Dell studio hinge 1737 repair

hi all,
how often do these have a failed hinge? i decided to write how i fixed my left hinge in case others have the problem.
this will probably apply to studio 17 ( 1735 1736 1737 1745 1747 1749 ) and studio 15 ( 1535 1536 1537 1530 1530b ) maybe XPS as well.

first of all, i wish i had poured glue all over the area before this occured as it fails in the screen side and the slope on the back makes frankensteining hard (screws sticking out). i used "liquid nails" as hot glue may not be good enough as opening and closing has a sheering effect. first the bottom one fails by lifting the brass thread out SIDEWAYS, then the next one by lifting the whole plastic stay from the back, then if you werent paying attention, the last one one further inwards - along with any way of easily lining it up, although using the screen frame MIGHT work. i opened it before the last one broke.

here i will write what i did and should have done.
first take note how far the side PCB (button+light) sticks into the case so you dont fill that with glue. then wipe the glue all over the back of the area where you will want to glue so it gets a very good grip. the glue can squirt out all of a sudden so prepare for that (the nozzel was not cut small). if there is any tunnels in the plastic that prevents you from pushing glue in, you should drill holes towards the back of the tube (not in the rear of the lid!), blow the shavings out (by puffing into the small hole you drilled) and then squirt in.

ensure the bits that flell off are screwed into the hinge (include the screen frame if the hinge was completely dislodged), if the the brass thread fits too loosly into where it was, put that into the hinge too, otherwise put it into place, ensureing no glue will prevent the screw from going in (because you pushed glue into that tunnel), though i did push glue out when i did put the screw in. then cover this with a little tape. then put plenty of glue around the area where the hinge will sit, and make sure this extends down to the bottom of the plastic screen frame for sheer protection (you pasted there first didnt you). paste the glue onto the hinge back also. remove the tape and put/push the hinge into place and screw it in and the frame as well. if done without the frame ensure there is no glue where the screen frame screws down (its ok to put glue over in front of this, it may help hold the hinge down) or sticking out above the hinge. its easier to remove once its a little dry. you may need to clear out some of the glue for the pcb that will sit there, otherwise you can dig it out later. after some days being left in an uninhabited area, get a pin or small screwdriver and push holes from above the hinge to get it to dry faster, you may have to leave it for two weeks.

for mine i didnt paste the area to be glued with glue (which will also stir any residual dust) and i never removed the cabling prior to the repair which may get into the glue. removing the hinges from the base will allow the cabling to be slacker, but have something behind to prop the lid on. afterwards i get a little motion although that may be the screen frame flexing, though i havnt yet put the front bezel on. the cabling will fit in front of the hinge repair, the LVDS cable goes between the screen and the right screw lug. nib out all the overhanging glue to finish.

other modifications i did to my Dell 1737 is:
i installed DELL XP in another partition (hint: mark that as active before installing, then change between vista or XP by changing active partitions),
the media button got reprogramed to be the "menu" key with keytweak as they forgot that on the keyboard,
i removed the first HDD (i imaged it to the second as a backup) and kept the second which is in a "safer" location.
and soon i will change optical drives because the first wore itself out because it makes a noise every time i turned on the computer.
and in the far distant future i plan to use talc powder should the rubber on the lid go sticky.


enjoy.
Charlie.