Used to fix busted phone screens with a heat gun and suction cups - now I just use a proper press

Back in 2019, I was doing screen swaps on iPhones with a $20 heat gun from Harbor Freight and those cheap suction cups. It took me like 45 minutes per phone and I broke at least 1 in 10 screens from uneven heating. Now I've got a proper screen press that cost me $300 from a guy in Phoenix and it takes me 15 minutes tops. The press heats evenly and applies constant pressure so no more cracked displays. Has anyone else found a tool that cut their repair time in half?

3 comments

3 Comments

harper69323d ago

Used to fix busted phone screens with a heat gun and suction cups" Oh man, that brings back memories of me trying to fix my buddy's iPhone 7 with a hair dryer and a credit card. I swear I spent more time cussing at that thing than actually fixing it. The heat gun method always felt like playing hot potato with someone's expensive glass. I'd rather pay the extra cash for a proper press than go back to those days of guessing if the glue was melted enough. Your 1 in 10 break rate is actually pretty good, I think I was closer to 3 in 10 before I just gave up and started sending people to the shop.

harper69323d ago

Read somewhere that those adhesive sheets actually have a cure temperature you gotta hit just right (like 80C or something). Too hot and the glue gets all brittle, too cold and it won't stick for crap. Explains why my hair dryer method was such a gamble every time.

richard_anderson15d ago

Yeah, that hair dryer and credit card combo is a nightmare. I remember trying to pry off a Galaxy S8 screen with a butter knife one time just because I was too cheap to buy proper tools. Ended up cracking the LCD and my buddy was so pissed. The heat gun thing was always a gamble too, I'd hold it for what felt like forever then suddenly realize the glass was way too hot to touch. That 3 in 10 break rate sounds about right for us amateurs. Now I just tell people it's cheaper to pay the shop than to watch me ruin their phone and charge them for the lesson.