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Cracked laptop hinges

Neosodium

Experienced Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2010
Messages
119
Location
Oxfordshire, UK
I'm sure everyone here is familiar with old laptops that have the hinges cracked apart on the inside, resulting in a floppy screen. I was wondering if it is worth trying to fix such a problem, and if it has any other consequences other than making the screen a bit limp?
 
You run the risk of shredding the LCD ribbon cable. I normally would only fix it with epoxy only if I didn't have a replacement nearby because the process of epoxying it back together is annoying.
 
Well I certainly don't have a replacement, and unfortunately the bits where the screws go into are completely cracked to bits, so the actual hinge bits would have to be glued to the inside of the casing (no longer unscrewable)

I'll leave it as it is as long as having the hinges loose in the case won't make the laptop more fragile or pose a threat to the monitor (the monitor uses individual wires not a ribbon cable)
 
I have had very good luck with the putty type of epoxy in fixing things like this. While I haven't yet fixed a laptop hinge, I have fixed the ears on my 78 Corvette radio that were broken off. This has been in the car and holding the radio in the right position for 3 years now. Since the radio doesn't have any type of rear support, the stress on the screws and epoxy that they thread into must be greater than a laptop hinge. Especially when bumps occur.
Kipp
 
Thanks, that's encouraging. I'll see if I can get some putty epoxy :) I noticed the body of the laptop bows upward when opening the monitor so I'm going to have to glue the hinges somehow to prevent this. Only problem is the monitor is practically hardwired in (T3100) so getting the back section far enough off the casing to get at the hinges is going to be very tricky!
 
You might also want to see if a solvent-type cement such as Ambroid "Pro Weld" or Tenax 7R, both available at hobby stores. These work differently from glues like epoxy in that they add no material to the joint--they merely soften the existing material so that a joint can be formed after the solvent evaporates.

I've had great luck with them--the joint is often invisible and is as strong as the original material.

There are also plastic-specific epoxies, but I don't know much about them.

Regardless, be aware that old plastics suffer from having their plasticizers out-gas over time, leading to brittleness--and there's not a lot you can do about that.
 
Very common problem for the IBM N51SX/N51SLC also. I use JB's Cold Weld (make sure it bonds to the plastic; you can also roughen the surfaces where it goes). Build up a body around the plastic standoffs to beef them up.
 
The 'standoffs' are not just cracked, they have gone to pieces - nothing left of most of them except little shards of plastic that were rattling in the case. I don't think therefore a solvent-type cement would be much use.
 
If you don't mind a little defacing, you might replace the standoffs with traditional brass or aluminum threaded standoffs if the case geometry permits it. The screw through the outside of the case can be a flathead type, so that it at least looks correct.
 
Maybe more relevent suggestions could be made if you included some pictures.
Kipp

http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/7665/img0559ix.jpg

http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/1362/img0560xw.jpg

I think I'll try with epoxy putty to start with, I have managed to get the machine into bits and now have the hinges in clear access. Managed to make a mess of the plastic on the screen housing trying to pry it apart though :'(... (http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/7420/img0570gl.jpg)
 
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I'd rough up the damaged area before applying the putty. A small file might work or exacto knife. I use a wide blade putty knife when opening these type cases, it lessens the damage. Good luck, I think it'll work just fine.
Kipp
 
Okay, it's all back together now and seems to be holding fine (touch wood) so I just need to get the cmos battery sorted now :) and put a great big sticker over where I damaged the top of the screen cause I keep obsessing over it.
 
Do thinks like bondo and fiberglass filler (the stuff used to fill in dents in cars) work for this kind of thing? There has to be some plastic stuff modelers use also.
 
Do thinks like bondo and fiberglass filler (the stuff used to fill in dents in cars) work for this kind of thing? There has to be some plastic stuff modelers use also.

Bondo is great stuff, as is the fiberglass cloth. You could also use acrylic resin. I've repaired CRT bezels and equipment front panels that have been shattered. using Bondo and fiberglass cloth. After sanding and painting, you can't tell that there was any damage.

I recently retired an old Sony TV that fell on its face during the Loma Prieta quake and broke the bezel surrounding the CRT. Some pieces were lost as well. Good old Bondo saved the day and gave me almost 20 years of service.

If you have screws that need to be anchored, use threaded brass inserts--Bondo won't hold threads worth a darn.
 
Sorry, to resurrect an old thread, but since this is about T3100 hinges.... can someone confirm what the correct behaviour of the lid on a T3100/T3100e is? I just got one of these (which I'm very pleased with; especially the ultra-cool plasma screen) but I want to be sure there are no hinge issues on this one. When I press the latch on the front the screen springs up an inch or so, which I think is a good sign. But if I open it further - say, to about 45 degrees - then the weight of the screen drags it back to the same just-about-open position that you get when you press the latch initially. If however I pull the screen all the way open it sits there happily in the vertical position. I think that means it's ok, but It'd be cool if someone could confirm as I'm more used to modern laptops that stick firm at whatever angle you open them at, which this one definitely doesn't (then again it's not exactly a laptop anyway...)

I suppose I should just take it apart and have a look inside, but this thread suggests that isn't a straightforward process for a T3100, and I'd hate to damage it taking it apart only to find there was nothing wrong with the hinges to begin with.
 
...I suppose I should just take it apart and have a look inside, but this thread suggests that isn't a straightforward process for a T3100, and I'd hate to damage it taking it apart only to find there was nothing wrong with the hinges to begin with.
I wouldn't take it apart unless you have to. I've got a 3100e and a 3200 and have had both of them apart several times; not terribly difficult but not trivial either, and there are a few fragile connections.

Don't worry about the lid, that's the way it's supposed to be. It's fairly heavy and spring loaded, and the hinges are quite loose below 90 degrees open (which is why it can spring up and even bounce); once you get it past vertical the hinges tighten up so it will stay in place anywhere past 90 degrees vertical.

Nice machines and yes, there's a certain charm about those displays. I've had my 3100e since new, never a problem; replaced the HD with a larger one, maxed out the memory (and replaced the battery of course ;-) ).

Which model is yours, 3100 or 3100e?
 
Which model is yours, 3100 or 3100e?

It's a T3100e, with 1MB RAM and a 20MB hard disk. It came with MSDOS 6.22 on it, but I couldn't figure out how to get the additional 384 KB of RAM working under DOS 6.22 so I downgraded it to Toshiba DOS 5.01 and added EMM.SYS to the CONFIG.SYS. Now it sees the extra memory as expanded memory, which is fine. It has a Turtle Beach MPU-401 clone in the ISA slot, although I can't do much with that as it's missing the breakout box (anyone have a spare?), so I might take that out and put in a soundcard instead if I can find a cheap one. The standard IBM sound is pretty awful.

It even still has the original boxed set of manuals that it shipped with, which was a nice bonus.

Also I should say that I love the keyboard on it almost as much as the screen; if only laptops these days had keyboards like this one does...

Thanks for confirming the lid behaviour anyway; I'm glad I don't have to risk taking mine apart now. It probably isn't that difficult a process, but it wouldn't be the first time I've messed something up by trying to take it apart without really understanding the process. I'll still need to remove the keyboard to replace the dead CMOS battery that's there currently, but that sounds a lot simpler.
 
Nice; as you probably know, the 3100e uses a normal IDE HD and has a 1.44MB floppy, nicer than the 3100.

There's a thread on here somewhere about expanding the memory to 5MB, also a link to a 'sort-of' tech manual for the 3100.

I assume you have CHAD and TEST3, the two main utilities.

Yeah, great keyboard! No problem getting at the battery, just 3 screws from the bottom and a shield underneath the kb IIRC; battery's near the rear.

Good luck, and enjoy!
 
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