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Psion Series 3 Hinge Repair

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The Series 3 uses the same four-hinge clamshell as the rest of the family, so the repair is the same — but the screen and its ribbon are not interchangeable with a 3a.

Hinge repair for the Psion Series 3 (1991).

The Series 3 uses the same case and the same four hinges as the 3a, 3c and 3mx. The full procedure — hinge locations, both failure modes, the epoxy repair, the complete teardown and the lid separation and reassembly sequence — is on the Psion Series 3a Hinge Repair page and applies here unchanged.

This page records the differences.

The four hinges

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Two visible hinges just beyond either end of the button bar, with a metal rod down the centre; two hidden plastic nipples between the battery compartment and the button bar.[1]

  • Visible hinge: the 8 mm-wide neck joining the hinge to the lid shears off, about 2 mm above the hinge. Caused by over-opening the lid.[1]
  • Hidden hinge: the plastic nipple breaks off. The back edge then looks crooked while opening and the button bar flexes out.[1]

Both are repairable with epoxy, optionally with a thin steel strip bridging the visible-hinge neck.[1]

⚠️ The Series 3 difference: donor lids

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A Series 3a lid will not work on a Series 3.

The Series 3 screen is 240 × 80 and the 3a's is 480 × 160; they are physically different panels with different ribbons.[2]

So if the repair route is "fit a donor lid" rather than "bond the broken hinge", the donor must be another Series 3. Check the screen resolution before buying — the two machines look almost identical from the outside, and the Series 3's smaller display area is the giveaway.

Everything else

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Follow Psion Series 3a Hinge Repair for:

  • The complete teardown (four base screws, the battery connector, the two SSD-slot screws, the keyboard cover tabs, the mainboard)
  • Removing the button bar and its springs
  • Disconnecting the LCD ribbon
  • Extracting the hinge pins without damaging them
  • The pre-reassembly power-up test
  • Refitting the springs and the button bar

Open both SSD doors before lifting the mainboard, as on every machine in this family.

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References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 David MacKay, "Psion 3a Hinge breakages". Source for the hinge locations, both failure modes, the over-opening cause and the epoxy repair.
  2. ↑ "Psion specifications", netogram.com. Source for the Series 3 and 3a screen resolutions and physical dimensions.


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