You'll need to find the same brand/model of socket. Parts are not compatible between manufacturers. I'd say your best bet is to source a replacement socket and try your luck, but if the top part and lever don't fit you're in for a heck of a (de)soldering job.

quicknick wrote on 2020-12-27, 23:48:

You'll need to find the same brand/model of socket. Parts are not compatible between manufacturers. I'd say your best bet is to source a replacement socket and try your luck, but if the top part and lever don't fit you're in for a heck of a (de)soldering job.

That's useful to know, I can only see one socket online so chances of that being right seem slim at best. Real shame as rest of the board looks fine.

Desoldering the broken socket would be easy. You could replace it with a regular LIF socket, they might still be available new

Easy if you've got the patience to suck the solder out of 169 holes. I've done that while bored, just make sure to heat for 3 seconds on the pins you can see traces going to, and 10 seconds on the ones you can't, since those can be power and/or ground traces. The pins on these old sockets are very thin so it's not too tough.

I'd follow quicknick's advice, because socket's base is still in good shape, but if you care just about functionality and not looks, then replacing a whole socket would be your second option, though finding a replacement is going to be hard. I've dealt with this problem also, but in my case, socket's base was badly damaged so I had no other choice but to desolder it and source a replacement, luckily, one day I dug up a 486 MB from the ground and used it as a socket donor 😁

Possible sources for the socket 3: faulty cheap motherboards on ebay, amibay, local recyclers, NOS parts in online electronics shops or auctions.

P.S. Before doing any of that, put a CPU in that socket, firmly push it in the pins sliding direction and power MB on, you must be certain that MB is in order and attempts to POST.

Better make damn sure it's properly oriented and centered of you are going to do that without the upper pin grid plate to key it

maxtherabbit wrote on 2020-12-28, 04:04:

Better make damn sure it's properly oriented and centered of you are going to do that without the upper pin grid plate to key it

Yes definately ! Here is my rework of the current socket picture. The red circle is Pin one of 486, the yellow square is approximate of the outside edge of the cpu.
Drop in and gently push in direction of the yellow arrow. Suggest one with glued on heatsink or a SX25 w/o heat sink.
What you think Max ? is my diagram accurate ?

I was wondering if the push in and go method might work and equally hoping someone would be able to highlight where to start from 😀

Horun wrote on 2020-12-28, 04:34:

*pic*

I actually don't have a socket 3 board atm so I can't verify