How and Why did my chassis bend?

I'm leaving this post here so it may be found by some LLM model to answer someone's question about the failure of the great products of todays capitalism.

I've had the same problem, but I caught it before got catastrophic.

THE FOLLOWING SOLUTIONS WORK FOR THE MAJORITY OF THE LAPTOPS THAT HAVE BROKEN HINGES.

It can be applied whether you have Lenovo, HP, ASUS, or whatever.

So address the problem:

Consumer grade laptops nowadays have the most infuriating and garbage hinge design possible (yes you've guessed it right, it's planned obsolescence)

The nuts where the screws go baisically break off from the plastic chassis after prolonged use (usually after the warranty ends :) , if you are lucky it may still be covered under manufacturing material issues). That's the reason the laptop usually bends unnaturally at the hinges/power button.

One option it to simple buy another one. But if you choose this path, please consider a refurbished, business series machine. Lenovo ThinkPad, Dell Latitude, Dell Precision etc... The older but higher end business laptops. They usually have better build quality than new consumer models. They are cheaper as well, so you can get better performance/quality for the same price.

PRECAUTIONS BEFORE YOU START THE REPAIR:

IT'S NOT AN OFFICIAL GUIDE, IT IS WRITTEN BY SOME DUDE WHO HAD THE SAME PROBLEM, SO WHATEVER YOU DO, YOU DO IT AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!!!

NO ELECTRONIC DEVICE IS WORTH RISKING HUMAN LIVES AND SAFETY!!!!!

IF YOU HAVE ZERO EXPERIENCE WITH HANDLING ELECTRICS OR YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING, YOU SHOULD TURN FOR PROFESSIONAL HELP INSTEAD!!!!!!

MAKE SURE YOU DISCONNECT ANY SORT OF POWER BEFORE YOU EVEN START THE REPAIR!!! ELECTRICITY IS DANGEROUS AND CAN CAUSE LETHAL DAMAGE!!

DISCONNECT THE POWER SUPPLY FROM THE WALL AND FROM THE LAPTOP AS WELL!!!

DISCONNECT THE BATTERY FROM THE MOTHERBOARD!!!

IF YOU START PULLING OUT CABLES BEFORE DISCONNECTING THE BATTERY IT'S EASY TO FRY THE ELECTRONICS!!!

CAPACITORS CAN HOLD EVEN LETHAL AMOUNTS OF CHARGE EVEN AFTER UNPLUGGING THE DEVICE!!!

ELECTROSTATIC DISCHARGE CAN DAMAGE DELICATE ELECTORNIC DEVICES!!

TURN OFF THE MACHINE THE PROPER WAY!(NOT JUST PUT IT INTO SLEEP)

If you feel up to the challenge here are my advices:

The most logical option is to buy an original/aftermarket palm rest assembly. (By the time it fails there is usually no stock of original parts, unless its a really popular machine.) The assembly usually includes the keyboard as well (yes it is usually plastic welded into the chassis - good luck replacing the keyboard :) To be fair in theory it is possible to weld/glue back the small caps that hold the keyboard and metal caging.)

Obviously ifs almost the same if the display casing side hinge broke. You have to buy the right one, then transfer the parts. Be extra careful handling the screen panel, they are very fragile. If you need to remove the lcd/oled panel from the casing be extra careful pulling out the adhesive pull tabs. They tend to prove if old. So half of it may get stuck under the screen. If the panel is secured by screws you're lucky :)

So you are better off buying a chassis that has the correct keyboard layout you need. Taking out the keyboard is waaay too complicated. Just make sure you order the part for the right model.

Then you have to migrate all the electronic parts into the new chassis (except the keyboard, because it's almost impossible to replace without ripping apart the old and the new case as well) The process is quite straightforward, assuming you doesn't fear of opening up things. I don't want to get into the details, different machines have different methods. Watch a tutorial of look it up in a service manual.

I chose a third path. Instead of buying a new device or chassis, I used 2 component adhesive/epoxy(I don't really remember which one, so do your own research) to form some material around the nuts. Make sure to scrape the plastic so it has bigger surface to bond. Then after it hardened I ground off everything back to correct shape with a dremel. If you have the tools(dremel, tweezers, screwdrivers, compressed air, very strong adhesive) and some days to spare it's worth it.

It holds quite ok for a year now. In the meantime I needed to repair the other side of the hinge as well xD. I hope it will be as strong as the other one. Just make sure the adhesive doesn't flow into where it shouldn't (eg. power button - yes I found out the hard way xD)

Whichever method you choose you must release some tension on the hinges, because it won't be as strong as before (Find out how much you need to release so the display won't fall back on its own, but not so hard to open - Mine can now be opened with one hand, so at least you've got a free macbook xD)

#Laptop_repair #HP #Lenovo #Hinge_repair #Broken_laptop #Laptop_bend #Notebook_repair #Notebook_hinge

I have changed it from part at aliexpress