They Quoted $900 to Fix This Laptop - But Were They Right?

[@sdelyoushay]

I'm 99% sure I have this exact cable. I have a laptop I couldn't fix before, mosfet blew and took out the gpu. I'd be happy to ship it to you if you want it. It's white, not black like yours is, but has CNJS E308724 AWM 20798 written on it.

[@anthonycomeaux1804]

Tell him it costs $900

[@Kangamoos]

That horrified chuckle when you realized the connector was super glued I felt deep down. The horror!

[@Tronicsfix]

That was a bad feeling!

[@SantaClaw]

@@Tronicsfix Whomever uses superglue to try and repair parts that has to be soldered on, has 0 clue. Lucky it was even somewhat fixable.

[@asifmondal4037]

@@Tronicsfix Hey I guess you can cut the old ribbon cable and just remove the upper layer and new pins will come above.

[@joecody252]

Buddy took his new laptop to best buy geek squad. Laptop was only 2 weeks old. They gave it back cause apparently their full coverage warranty isn't full coverage. And wanted $1200 to fix it. He picked it up and I looked at it for him. It was glued beyond glue. They even glued the bottom plate on and not screw it back on. It was an nightmare. All that and all that was wrong. Battery connector was loose. HP responded and replaced the laptop and got to keep the original one. Stuff like this why I learn as much that I can. Seems it's getting harder and harder to trust others.

[@ZaPpaul]

You can get those cables easily. There are companies that make any size you desire. Just measure it and count the number of pins and ensure the pitch and orientation is correct and order one. They are called FFC cables, I buy mine in the UK from a company called GTK.

[@samio3907]

You could just cut the damaged part of ribbon cable and sand off 1cm of the protective layer. I have done this before. Works like a charm and you have nothing to lose. Or - if you want to go really insane. Desolder both connectors and just solder some wires directly to the pads.

[@mariolog]

I came here just tom make the same comment. I can confirm that it works since I've done it several times. You just gotta make sure that the final length of the ribbon cable is good enough to reach both connectors and voila! I even have fixed the same ribbon cable this way several times. It's faster and cheaper than ordering a new one (it takes less than 10 minutes) and you get to keep the original cable. Make sure you keep the plastic pieces at each end of the cable since they make the connection points thicker, strengthening the contact between the cable and the connector.

[@x-fix]

Same thought! Thanks for writing it down!

[@anthonycomeaux1804]

Just sand using some fine grit sandpaper? Or one of those fiber pen scrubber things I've seen some people use?

[@Enjoymentboy]

This reminds me of a time back in 2009 when i had my own IT business. I had a client bring me one of their PCs that was refused a warranty repair due to their claim of intentional damage. No one had ever been inside the machine before it was RMAd. The warranty sheet said their was irreparable damaged to the main board and all they could do was offer a replacement, but they would do it "at cost". Before my client took them up on it they asked me to look at it. The problem was that the computer would shut down within a couple of minutes of being powered on. Theyv time me it would start up and then get super slow and then just shut off. My first thought was over heating so i removed the heatsink and immediately knew what was wrong. There was zero thermal compound on the cpu and the heatsink had some thermal tape on it and it still has the plastic cover that was labeled as "remove before installing thermal solution". I peeled off the backing and put the heat sink back on and fired it up. I did this all right in front of my client and they took pictures the whole time. Sure enough it powered in fine and worked perfectly. They had 3 other PCs from the same manufacturer (begins will a D and rhymes with bell) and all of them had the exact same issue. From that point on any time any client brought me a PC from that manufacturer that was a standard check. I must have encountered it dozens of times.

[@Smokie_666]

I worked at a PC and Laptop repair shop about 15 yrs ago and the "Super Glue" trick was used way too often. If the connector or cable was loose, some would super glue it in place instead of using a replacement part. I never understood it since the parts themselves were not expensive and required a little skill and patience with a hot air gun to do a proper replacement. The mentality of the "Super Glue" fix was: It will work for the customer until they get rid of it. Basically, pass the problem onto the next person.

[@Tronicsfix]

Yep, not a great solution

[@Hiberniust]

Use aceton it dissolves ciano-acrilate!

[@DamianTheFirst]

@@Hiberniust acetone dissolves most plastics so using it would not be recommended

[@girder123]

@@Tronicsfix FFC cables are usually made of PVC, if you don't use the acetone for too long, it should be fine. If not, you can repair the connector fronts (it's pretty tedious though, look for ffc repair on youtube). There are also other solvents for ca glue, not sure what's their effect on pvc though.

[@OvervoltedMinds]

I did some research myself for a similar issue and found out that vegetable oil could soften the super glue (need to wait for a couple of hours) and it really helped

[@bentinho]

i was actually thinking maybe WD40 myself as he was doing it.

[@pianomanpj]

Acetone will dissolve super glue, but may take several application with a cotton swab depending on how thick it is. Any remaining residue can be cleaned with IPA. You may want to test the acetone on the solder mask on a ground plane first to make sure it won't damage it. I think most plastics in connectors are made from polypropylene or polyethylene so the acetone should not attack them. Again, TEST!

[@shaunmorrissey7313]

Acetone dissolves plastic

[@robertpage2023]

Here are some plastics that Acetone will NOT dissolve. ECTFE (Halar®): transparent films available. Fluorosint® PTFE: white. HDPE: transparent films available. Nylon®, Type 6/6: white. PP: clear sheets available. PPS: opaque white. PTFE: white.

[@zUltra3D]

​@@shaunmorrissey7313 not all plastics are equal

[@awilliams1701]

most likely the plastic is ABS which will dissolve. so bad idea.

[@pianomanpj]

@@awilliams1701 That's why I recommend testing. It would only take the smallest amount of acetone to see if the plastic softens on the surface or becomes sticky. If it does, then acetone is not an option.

[@SF_Mittels]

No idea how you can lay solder on those tiny pins so precisely. I can barely do joystick replacement lol love your content!

[@Tronicsfix]

Just takes some practice...and a microscope.

[@zUltra3D]

​@@Tronicsfix and good equipment

[@vegasx07]

Would love to see a part 2 if possible in the future! I have a hunch that this laptop may not power on without fans connected.

[@LucaBlightOfHighland]

There are special solvents for dissolving cyanoacrylates (which I believe is the type of glue in question), usually they are sold by the producers of the glues themselves, but you have to be careful when using it and experiment with small drops of product on small portions of the material to be unglued, because in contact with some plastics they melt them exactly as they melt the glue.

[@swiftrealm]

So basically, acetone?

[@Lukeno52]

You can usually find generic replacements for these sorts of ribbon cable - they probably won't have the bends in them already, so you'd have to replicate that, but if you can identify the pin count and pin spacing, then it should be replaceable. I've had to do that a few times on older ribbon cables where the blue tab falls off, since re-gluing those tabs tends to be very hit-and-miss.

[@bobwatson957]

Hi Steve, that was a good attempt at fix it. Why would somebody think of putting superglue on a motherboard. It never ceases to amaze what folk get up to when they start to panic. Its a real shame the manufacturer is a rip off merchant. If they sold the parts it would have be a simple fix, apart from removing the superglue.

[@Tronicsfix]

Agreed!

[@JJ21lives4ever]

Someone hopefully already pointed this out, but if the traces in the ribbon cable are wide enough then you can trim that cable back to be flush again and use a fiberglass pen or sand paper in order to sand the end to expose the traces for new contact pads while reusing the plastic tab for backing the contacts of the ribbon cable for strength (and proper spacing) inside the connector. You would still need to do the trace repair on the long screw damage. Sanding ribbons inst straight forward and I would try it on a useless one a few times first. It helpes to use a solid metal or stone surface to sand on Otherwise, did you look for a generic ribbon online? Check with pcb way on manufacturing? Yes you would end up with extra cables, but this would likely still be cheaper than the other shop's quote and could list the extra for resale as a generic cable

[@YourLordshipBalthazar]

Even tho I'm not into repairing many electrical items I felt your pain with that ribbon cable!

[@jacobtc]

You should be able to cut the ribbon cable and sand the plastic down to expose the traces. I've done this a couple times with great success.

[@fortniteprogamer224]

You are so good at fixing! I have learned from you so many things and you are the one who helped choose what I really wanna do and to choose how am gonna go with my career thank you so muchhh and keep it up !!

[@Tronicsfix]

So great to hear this. Thanks for the comment!

[@spymasterigi]

Hi Steve, we do alot of These Notebook repairs and I can tell you they are painful as yours. But normally These ribbon cables are at least a little longer than they need to be. You could trim it a little bit and solder an a head from a different cable. As for the dent, you will need to solder some wire bridges. Greetings from Germany.

[@thimothykallem378]

15:43 try using hot air to melt the plastic and wipe it with steel brush or with a cloth or cool it immediately with ipa, so the white plastic may peel off 🤞!

[@oherman]

I've encountered bad traces of flex cables myself, where the edges peel out. What I do is cut off the defective parts, and use a very fine box cutter to peel off the insulation. But I need to attach a hard plastic on the opposite end, unfortunately, using super glue. Double-sided tape won't do.

[@No1BRC]

You can try to clean cut the ribbon cable and sand one side for connections. I did so on a Gameboy once 😊

[@bluebearyt12]

Just a tip. If there is a laptop with a cable the same way but not like bend you can just carefully bend the cable and make it work either way. But great video!

[@Club_Michas]

@TronicsFix you could measure the length and the pitch and count the pins of the Cable and buy it from someone who sells FFC / FPC Cables. make sure that you buy the correct orientation where it connects because there are 2 types Top to Bottom and Top to Top (Bottom to Bottom)

[@SonyUSA]

A quick continuity test of the ribbon cable pins would have solved your dilemma quickly ❤

[@sebastiendube9487]

Hey TronicsFix I found out it is much simpler and safer to dump electronic parts in IPA (small parts like NVME, RAM, etc.) Let it in there for a few hours then take it out and brush it. What this will do is making sure the IPA gets into every small holes and it also dissolve the thermal paste by a little bit, making it easier to clean off.

[@aaro_n]

Back in the day when fixing ipod 4 I'd make screw trays out of the plastic case and some hot glue to make the dividers

[@legonosh]

18:46 Not me trying to take a look to the keyboard tilting my head

[@Tronicsfix]

Lol

[@matthewbowers88]

I'd love you to come back to this. Let the comments sections do its work to source the part.

[@_MJ07_]

You could have just cut the cable and sanded it down to reveal the pins again, i've done that many times. Also, a quick count and google search makes me think this is just a 40pin 0.5mm pitch fpc ribbon. As long as you get one that is the correct termination (both pins facing the right way), it will work.

[@DamianTheFirst]

You put a good effort into fixing stuff. Nevertheless, watching you try to turn on devices without cooling attached gives me goosebumps every time

[@Greg-McIver]

So satisfying to see it cleaned before repairs.

[@mperry0913]

Question. Why not use something like nail polish remover on the super glue? Nail polish remover is known to work on super glue and freeing things up. Just curious. Great video! Strong supporter of iFixIt as well!

[@nathanielalexander5146]

Acetone isn’t best for plastics, at the least it’ll soften it and at the worse it’ll straight up melt it

[@iRoC29k]

It can be tough finding a part close to the original.

[@Tronicsfix]

Yep

[@robertpage2023]

YOU have come up with a new word for the Webster Dictionary! "Origination". OH, it's already in there....... I've never even heard or used this word before but NOW, hearing you use it, I'll be adding it to my vocabulary. I guess I've lived a very sheltered life not having heard this one before. I've used "origin" and "nation" but not together. As always, I learn so much for your tutorials and now, I've even beaten that goofy "Gramerly" thing. I'd even bet that Gramerly doesn't know about this word. I have on occasion made up my own words before like, "Tump".. What happens with a wheel barrow turns over. (More of a hillbilly term) And, "Enginestion", When your car's motor gets flooded with too much gas. And one of my new favorites, "Putinputter", That's when you start a war with another neighboring country that you didn't come prepared to win. Anyhow, GREAT SHOW as always!!!

[@Sean-vy3gj]

I love that toolkit, I never leave home without it.😉

[@Tronicsfix]

It's a good one!

[@chevy70739]

Acetone will dissolve superglue fairly quickly and shouldn't harm the plastic too much

[@JonJaded]

I once had superglue on a old console connector and acetone (nail polish remover) helped disolve the glue without harming the plastic! I used a puddy to make a small birdbath and just let it soak overnight.

[@M1LAD81]

Steve, you need to keep a bottle of superglue de-bonder!

[@alexevenly]

Hello, Nice to see new video of yours - always a pleasure and quite entertaining! Regarding super glue - my favorite way to remove it (almost every time with no visible residues) is just plain lighter gasoline - very effective and cheap. Just try it next time. Keep it up!

[@MatiusLenin]

Scented nail polish remover, that would have done the trick. Acetone applied undiluted may destroy the plastic and print parts of the board.

[@LuisDanielMoralesPreza]

Those cables are prety cheap here in Mexico, rhey often cut those for you from a large one depending of how many traces you need, i have remplace quit a few in several laptops over the years.

[@12345.......]

They sell ca debonder. There is a video from a PhD explaining the chemistry of super glue on Goobertown Hobbies. No idea how i stumbled across that video.

[@Adam_Boots]

Debonder is really good stuff. I keep some next to me whenever I use superglue just in case. Works well on old glue as well.

[@thomasainsworth6553]

i have personally found some superglues react to ipa and either make the glue its self brittle, or just down right gooey, same with acetone

[@MustangKevin69]

TV ribbon cable works to and u can cut off the bad pins on the ribbon and clean off the black to expose the traces for solder than tap flat and install done n done

[@stevesgaming7475]

Digital Storm, thanks for telling us the brand, I'll make sure to avoid any device made by them now. Seriously, superglue on a 2k laptop? Utterly ridiculous and unacceptable.

[@kayits2893]

I once used nail polish remover (the liquid ladies use to remove their fixed nails). It is very effective on dissolving glue. You could've tried it instead of burning off the plastic on the ribbon cable or using IPA which doesn't dissolve glue. 😎

[@_MJ07_]

Nail polish remover most of the time is just acetone. Acetone melts many plastics, so I assume this is why he didnt want to use it.

[@ErickBuildsStuff]

I have saved a similar FPC cable just by using a scissors and cut exactly how the end looks. Then sanded the edge like exact original cable and cleaned the copper contacts with IPA and just restored the connector. Often times you must use a thick cello tape to reinforce the plastic edge for thickness to stay in the FPC connector. Order a replacement and wait until later. It happened for me with a water damaged Logitech G Pro mouse. It‘s super tiny FPC cable for it.

[@hawwin]

sometimes if you dont connect the fan it will not power on. maybe that is a thing you can try and maybe just search for a 40 pin ribbon cable?

[@solidamber]

Acetone ( nail varnish remover)disolves superglue, i accidentally glued my fingers together, the Acetone disoved it in a couple of minutes.

[@GenGamesUniverse]

As a qualified PC technician myself, I cannot tell you how much it irks me that people do stuff like this, that they use superglue and wonder why it's not working afterwards!

[@Tronicsfix]

Yep! Superglue should come with qualifications to use!

[@Ipsissimus]

I use coffee and biscuits. Works every time.

[@keving402]

What is the name/serial number of the laptop? I will gladly see if I can find a replacement part, I do it for work pretty frequently fixing Thinkpad Laptops.

[@oherman]

NEVER use superglue on repairs unless it is absolutely necessary. Otherwise, you need a superglue remover like acetone, or plain and simple nail polish remover. Plus, they are not fun to remove if they hold glass together without acetone!

[@RealAaron317]

Like the style of the keyboard design

[@PatriciaHungria]

You can uso acetone (the one women use to remove nail polish) to remove super glue, I just don't know if it would be safe for the mother board

[@lukedavis436]

I've actually liked Digital Storms machines....tempted to invest in one someday

[@correiaelso4]

acetone usually works to loosen the superglue, it's easier and less harmful to the board I believe.

[@grantrule6593]

Amazing Video Steve

[@Tronicsfix]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.

[@davidbohn8955]

Sad to see that just a ribbon cable is possibly holding this laptop back from running again. Hoping for a part 2 and a happy ending for this machine.

[@greenbow7888]

There is superglue remover. Works quickly - good stuff.

[@SatansLtlBaby]

looks like a standard flat flex cable. just count the pins and check the spacing and order something from digikey?

[@Hortonscakes]

15:13 wow this must have been a massive pain in the ass! You're insane, and I'm here for it!

[@Tronicsfix]

Lol, yes, that was annoying! Thanks for the comment and support!

[@LindaLooUK]

Ooh, new logo. Nice. 😍

[@skiplazauski1497]

Make your own ribbon cable. I check on line and there are kits for doing just that.

[@andreanavarra-ou5wb]

U can recover the old flat cable, cut the damage parts then with a small dremel scratch the plastic

[@antiricergt]

You ever do Apple phones? My Apple 12 pro charging thing broke on me, now I have to use a wireless charger. I looked into replacing it myself but it was over my head lol. I tried cleaning it, blowing it out to see if something was stuck in it. When I had galaxie note phones I had this issue a lot where the charging port would get loose and you would have to hold the charger at certain spot for it to charge. Many times I’d have to lay something over the cord so it would stay in that spot and hope that it didn’t move. This was the older charger ports the small ones that the galaxie notes used. I believe they fixed this now. Only had the iPhone for 3 years now

[@mariolog]

Good job. I'd call it fixed. Just read Smokie_66's comment. To keep the loose components in place just to test the laptop I'd recommend a rectangular piece of memory foam glued to a wood/plastic piece with legs. So you could push this contraption slightly against the loose parts, with a hand on the contraption and the other on the other side of the device, and flip it over. The legs should be made tall enough so you can release the contraption freely. Thanks for the video. Long Live Right to Repair!

[@Nele_BiH]

if you have any extra lenght cut cable and use metal traces inside cable to solder

[@RB-pc7tg]

Digi-Key has the cable. You just need the length, number of conductors, conductor length and pitch between the center of the conductors. They are called ffc or flat force cables or ribbon jumpers.

[@carstereorepair]

Yes.. I've bought them here as well.. good info

[@gfdggdfgdgf]

An 80 pin IDE cable would work as a flat cable replacement I'd say.

[@MrGoodGoy]

Might not start without fan plugged in. Thinkpads for example with throw a code after post if the fan is missing or something is wrong with it. Not sure about this brand exactly but might be worth just plugging the fan in.

[@Firefoxsimp]

Just FYI I would never try to power on a CPU/GPU that doesn't have an IHS without a headsink. Sometimes they will get so hot so quickly they won't even fully post. Also an easy way to cook it.

[@travelingduo7523]

JLCPCB has flexible PCB boards available, can’t you create a “flexible PCB” with the shape and dimensions of that cable and swap it?

[@Tronicsfix]

Possibly.

[@OTwinSnakesO]

What about trying that ribbon cable that wasn’t attached on the usb hub? It looks longer than the one you found

[@hydrolisk1792]

I believe there is a place in china that can make the cable for you but you will be waiting for quite some time to get it in the post. Also, I believe the reason for no boot is that you have to have the fan connected to the motherboard for it to boot.

[@the-dirt-god9280]

You can use a normal wire to connect each conector together

[@naaitsab]

Small tip, never plug in a laptop without a heatsink and wait a while before flipping the screen. Quite a lot of machines will power up on their own if they where fully powerless, so no battery and CMOS battery if it has one. The CPU only needs a few seconds to get very hot and can damage things, especially if it boots into a bloated windows install.

[@piccolosan19]

We need a part 2 Good Sir ☕️✌️

[@devilmikey00]

I might not have turned on at the end because the CPU fan connector wasn't plugged in. Some motherboards have that as a safety feature.

[@HISHAM3563]

You could cut both ribbon cables the bad one and good one (the bad from the non working end) and reattach each end

[@robertbeer2584]

did you think of splicing the 2 cables to make one good one

[@treyreed1762]

Why didn't you try finger nail polish remover on a q tip to release the super glue?

[@richardbriansmith8562]

Awesome Video tronicsfix

[@carlthejexican7551]

There's a saying we have at my job, the mechanic hates the engineer because they make the job harder than it needs to be. I wouldn't be surprised if some of these issues were manufacturing related.

[@pizzalord3n]

Something you should get is debonder or cyano cleaner for those superglue shenanigans

[@pabloherrera5206]

Steve, didn't you try with the melted ribbon cable?😅😅

[@t2d748]

after watching what feels like years of paid and unpaid simping for ifixit, I finally bought a toolkit to repair my old smashed note 3 and s8 and couldnt be happier with it

[@12345.......]

Those bits are so precise they snap into the screws. It is the last kit you will ever buy.

[@Tronicsfix]

So glad you bought one! They are such good tools.

[@r1zw4n29]

its wirking. but as safety mechanism the bios is been set not turn on if pc not detected cpu fan

[@ilikenwf]

You ought to try and get in touch with Louis Rossmann sometime, even if it's not really a collab, you two share similar interests with right to repair and such...and you educate people on fixing their devices as he does...and now his nonprofit, FUTO does.

[@estropocky]

Me watching you melt off the super-glue'd connector: "Ah yes, the forbidden queso"

[@ChristopherBurtraw]

Next time use acetone to pull the connector off the ribbon. It'll dissolve the super glue right off. Might destroy the connector, but you did that anyway with the iron and acetone would be easier and cleaner.

[@kimkautz]

WHO DOES THAT?!? Seriously, the manufacturer couldn't have done that right? I don't know why anything surprises me anymore.

[@MikeL-FL]

What are the details of the cable? I have an MSI that I use for parts that may have it. If not I also have 4 or 5 other laptops that are obsolete that may have it.

[@rizwanferrari6663]

excuse me sir,, where you buy that taper probe avometer ? so hard find probe taper like you have,, and can you sometime, give us some tutorial how to unscrew the broken bolt ? i'm you bigfans from indonesian sir, thank you so much for knowledge you share to us

[@ohnoitsalec]

I understand not using acetone when you were trying to save the connector. But once you realized it was broken why would you not use acetone instead of melting the whole thing lol

[@ChristopherBurtraw]

Might be able to find a longer ribbon cable with the correct amount of pins.

[@CedricGirouard]

@tronicsfix FFC cable is about 3$ at digikey

[@awilliams1701]

burned PLA doesn't smell too bad, but that's probably ABS or something similar and that is pretty nasty.

[@SolderBrothers]

Super Glue is conductive...Right?

[@simonmpoulton]

Just remove the plastic supporting pieces from the end of the ribbon, cut the damaged part of the ribbon off, sand it down to expose the traces and then glue the plastic supporting pieces back on the "new" end. It'll work fine

[@JC-cs6py]

Have you tried to look for a flex cable? not one thats advertised for the laptop but a generic type, example, i needed a ribbon cable for a radio and the company did not sell them, so i looked around and found a ps5 dvd drive ribbon cable that had the same pitch and pins, if you google ps5 dvd ribbon you will see the cable i mean, just search for one that has the same number of lines on it, I'm not sure what the ribbon is you need but they do them in all sizes and widths, give it a look, is you find one an it's too long, you can just fold it over to fit.