Bad fit of bottom cover on E14

[cth103]

Hi all,

I recently took the bottom cover off my Thinkpad E14 G3 to fit some more RAM. This works fine, but it seems that I did something wrong when putting the cover back on, and I can't work out what!

It looks like there is a bit of a gap between the top and bottom cases over the USB ports (see also here). And when I press down on the keyboard surround on the left hand side (marked by the green splodge) it pushes the case down (with a little click).

This isn't the end of the world but quite annoying since that spot is often where your left hand ends up!

I don't think I broke any clips on getting the bottom off. Is there some trick I missed in putting it back on?

Any ideas are most welcome! Thanks in advance!
Carl

[dr_st]

You could have broken a clip or two without noticing. They are so flimsy that it happens.

It is also possible the clip is not attached properly, though I would expect the gap to be bigger in this case.

Furthermore, these plastics are crap and frequently get warped. And then they don't close fully, even if no clips are broken.

I have hit a similar issue with my Thinkpad 25, although in a different location:
https://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=128227

[cth103]

Thanks for the note. I guess I'm into bodge territory... maybe I can put something in the gap that creaks every time I put my hands on it, so at least it doesn't creak any more. I think this will be my first and last Thinkpad.

[RealBlackStuff]

Try to remove/refit that bottom.
For some now not-so-mysterious reason you can get a plastic (5CB0Z69336) and an aluminium (5CB0Z69334) bottom cover.
Check Amazon, Aliexpress, etc.

Apart from that, the E-series are "Economy" models where LeNoNo has tried to save every last penny.
They are so cheap that even Walmart sells them.
Lesson learned: do NOT buy E-series.

[cth103]

Thanks all for your comments. I tried again to refit it (loosing a clip along the under-screen edge in the process) and it seemed that fitting the troublesome edge first made it look good until the front edge was clipped in, at which point it went back out of whack again. A small strip of electrical tape in the join left of the bottom row of keys seems to have helped a little.

Now, about the way the keyboard seems to have scratched the screen surface...!