My SD card's plastic is chipping off!


Blue Protoman

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In tiny bits, but it's an SD card; it's not like there's much to physically lose. But on it is all my data. I don't have enough space to back everything up (16GB card, 16GB SSD; do the math). It's still usable, and hasn't given my problems, but I fear that it will soon. I also fear that the left SD card slot will become damaged from any bits that might be floating around (though again, have not received difficulties yet). Any thoughts?
 
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I had a PNY SD Card that did this after very little use, once. I'm guessing that the plastic on yours seems to be rather brittle? It will probably break apart very quickly, and those little pieces do get everywhere, speaking from personal experience.


I've never tried Sugru on an SD Card (aside from that one card, all of mine have been and are fine), and depending on where the breakage is (and/or spreads to), it may be a chore to keep the card at the correct size if you go this route. If you don't want to lose the card, though, it's probably the only option.
 
Hey, my card's a PNY!


Also, there are no actual cracks, simply chipped pieces towards the data pins. Would I really be able to fill them in AND make sure that they don't slip out (God forbid, in the slot)?
 
I thought it might be a PNY, somehow. :lol:


When you say the chips are towards the pins, are they on the little struts that separate the pins, or somewhere else? If they're on the struts, it's safe to just remove the affected ones entirely - the pins will still be readable. (I've done this before. :p )


Anyway, if that's not where they are, yes, you would be able to fill them in (basically you'd get a bit of Sugru on one finger, and rub it across the cracks or chips until they're filled, and so that no excess is left outside of the spots you're trying to fill in), but you would have to take great care when doing so, and make sure that you don't 1: increase the thickness of the card, and 2: get Sugru on the pins or some other place where you don't want it to be. Also note that if you're going the Sugru route, you need to leave the card alone, outside of the Pandora, for about 24 hours, or else it will adhere itself to the inside of the card slot (and Sugru can't be removed unless you cut it off, so you would be up the creek without a paddle if that happened, so to speak).
 
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The struts are unaffected.


Hm. Considering how often I use my Pandora, that'd be difficult. I've been meaning to get a bigger SD card; perhaps when I do I'll get some Sugru as well (after moving everything to the 32GB card). Where can I get a small amount of Sugru? (Also, what else could I use it for, because I'd like to get some bang for my buck.)
 
The best place to get Sugru is straight from the manufacturer. They have a lot of usage suggestions here.


Myself, I've used it for filling cracks that have popped up on my Pandora's casing (for which it's worked really well), adding better strain relief to a slightly-broken headphone cable, and I gave some to a relative who needed to fix one of those accursed, forever-splitting MacBook power adapter cables. I'll also be using it to steady the Servbots from a Tron Bonne statue I have, because they're top-heavy and keep falling over. :p Basically, there's a hell of a lot you can use it for - just make sure you have a few things in mind when you open a sachet, because they contain a fairly generous amount of the stuff, but you need to apply it within 30 minutes, ideally.
 
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Hot damn! I'd better jump on that bandwagon ASAP!


You sure I can use it for something that needs to be used as delicately as an SD card, though? It has to go in, come out, not leave a mess, and stay that way.
 
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Once it's set, it's really very sturdy - it's a bit tougher than the usual silicone rubber you see on, say, keyboard or console covers, and is a bit more like plastic in its finish (indeed, if your PNY card is anything like my last one, Sugru is tougher than the plastic they use). You just need to apply it carefully and make sure that it's level with the surface of the card.


Unless you've fitted razorblades to the SD slots on your Pandora, nothing's going to scrape it off as long as it's not lumped on in a stupid fashion. :lol: (Maybe once the chips are filled, run a piece of cardboard or a credit card over the surface of the SD Card to make sure the Sugru is flat and level, before leaving it to set?)


A word of warning, though: If the chips aren't very deep, this may not work well (or at all). Applying it too thinly (I've seen this done on a cable) can cause it to split and come off.
 
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How do I know if it's too thin? I tried to take a picture, but my brother's camera can't take that detailed of a picture.
 
That's a good question, and not one I can really answer without a decent picture, unfortunately. Sorry about that.


Does the camera have a macro mode?
 
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Sh*t! It's slowly falling apart! Maybe you can grab an old SDHC card and use it's housing (you'll have to get super glue to glue the casing back together) for your current brittle one?
 
Oh, cripes. I don't think you'd be able to fill that in - that's too awkward of a spot. At that point it's pretty much reconstruction, and I don't think that Sugru will work well for that.


Going on my previous experience with a PNY card, that probably isn't going to stay together for much longer (and it's certainly not likely to hold up to much use), so all I can recommend is getting a different card as quickly as you can afford to.
 
Oh boy. Maybe my mom will let me have some space on her backup drive. Will it last until Tuesday? That's when I can back everything up. As long as I put the card in my mom's card reader delicately, things will be fine, right?


EDIT: And what about the slot? Should I be worried about that?
 
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Be careful with it, and don't handle it unless you absolutely have to. :p It'll probably be ok for the time being if you do that.


I don't think the slot is anything to worry about unless you remove and reinsert the card a bunch of times and end up with more breakage to the card. Again, if you can avoid handling the card for the moment, it should be ok.
 
Guess I'll have to figure out how to transfer files to my Pandora through Bluetooth, then. I've been meaning to get a new 32GB card, anyway. What should I do with this one once I do so? Or should I get two?
 
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