LAPTOPS -Broken Ribbon Cable Connector

frase

frase

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Just a tip which I just had to implement.

I had accidentally broken the clip off the keyboard ribbon cable connector. I was absolutely.. angry isn't the word.

As I had just replaced the DC Connector as the laptop wasn't charging, so after all that dis assembly; the stupid keyboard FUBARD.

So I channeled McGuyver and cut a small piece of plastic and 'wedged' this into the connector with the cable connected. Started it up and yay!!! Keyboard worked :P Just thought I would post here for any future reference.
 
Don't suppose you have a photo kicking about. I'm always terrified of having that problem.

Particularly the little 2 or 3 pin white connectors. I broke one of those once and had to make a delicate soldering job.
 
Sorry no photos or diagrams, though wasnt much to it. I used a hard clear plastic [a laminated plastic] and cut to the exact size of the the connector.

About roughly 30x5mm

Inserted the ribbon cable, locked it into position
Used the plastic strip to wedge in between the ribbon and the connector - lengthways.
 
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That always sucks. Sometimes you can steal some of that heatproof tape from elsewhere and use it to hold everything together. I did have a trainee botch one so bad once that we ended up having to buy the customer a new MB.
 
I've done something similar in the past. Rather than a strip of plastic, I used electrical tape. The strip of tape applied to the ribbon, provided just enough additional thickness to hold it securely in the connector. Fortunately, it was one of my old laptops and not a customers, so the risk was minimal.
 
stick the cable in, hot glue on top, press the hot glue with a screwdriver handle til it cools, done.
 
Keyboard Clip Fix

I'm reviving this thread because I had to do this fix today and managed it successfully. I used a piece of hard plastic from a bubble-pack I pulled out of the trash as a shim. Just cut it to the full length of your socket and about 3/8 inch or 8mm deep. Shove it in the slot above the inserted tab, there should be enough tension now for the tab to stay (precariously perhaps) in place while you get your hot glue. I decided not to get any glue on the socket itself as this would be messy later to correct if there was a problem, instead I glued the keyboard tab to the motherboard to keep the tab in place. I also found that you can't do this without the shim, even if you jam the tab into the socket snuggly, there is not enough downward pressure, without the broken clip, to get good electrical contact between the socket and all the terminals on the tab.

If you want to see pictures, you can see my keyboard clip repair here.
 
This is an awesome fix for an issue that always crosses my mind when I've taken laptops apart.

In the old days, the cables were usually hot-glued in place, so using the hot-glue on them is nothing new.

John
 
frase said:
Just a tip which I just had to implement.

I had accidentally broken the clip off the keyboard ribbon cable connector. I was absolutely.. angry isn't the word.

As I had just replaced the DC Connector as the laptop wasn't charging, so after all that dis assembly; the stupid keyboard FUBARD.

So I channeled McGuyver and cut a small piece of plastic and 'wedged' this into the connector with the cable connected. Started it up and yay!!! Keyboard worked :P Just thought I would post here for any future reference.
Click to expand...

That is a reasonable fix, but I would ONLY do it if I got the permission of the laptop owner...

i.e. If I broke the connector, I would buy the customer a new keyboard... Otherwise, I would have them sign they were offered a new keyboard and declined taking $40 off their bill (or whatever the estimated cost of the keyboard is).... That way it can't come back after you.
 
compnet said:
stick the cable in, hot glue on top, press the hot glue with a screwdriver handle til it cools, done.
Click to expand...

Gosh, I hope this isn't how you really fix things that you break... It's A) Not fair to the customer to not be informed their system is rigged, B) it is unethical to not report a part you break, and C) it is going to be a pain to the next computer repair shop (or your shop if they bring it back).

Just how is somebody supposed to remove that keyboard when you are done? With a heat-gun? Then where does all that hot glue go when it melts? Onto the connectors making it impossible to connect another keyboard? <== Sounds a lot to me like you are making a $20 to $30 problem worse (possibly even destroying the motherboard for all intents and purposes if the glue cannot be adequately cleaned to connect a keyboard)...
 
NETWizz said:
Gosh, I hope this isn't how you really fix things that you break... It's A) Not fair to the customer to not be informed their system is rigged, B) it is unethical to not report a part you break, and C) it is going to be a pain to the next computer repair shop (or your shop if they bring it back).

Just how is somebody supposed to remove that keyboard when you are done? With a heat-gun? Then where does all that hot glue go when it melts? Onto the connectors making it impossible to connect another keyboard? <== Sounds a lot to me like you are making a $20 to $30 problem worse (possibly even destroying the motherboard for all intents and purposes if the glue cannot be adequately cleaned to connect a keyboard)...
Click to expand...

I didn't say I broke the connector.. and its not really a 20-30 dollar problem, its not part of the keyboard that is broken, its part of the motherboard.. good luck finding a replacement tab.

Second, I don't know what kind of hot glue you use, but the whole reason I use hot glue is that it IS removable.
 
nice job, I did the exact same thing to my personal laptop a few years ago, the plastic clips are impossible to find unless you have a spare motherboard with the same clips lying around(which is why you should have a few dead motherboards in a box) If this happened to a customers computer I think the fair thing to do is inform them what happened and tell them that you fixed it.
 
Will look into that Tape 16k_zx81 thanks.

Though nice way to hijack a thread with the same methods I used shamrin [even though I did not include images].
I didn't use Hot Glue either or any other adhesive [just the strip of plastic to wedge] - [is my own laptop - my wifes really]
Its still functioning after all these months as well.
 
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compnet said:
I didn't say I broke the connector.. and its not really a 20-30 dollar problem, its not part of the keyboard that is broken, its part of the motherboard.. good luck finding a replacement tab.

Second, I don't know what kind of hot glue you use, but the whole reason I use hot glue is that it IS removable.
Click to expand...

In that case it sounds reasonable to me... If you didn't break it and managed to save the customer a motherboard that's fine...
 
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