a8jx: fixing a loose hinge (w/ pix)

danielsjang · 11-05-2006, 06:54 AM

i got fed up with the ultra loose hinge that i decided to do something about them. For the past couple of weeks I tried to tighten the screws under the hinge cover, but it only helped marginally. I could see that the hinge was actually loose in its joint with the LCD (rather than hinge <--> body joint being loose) so i used the a8jm disassembly guide to help me locate the right screws to tighten.
So in order to tighten the joint between LCD and the metal hinge (the cylinder looking thing) you first have to pry out the LCD bezel cover(this requires your fingernails a lot. start from top and look at the whole LCD cover from the side. prying open from the outside seemed a lot easier than trying to open it from the inside like the guide told me to). Before that, you have to take the 6 rubber things off and unscrew the screws beneath those.

Then you'll see something like this

you can see that there are two screws holding down the LCD part to the hinges, and one screw (the one that's under the hinge cover) holding the hinge down to the body. I found that my two screws were quite loose. After I tightened them, the LCD hinge was loose no more. It actually almost felt like the thinkpad hinges (my fav.)
if you're up to it, tighten any other screws you see after you take out the bezel.

One thing I noticed was how weak the plastic part that holds the hinge to the body was. Mine was pretty much broken down so much you could see the part that holds the screw. Later, it became worse and the washer (?) part actually fell out. you can see the damage here:

Enjoy~

stamar · 11-05-2006, 07:02 AM

thank you

my hinges are so tight and solid. Mine is brand new though.

I actually wanted to see if there was a way for me to check to see if mine has only 1 screw as well in that hinge. I will do that eventually. obviously i have to be ultra careful....

did your hinge feel loose when new? mine is quite stiff

polaroidofmars · 11-05-2006, 10:33 AM

Thanks for the instructions and pictures, I hope I never have to refer back to them, but in the event I do I'm glad you took the time to post this.

On the other hand, isn't this something that would be covered under warranty? I would hope so, but perhaps this is considered normal wear and tear.

danielsjang · 11-05-2006, 06:34 PM

When my a8jm was new, it was pretty stiff. Then it got loose and loose... i only tightened the hinge--body screw though, and it didn't work well enough. opening up the bezel did the trick for me, though i'm pretty sure it'll get loose again soon enough

As for the broken (cheap) plastic part that broke off, yeah, i hope it's under warranty. I'll send it in when my laptop has more bruises tho

cotolay · 11-06-2006, 02:39 AM

I read somewhere that the a8js uses different hinges. Can anyone confirm this?

xelos · 11-06-2006, 06:24 AM

A8js uses same hinges.

If you want to disassemble hinges, you don't need to disassemble LCD bezzle.

You can disassemble only hinges by pushing them out.

khull · 11-07-2006, 06:44 AM

darn i cant even pry out the hinge cover to get to the screws...is there photo on that? :P

danielsjang · 11-11-2006, 05:10 AM

sure thing: here's an easy way to do it. It might hurt your fingernail though. go to the side of the hinge where you can barely squeeze in your fingernail (i use my index finger's fingernail) and move along the hinge to pry it open.

btw, i had to completely open up my a8jm to fix a short circuit. if anyone wants pictures / guides, lemme know

Madness · 11-11-2006, 05:20 AM

I don't understand why this happens....I have had to tighten mine twice as shown by Daniel.

One point to note: If you look at the posted picks, there is clearly at least 2 places where you can put a extra screw to make these hinges less succeptable to loosness. I'd also like to try a small rubber washer to stop vibration and loosening.

Unfortunatley I don't have access to either of these things, neither the patience to argue with a rep at an ASUS service centre.

ASUS have realy sacraficed their reputation for superior build quality in my eyes with this model.

Geared2play.com · 11-11-2006, 11:05 AM

Its very strange that there are only a few conmplaints for a model that sold thousands many of which post on forums. I can tell you guys that if you want extra screws ask your vendor. If anyone bought from us please file the rma form and request screws if infact your model has missing screws.
The picture with the broken ancor (washer as you called it). That was a very similar problem on an unrelated model yars ago. If spotted early on it can be very easilyt fixed with crazy glue which has workd for years now. You can ofcourse have the whole panel replaced but crazy gloue is easy and actually reliable.