Repairing Cracked Laptop Hinges

My laptop started to crack near the hinges. Apparently, this is a common problem with a lot of different laptops. Mine were cracked, but not yet broken. So, I grabbed some epoxy and went to work repairing them. Here are the steps I took to complete the job.

Do this process when you can leave the laptop to dry for 8 hours. I did mine just before bed and allowed it to try over night.

Here's what the worst of the cracks looks like before we start.

We need the following tools: epoxy (30-minute), disposable paint brush, masking tape, steel wool or sandpaper, stir stick.

Mask the area that you want to cover with epoxy. You want to completely cover the crack, plus some.

Next, scuff the area with steel wool or sandpaper. Scuff the whole area but pay particularly close attention to the edges near the masking tape and the edges of the crack itself.

At this point, I should tell you that this is the second time I've done this repair. The first time, I skipped this step and the repair lasted about 8 months. This time, I hope it will last a little longer.

Mix your epoxy and carefully brush the epoxy over the area. It helps to have a fairly slow drying epoxy so that you can take your time here. Put the epoxy on fairly thick, about 1/32 of an inch. Cover the area evenly. As the epoxy dries, most of the bubbles will disappear.

Now, let the epoxy dry some. We don't want it to dry completely, but we want it to start to thicken up. With 30-minute epoxy, this takes about 15 minutes.

Now, carefully remove the masking tape. Be careful to pull away from and not across the epoxy. You don't want to mess up the epoxy, which is still wet.

That's it, you're done. Set the laptop aside and allow it to dry over night. This will ensure that the epoxy is good and hard by the time you open the laptop lid.