Hinge Repair

7100 Series

You probably won't believe this the hinges no longer function properly and separated from the top cover. I have read that there was a problem with hinges and hoped I could get by without having to do anything. I have discovered that on my computer that the hinges are too tight. I used penetrating oil, no effect, and the hinges were still very tight. How tight were they you ask? They were so tight I could not move them with my fingers and had to put them in a vise and use pliers to move them. The real problem is not anybody's fault except the designer. The hinge is attached to the plastic cover with six tiny embedded nuts, three on each side. Each nut is bedded in a circular hole. The cover being about 10 inches high acts as the force applied to a second class lever, you have tremendous multplication of force applied to the hinge bolts. As in my case, the hinges failed to move and the applied force pulled all six nuts out of the case. the real culperate is the hinge. The hinges have to be loosen sufficiently that they can be turned by hand with serious effort. The hinge pulls apart and the construction is similar to an ordinary house door. Pull the hinge apart and force a screw driver (Hammer may be necessary) into the circular area where the pin goes to expand it. You still want to maintain a tight fit, but sufficient hard to turn with your hands. If it is too loose, the screen will not support itself. There was some one out their with a loose hinge. If he reads this, all he has to do is put it in a vice and squeese a little,
To remove the hinge, you must remove the bezel (Screws and clip) and also the piece of plastic with the powers switch (no screws, can be uncliped from the battery compartment.) All screws (3 in a row) are visible except the screw that holds the lower part of the hinge. It is on back side. There is a screw that holds the back case and also the verticle pin of the lower hinge.
There is no way to get the nuts back into the case, so if they are out then the best approach is to drive two tiny bolts from the top of the case through to the hinge and bolt them on the otherside. That was my fix and it works fine.

Afterburner

 

Suspitions confirmed!
Bought a used top with hinges. The hinges were as tight as the ones on the other computer described above. The only way to move the hinge was to put it in a vice and use pliers to move it.
My conclusion is the hinges are the culprit in the cracking of the 7170 cases and that over a period of time opening and closing the case will cause stress cracks to appear. I cannot generalize to other models but I would be suspitious of their hinge charactoristics also.
Hinge repair is not that difficult. Once out of the computer, they can be separated, the pin is fixed on one end. The other end has two rings that must be spred open slightly, but to remain tight enought that when the pin is reinserted it is moveable by hand, but with strong force applied. The tension of the rings on the pin is what holds the top in place.
If there are cracks near the hinge nuts I think I would replace the top or use the screw and bolt solution in the previous post.
Afterburner

 

You might want to check out fastfixhinge.com. They sell a rescue product that fits many laptops. Easy to install. Stops further damage.
Otherwise, there is no way to get lube into those hinges without complete removal. Beyond most people's ability. If you already have cracks then you also need support to stop that from getting worse.
Good luck.