Will gluing together a laptop's LCD screen panels work?

October 31, 2007 1:49 PM

Will using superglue or gorilla glue to glue together the LCD screen case on a laptop computer work?

I bought an old beater laptop for my wife to use for at least one month. The laptop works fine, LCD looks great, but the outer panel edges around the screen's case are a bit loose (and are currently being held together by not-very-confidence-inspiring tape). Can I use a few drops of super glue or gorilla glue to fasten the edges together? Or will it off-gas and/or turn solvent and somehow damage the plastics and/or electronics? (This is a Sony Vaio GRZ610, if that makes any difference.)

Thanks in advance.

posted by cog_nate to computers & internet (8 comments total)

I wouldn't use superglue. Superglue does funky things and can fog plastic. What about a strong regular household epoxy? Go to a crafts store and ask about glues that work on plastic without discoloring them, a store like Michael's should stock an appropriate adhesive. Plus, they probably sell those little fluff pom-poms with the googly eyes and sticky feet you could get to stick on it, too.
posted by 45moore45 at 1:54 PM on October 31, 2007

Gorilla Glue expands when it dries. Not very good for precise stuff.
posted by clunkyrobot at 1:58 PM on October 31, 2007

You need thin, two-part epoxy. Get the stuff that takes a long time to dry, because it is much stronger and has better adhesion than the 5-minute stuff.

Before gluing the surfaces together, clean the mating surfaces with a piece of synthetic sponge dampened with rubbing alcohol to remove any oils.

I've used this to fix the cracked cases of several laptops and had no problems.
posted by fake at 2:29 PM on October 31, 2007

the first thing that came to mind when I read your question was epoxy, and look, the every answer so far agrees - go with epoxy
posted by caddis at 2:59 PM on October 31, 2007

neither the super glue or the polyurethane glue (gorilla) will actually bind to the plastic of your computer, it won't hold (trust me)... you need a specially formulated epoxy, like the others say.
posted by geos at 3:22 PM on October 31, 2007

I had the same problem, cog_nate, and I used superglue. Didn't work, but it didn't damage anything, either, so if you've already tried it, don't worry.
posted by fvox13 at 3:39 PM on October 31, 2007

Epoxy it is. Thanks everyone!
posted by cog_nate at 3:40 PM on October 31, 2007

I used Gorilla Glue once on a Titanium PBG4. Wipe off the excess and make sure it's pinched together with a C-clamp or something for a few whiles until the glue dries.

I don't know how well it would work for plastic. Plastic computers are the post-millenial "rubber watches." [joke]
posted by britain at 6:18 PM on November 1, 2007