Getting in between the LCD panel and the plastic cover

[pcdj]

I've recently upgraded my T43 screen to SXGA+ from a guy on ebay.

I believe he simply gets ThinkPad LCD frames and installs his own LCDs into them with the correct resolution, as the first screen that arrived had a little play in it and could move around inside the frame a little, and the second one that arrived due to a fault with the first (a couple of 3-4 pixel wide dark blobs - not dead pixels) has a tiny hair in the middle of the screen towards the right hand side.

Rather than waiting over a week to send this one back for him to fix it and remove the hair, I was wondering just how easy it is to simply separate the LCD frame plastic from the LCD screen to get underneath and clean the LCD?

I've read over a few guides from past posts on here and the generic ones from lcds4less.com seem to suggest that undoing the six screws on the side of the screen will separate the plastic from the actual LCD panel. Is it as simple as that on the ThinkPads, and where can I get these sticky screw covers from if I manage to lose any or some refuse to stick back on?

Thanks.

[sjthinkpader]

Welcome to the forum.

The hair must be between the glass and the backlight. In that case it will be too difficult unless you have experience taking the LCD apart.

[pcdj]

Thanks.

So you're saying there isn't a separate plastic screen attached to the black plastic frame and the hair must be sitting inside the actual LCD panel itself?

In which case i'm left wondering how that could've happened, but i guess i have no choice but to send the panel back to the guy for another replacement.

[sjthinkpader]

The LCD used in notebooks are transmissive. Behind it is a backlight assembly consist of a rectangular flat light pipe and one or two BEF (brightness enhancement film). The CCF (cold cathode fluorescent) tube is usually at the bottom edge of the light pipe and electronics is behind the backlight along the top. All this is held into a thin metal frame with screws and tape.

Everything is very fragile and each manufacturer has a slightly different arrangement of parts. So it is not something easily attempted.

LCD factory are dust and particle controlled. Workers wear "bunny suites" to assure cleanliness and quality of the end product. Refurbish shops are similarly equipped. After market repair shops are not and anything can happen.

If you can see the hair, it is likely between the LCD and the backlight or BEF.