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Wednesday, August 31, 2011

CR48 Screen Hinge MacGuyver'd fix!

Recently, i've noticed a problem on my CR48. It would no longer close fully and would bounce around, still open a half an inch every time I held it. So, my first instinct would to open it up and see what's up!

When I got to the screen hinge piece, I noticed that the 3 screw holes holding the hinge on each side was cracked as shown below:

I grabbed my crazy glue and started squirting it everywhere. Next, I got a paperclip and placed it into the 2 holes not filled by screws and clipped them. Then, after realizing the hinge was actually physically bending, I put 2 cut up post its on either side of the hinge metal bar. Putting it back together, I was very happy with the difference!


The side that wasn't bending (No post it needed) However, it is extremely glossy from all the crazy glue.


The post it, wedged perfectly in the side, is only needed for the outer side. 


Then it is simply pushed down so the cover can go over it. 


My tools (Plus crazy glue!!). The Great Gatsby was used to pass the time, since I let the glue dry for quite a while.

The finished product:

If anyone needs further aid with this, DON'T HESITATE to ask!


20 comments:

  1. I actually just started having hinge problems as well. It's not as bad as yours, but it might be getting there. It's no longer aligned perfectly like before and does kind of raise very slightly.

    Could you possibly gove more detailed instructions (or maybe even make a step by step guide) on how to get into the hinge. I love my Cr-48 too much to retire it and if this gets any worse I'd like to try to fix it.

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  2. I added pictures after reopening it so you could see what I did with a better view. It took only a matter of minutes to reopen it. Hopefully this helps!

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  3. OH MY GOD, YES! I have the same exact problem!

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  4. My hinge broke tonight. The skinny metal part that is glued to the monitor half snapped right where it meets the large part with the screws. I was going to try your method of going glue crazy but wasn't sure if it would work and hold well enough to support without the metal being connected. How is yours holding up to daily use?

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  5. I've done this to 2 CR48's and each is up and running - hinge as it originally was.

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  6. How exactly do I remove the top to get to the hinges?

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  7. You don't have to touch the screen part of the computer. That is one of the most tedious components of the computer in general and is not necessary for this purpose.

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  8. So how did you access the area where the bracket is located. Does the cover just snap on and off? I didn't want to break anything getting at the brackets/hinges

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  9. Luckily, the clips just unclip without breaking - i've done it many times. But still be careful!

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  10. JCcoinster-- I guess you didn't understand my question but I figured it out. You have to take out all the screws including those covered by the "footpads" to get the cover off the machine. In any event, now that I have that taken care of-- I think I will have to go more extreme than your solution since the plastic housing the screws tap into is busted on my system. Accordingly, I am going to attempt to run some screws completely through the plastic and lock them in place with some star washers and nuts on the outside of the case. The trick will be finding screws long enough that will work. I guess a trip to Fry's Electronics will answer that question.

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  11. OHH. I figured you got to the point where you opened the laptop...

    My case is the same as yours; did you not see the photos above??

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  12. A Chrome Ninja recommended me to this :). Good Job

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  13. That's awesome! I like how Google isn't afraid to support their customer's guides, tips and tricks - I can't name another company that does that. (Except Apple, but they typically steal Jailbreaker's ideas and fabricate them into their "own" work.) Thank you for sharing that!

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  14. My Cr-48 is giving me hinge problems as well (sounds like a fault in them, but it was free so I'm not complaining). I'm a bit confused as to what you did with the paperclip. Could you possibly explain what I should be doing there a bit more in depth. I want to make sure I understand everything before opening up my baby. Thanks!

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  15. Literally, I jammed the paperclip into the additional (open) holes on the hinge and clipped them at the end. Im not sure how much that step helped, as much as the sticky notes.

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  16. Thanks for posting this. I'm having the dreaded hinge issue now too. What I'd like to know is what the post its are holding. Are they between the broken housing and the piece that screws into the housing?

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  17. sigh my hinges are dying too i thought it was from a friend who abused it but now i realized that its just a thing debating on buying a chromebook too bad there expensive....

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  18. If the whole Idea of doing all of that scares the crap out of you, do you suggest I take it to someone (computer repair shop) and show them this and have them do it instead? Mine started falling apart on the right side and the tiny screw disappeared then the left side started to come apart the point where I have it taped and propped in the back with a book because the cover won't stay up at all any more, but this baby still works and I do love and don't want to get rid of it.

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