Thinkpad Power Supply/weird noise

[87transam]

I have an IBM Thinkpad 380XD.  Everyone on it works fine, except the battery doesnt take a charge.  When it is plugged up with the AC adapter, it makes a high pitched whining noise.  It makes the noise for about 10 seconds, then goes off for 3 seconds, then starts over.  The computer doesnt have to be turned on for this noise to happen, just plugged in.  After its been on for quite awhile, I hear an "arcing" noise before the whining.  Kind of like there is a spark jumping inside the computer.  Its hard to explain.
The only thing I can compare it to is when my mom's computer's power supply went bad.  It was a desktop.  
I have another Thinkpad here that doesnt make the noise.  Its a 380 something.  Not an XD...but still a 380.  Can I swap the power supplies to see if it helps?  Or is it a bad idea to try to swap components like that.?  Im fairly skilled with taking computers apart etc...just not laptops.  I know little about their inards.  Let me know what you think.  Thanks.

Justin

[John]

87transam, before you think about taking the laptop/notebook apart try it without the battery and just the ac adapter.

[87transam]

John...
Well I tried your suggestion and popped the battery out.  The noise went away.  So I guess I could assume the noise is due to the battery being shot.  But... here is the thing with that.  The other thinkpad 380 I have does not make that noise.  The battery Im using now is from that one.  I swapped them thinking that would make a difference.  It still made the noise, so I ruled out the battery.  But do you think its a safe bet that the battery being bad is causing the noise?  I was thinking maybe the power supply was trying to charge the battery, but since it couldnt take a charge, it was putting extra strain on the power supply.  Let me know what ya think now that I tried it without the battery.  

Justin

P.S.  Will I hurt anything if I run the computer with the battery out???  

[dcsun]

No, it shouldn't make any difference to it if the battery is removed, just be careful not to knock the cord loose or the machine will shut off ;).  It sounds like there's a problem with the charging circuit that's making the noise.

[John]

87transam, noises that computers make can sometimes be one of the hardest things to troubleshoot. Especially if the system is not with you to define the noise. It's like telling a mechanic that my car makes this noise and I think it's in the back.  The mechanic drives the car but hears no noise. Same senario applies here. You say you hear a whinning noise. Could that be a fan as it's about the only thing other than drives which move. If it were me and I was going to use this machine quite a bit I would seek to find a good laptop repair shop. If you are in the USA then contact Wesley at www.portablecomputer.com