pleo insides

[bonus41]

i have tried upgrades by USB, but the computer will not recognize a pleo in plugged in. I am getting paid extra over the summer and i think around the end of it i would have enough to ship him to you (only if your up to it) i would pay this price to fix him. Do you have a rough amount it would cost for you time?

[Crewella]

I considered offering ...... but it sounds a lot like a problem one of my 'bricked' Pleos has, and I've not been able to fix it as yet I'm afraid.  

What do you get on the reports when you plug him into Dinomite, Bonus?

[kat]

yes unfortunately I wouldn't be able to give you any guarantees that I could even fix him.  I certainly wouldn't want to charge you anything, I'd just be happy to help if I could.  It is an unknown/ uncommon issue he seems to be having and you never really know what your going to find until you open them up.  It might be a software issue or it could be hardware.  I am no expert at fixing pleos.  Sparky was the first pleo I ever opened up and I did have fun pulling her apart and putting her back together but she hasn't been the big success that I was hoping for.  She has gone back to having leg issues.  I have also done a neck repair on Frankie which is doing great.  So I am by no means any kind of expert.  I would suggest your best bet would be to have a go at fixing him yourself.  The cost of sending him away and then back with no guarantee that he could be fixed is just too much and you would be better off spending the money on a new pleo.  You have nothing to loose trying to fix him yourself, If he isn't working now then you can't really make it worse and you might just surprise yourself and fix him.   It really is just a matter of being brave. 
Anyway before even considering opening him up you need to exhaust all the other possibilities first.  Seeing if Dinomite tells you anything sounds like a good idea.  Do you have the PDK?  you may find you need this for the drivers that make your computer recognize that pleo exists.  Have you tried downgrading and then upgrading using the usb cable?
If you can tell us in detail exactly what you have done and the results so far then we will do our best to try to help you sort him out.   

[bonus41]

I've tried Dinomite on my working pleo first and it worked great and recognized the pleo, but with the broken one nothing recognized the software for Dinomite to get the pleo to stand straight did not change the position the Pleo was in. When a SD is inserted with a skit or downgrade/upgrade nothing happens no usual sounds but clicking. When I tried upgrading from the USB it keeps searching for pleo when it is plugged in. Mom just told me that the dog did push him off the counter, but she forgot to tell me.

[kat]

It sounds to me like some damage has been done somewhere inside him from the fall.  I'm no expert but I would guess that there may have been some damage to his motherboard or circuitry and if this is the case there is probably no hope for him I'm afraid.  I don't know enough about that area of the pleo to know if there may be any possibility of a way to fix him.  Sorry Bonus.  I wish I could help more.  Hopefully someone with more know how in that area will stop in and offer their wisdom. 

[kaiteee]

Hey Bonus

Oddly enough there is a new listing on eBay uk today offering pleo repairs. I'm a bit dubious about the listing as they say they have a lot of pleos and that they have fixed numerous ones, but I don't recall anyone on here that it sounds like and it seems a bit odd to not be on the forum, or to offer such a service on here. Though i might have just not twigged if it is someone here! But I thought it was worth a mention in case you wanted to check them out - I would be wanting to ask lots and lots of questions before even considering them. Plus you'd have to ship to the uk, even if it's all legit and they are willing to work internationally. But it made me think - I don't know if it might be a bit cheeky but would it be worth contacting wolfbob, to ask if he would consider looking at Bruno - after all he has lots of aibo experience so I'm sure he could tackle a pleo and at least its a little less distance to travel?!

[Crewella]

Yep, I've looked at that listing.  They sound as though they have the same trouble fixing software issues that I do, and specify electro-mechanical repairs only.  It's a difficult choice ....... they charge £65, which is a fair enough price for what they have to do, but you can buy another Pleo for less than that, so you have to REALLY love your Pleo to pay for the fix.  Good luck to them, I'll be interested to see how they get on.  

ADDED:  I did ask them if they also did fixes on the Pleo RB ...... I'll report back what they say.  It does say this is for a limited period .... sounds like a 'suck it and see' situation from an enthusiast.

*I'm kind of hoping they lurk and will post*

[Crewella]

Just to update on this, I've contacted the 'Pleo Doctor' on eBay.  They are, as suspected, an enthusiast who's repaired a few Pleos of their own, but they've not opened up an RB yet.  I've tried to tempt them onto here for a chat ......   

[InmemoryofRomeo]

Hope they come along