Hardware Replacing the 3DS top screen lens

[link6155]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to replace my top 3DS screen lens as it has scratches and dust under, however, I haven't found any specific instruction for replacing only this part. The closest thing I could find is instructions for replacing the whole entire LCD screen, but I only want to replace the lens (the thin transparent sheet that covers the top screen). After looking through the steps here, I was wondering if I could just do step 23 and heat up the top half the 3DS to loosen up the adhesive so I can pry the lens off. Does anyone here have experience with fixing up their 3DS, if so, would this be possible?


Also, I don't want to send my 3DS to Nintendo's repair because:
1. I have some decal on my 3DS, I don't think they'll keep them on if I send it in.
2. I've heard from some people that Nintendo didn't remove the dust after they sent it in.
3. I want to save a few bucks and time.

 

[SmileCitrus]

Yes, step 23 is all you need to do. There's no need to unscrew or disconnect anything at all. You can actually remove the original display lens and then power the 3DS on so it displays something with a white background, such as the home menu, so that you can be absolutely sure there's no dust left on the LCD before installing the new one.

Don't use a heat gun though. A heat gun is far too hot. I used a heat gun the first time I did this and melted the housing. A hairdryer is all you need. Just take your time. If it's too hard to pry off, heat it up some more. You don't want to try to force the original lens off if the adhesive hasn't been warmed up enough because you run the risk of losing your grip on your prying tool and accidentally scratching the LCD itself.

 

[link6155]

Don't use a heat gun though. A heat gun is far too hot. I used a heat gun the first time I did this and melted the housing. A hairdryer is all you need. Just take your time. If it's too hard to pry off, heat it up some more. You don't want to try to force the original lens off if the adhesive hasn't been warmed up enough because you run the risk of losing your grip on your prying tool and accidentally scratching the LCD itself.

Thanks for the tip! How hot should it be exactly? Just want to make sure I'm not going to melt anything. And do you recommend using anything to pry off the lens?

 

[SmileCitrus]

I'm honestly not sure how hot it should be. I doubt any hairdryer would get hot enough to melt the plastic though. I use a hairdryer on the maximum setting and it never melts or damages anything. I move it around in small circular motions above the areas to the left and right of the upper screen for somewhere between 30 seconds and a minute. I use a metal spudger like this to pry the lens off, but any thin, flat tool would work just fine. I've actually used a butter knife to do it a few times. Usually I start from just beneath the 3D slider, since there's a bit of an opening there.