Broken Pandora LCD cable clip

[pengo]

Hello everyone,

I have a Pandora board with a broken off or missing LCD cable connector locking clip.

Repair tutorials I have been able to find offer good advice, but so far no video shows how to fix a connector clip similar to the one found on the Pandora board.

Anyone have a similar experience or advice on how to be able to fix the intricate part (or improvise a similar locking mechanism)?

Thank you for any help,
pengo

 

[TrashyMG]

Closest thing I could find, was this guy who used liquid flux and a hot air reflow tool for removal, although I feel that guy should have taped off the surrounding area to prevent damage to surrounding components. Without a hot air reflow tool, there is a product called ChipQuik, it's a low melt point solder you can use to add to the solder on the component and it should allow of it to easily be removed (in theory). As for reattaching a new connector there is a few methods, using a soldering paste and the hot air reflow tool, but if don't have one then perhaps a technique called drag soldering may work for you.


Chipquik video

Drag Soldering

 

[levi]

I just heated mine up using a hot iron, towards the internal contacts and IIRC there are little solder blobs visible on the outside. I could probably have done with adding some flux beforehand, because I did end up lifting quite a few traces when removing the final bits (it broke up on me), but since I was not planning to replace it that wasn't a problem for me provided the unit continued to boot, which thankfully it did.

In this case, I understand from reading the OP that their connector is basically fine, just the brown bar that clips over the top has cracked or something. I'd try epoxying a thin sliver of wood over the top (you're limited for height by the battery case I think), but if the clip has disintegrated entirely, then I'll need to think about that. Has it?

 

[pengo]

@TrashyMG Thank you, I really appreciate your advice and for posting the videos. I've never heard of ChipQuik until now and it looks like a promising tool and seems to be effective in the video!

@levi Yes, you are correct. The connector is intact but the brown clip that lifts up and down to retain the cable attachment is missing.

 

[levi]

I'm not completely sure at all what that strip actually does; it doesn't lock with anything like the sufficient force to feel like it's actually trapping anything in there. Maybe just by keeping the cable flat it works by keeping it in contact, and that way round means it actually take a not insignificant force to rip it off.

If that's the case and you can find a thin bit of plastic or wood to put in it's place then tape that down with some kind of insulating tape (sellotape, masking or electrical tape should do fine), it might help. Does the unit still power up and the display work without this part?

 

[pengo]

@levi Thank you for your help!

I taped a thin piece of plastic over the connector. There is now an intermittent display. Without this plastic piece, the screen stays blank.

If I move the device a little the video will fade to a black screen or will become slightly discolored similar to a damaged cable.

Will continue trying different material and update with the result.

 

[levi]

If it's fading to black, it sounds like the backlight is discharging. I think the rightmost two pins as looking from the top of the PCB (with the keyboard pads on the bottom) are the backlight pins. They will be the pins that carry the most current, and conductors carrying charge are liable to shift under their own force (actually they're probably moving along the earth's magnetic field lines). I've seen big cables carrying oodles of current do that anyway, and I guess at smaller scales it probably still applies to an extent. If there's some way to focus on strapping that side down, I'd look at doing that.

I'd guess the display is still technically on, just AIUI you need to shine it with a pretty powerful torch to see anything when the backlight's disabled.