Help/advice needed: T430s Loose hinge?

[Orbitronics]

Hi,

My 'grade A' t430s has a fair bit of give in the hinge, i'm not sure if it needs to be tightened, or if there's something else at fault.

This video shows the issue almost identically.

I know there's an easily adjustable 'tightness' nut on the edges of the hinge, so i took the bezel off, maybe this video is helpful, i could not find any magic nuts.

How can i go about fixing this issue?

Thanks!

[Thinkpad4by3]

I have a fried T430s that Im pretty sure has tight hinges.

[Orbitronics]

I have a fried T430s that Im pretty sure has tight hinges.

Cool, I'd only want to buy new hinges if i can't easily tighten the existing ones (i,e. if the existing ones are screwed).

How much would you take to part with the hinges?

[Thinkpad4by3]

Ok, get new hinges. Mine are shot too. DO NOT TRY TO TIGHTEN THEM.

1: They are just too darn hard to open.
2: The Thinkpad 600* also had problems with the hinges loosening. When people tightened them, they snapped in half.

Hinges aren't that big of a deal to replace.

[Orbitronics]

Ok, get new hinges. Mine are shot too. DO NOT TRY TO TIGHTEN THEM.

1: They are just too darn hard to open.
2: The Thinkpad 600* also had problems with the hinges loosening. When people tightened them, they snapped in half.

Hinges aren't that big of a deal to replace.

Ha. so am i right in thinking that it's horrific getting to the nuts to tighten ?

I will probably get new hinges then - i heard fixing them is much harder than a simple swap - but i was under the impression that i had to completely disassemble the laptop which i was trying to avoid.

[dr_st]

The play in the hinges that is shown in the first video is within the normal expectation. It does not affect how well the hinge holds the lid. It has some play, but it will not collapse on you. I've seen laptops that have this much play, and still require significant force to open the lid in the first place.

Among my T-series Thinkpads, the 15" T42, 15" T60 and T410 have approximately this level of play. The 14" T60 has far less, and the T430s no play. But it's also the newest laptop and had far less use.

All my Thinkpads that have play in the hinges developed it over time. They usually start with zero play. I don't know if it happens to all of them, and just depends on how often you open/close the lid, or maybe only to a certain percentage of hinges, or hinges by a certain manufacturer. In any case, I do not worry about it, since it's a minor cosmetic issue, not more.

[TankPad]

This is caused by wear in the bushing rather than any nuts loosening.
You can fix it though, instead of replacing them. You'll have to remove the hinge and separate the 2 parts. Then you can stick some cable or wire in the hole where the barrel came out of before reassembling it. The cable acts as a padding to take up the slack where the original hinge was worn. I've done this to machines that have gone on to work perfectly for years.

[Orbitronics]

...

Thanks, you're absolutely right it is cosmetic, but it's something that really gets on my nerves, the very little ocd i have is triggered by stuff like this!

This is caused by wear in the bushing rather than any nuts loosening.
You can fix it though, instead of replacing them. You'll have to remove the hinge and separate the 2 parts. Then you can stick some cable or wire in the hole where the barrel came out of before reassembling it. The cable acts as a padding to take up the slack where the original hinge was worn. I've done this to machines that have gone on to work perfectly for years.

So, would you say this is not a pain in the butt fix? Or am i better off buying 'new' hinges? If the former, could you possibly explain it to me like i'm 12 / point me to parts of the manual that i need to follow?

[TankPad]

Defo fix it yourself. It's actually quite straightforward. If it goes wrong, then you can just get new ones.
Not sure If I have any pics of the last time I did it but I'll have a look.
I might be stripping one to do a cleaning job in a week or two, so I might be able to give you some better details then.

[Orbitronics]

Defo fix it yourself. It's actually quite straightforward. If it goes wrong, then you can just get new ones.
Not sure If I have any pics of the last time I did it but I'll have a look.
I might be stripping one to do a cleaning job in a week or two, so I might be able to give you some better details then.

That'd be awesome, i've been wanting a thinkpad for a few years but only just got around to ditching my macbook for a t430s. Have just done a keyboard swap, but in regards to the rest, would need a tiny bit of hand holding for instructions other than taking stuff apart (described in the hardware manual).

I'm in no rush so would gladly hang about.

[TankPad]

No probs.
I'll take some pics when I have one apart. Its really straightforward though. There's plenty of guides out there for removing the hinge and once you have that out, its just a matter of separating the two pieces (just pull them apart) and packing it before pushing it back together.

Right now I'm writing this on a 430S that once had an almost non existent hinge.

[BBKampot]

I ordered my T430s in 2013 and used it since in the subtropic countries like Vietnam, Thailand and now Cambodia. I mentioned these countries b/s of its high humidity index that normally kills electronic components especially so when living near the ocean too. My T430s took a lot of abuse (a few drops and being stuffed in the heavy backpack frequently) but it worked quite well. Very few problems. Last year the hinges were loose and i ordered a replacement part from Amazon. I replaced it myself and it was quite involved. It wasn't difficult but involved. it helps to have the instruction (from Lenovo) printed out so that you can easily refer it back and forth. It took me a bit over two hours to do it. Once replaced the hinges are as tight as new. Very happy with it.

good luck.

[brchan]

You cannot tighten hinges on a T430s. Lenovo didn't start adding 14.1" hinges with adjustable nuts until the T440 and newer. You either have to deal with it or replace them, but they all tend to get slightly loose over time. Not a big deal IMO.