GBC frontlight LOCA removal?

[romanaOne]

It occurs to me that those LEDs in those GBC frontlight panels (no doubt all sourced from the highest quality electronics vendors, LOL) are gonna fail someday. 5-10 more years doesn't seem to long when you are working on a 20 year old device.

Is there a solvent that can get the LOCA and frontlight panel off without ruining the screen? Anybody done it?
I've heard a lot of BS and speculation, but I don't see LOCA remover for sale at StoneAge, HandheldLegend, or KitschBent so I have my doubts about "LOCA remover."

 

[FAST6191]

Never done it for a modded GBC but on tablets and phones the hot wire/wire + hot air is the main choice and gets rid of most things. Final cleanup I tend to do with tweezers (if shattered screen) and a damp rag, maybe with a bit of inverted canned air or even contact cleaner on and I suspect most of that is mechanical.

I can not say I have ever particularly stopped to consider screen adhesive chemically before, a quick search says Urethane Acrylic is the popular choice but silicone can be another, and if it is that suspect yellow tinted stuff (as you say many of these are made by some right cowboys) then who knows. If the LCD is made out of something other than the standard choices (it is not like there is one choice of clear plastic and again there is the cowboy factor to consider). To that end when actually using any solvent, even one I have used in the past*, I will tend to do a needle drop in the corner and see the effects.

*I am sure we have all had ingredients change on us without warning.

I am not sure where you might have seen "LOCA remover" but if it is the usual Chinese sites then it might be they are trying to pass off a common as dirt solvent with a markup.

That said there I am more typically dealing with shattered screens, and usually find it cheaper to just buy in assemblies. Not many manage to ruin a touch cable ribbon themselves and necessitate something like this. I don't imagine it changes much though as both sections tend to come off fairly intact.

 

[slaphappygamer]

This guy did it.