Screen divider

My wife ordered a glass screen to use as a room divider. It showed up broken. They sent a replacement. Also broken. They refunded our money, and now after taking a closer look we've realized that out of 3 panels, 1 is good on one, and 2 are good on the other. So the question becomes can we disassemble and then reassemble successfully. When I saw screws I was hoping that it would be easy, but even after taking the screws out of the hinges the hinges don't budge. I've attached a picture. My guess is the hinges are glued on? Any tips on how to take them off?

 

Maybe boiling hot water will loosen the glue. If not, try some drops of oil.

 

They are probably just stuck. Not glued but more like stuck to the paint or finish. A light tap with a hammer and they'll probably pop free.

 

Never once seen a hinge glued to the jamb.
Somethings just wrong with this whole thing.
Two showed up broken, exposed cardboard looking stuff showing, only two screws in a hinge.
Back up and show a picture of the whole thing please.

 

I agree with Joe on this one. The hot water idea not so much. Cold crack it. (Depending on how the hinge is attached the difference in temp change between glass and metal could cause stress.)

 

I'd try tapping a stiff putty knife under the edge of the hinge.

 

On second thought, I would return both of them & request a screen in good condition.

 

They've already gotten a refund, there's no more going back to the vendor.

 

Hinges were attached before the finish was cured. More efficient that way
Like the others said--give it a smack. On the end @ the knuckle.

 

The rapidity with which I hear back on these forums always amazes me. Thanks guys!

I attached a few more pictures if that helps. The cardboard is basically just the box it came in. Consensus seems to be that they're stuck, will try a putty knife and hammer type idea.

 

I finally got around to trying this (I work a lot), and it turns out there's actually 3 more screws per hinge that are kind of hidden. I've taken the first image I uploaded and circled the pins that need to be removed, which then allows a mini cover type thing to open up and reveal another screw designated by an x. The one long pin in the middle is what these mini covers rotate around.

I tried using an allen wrench/hammer combo to take the pins out, but have failed to budge most of the pins. I have two sets of hex keys and must've grabbed the metric, size says 2.5 so I'm guessing that's mm. Seems roughly equivalent to 5/64". Tried a good amount of WD-40 as well. Tried using a 1/16" drill bit thinking that would be easier to hammer, but the bit broke very quickly.

Any suggestions? Seems to me like I need something pretty thin but also pretty sturdy. Maybe a heavier grade drill bit? Even then I'm a little weary b/c if what I'm using worked on some pins but not most, perhaps the problem lies elsewhere? Maybe some kind of oil for more effective lubrication? I've heard WD-40 isn't actually a lubricant, never quite understood exactly what it does then. Anyway, I'm all ears.

 

Not sure about the ones you have but some of the smaller hinges don't have removable pins

 

If all else fails you could grind off the hinges and pins.

 

There's one hinge where I got all 3 small pins removed, so they're definitely "removable", though maybe if they're not designed to be then that would explain my difficulty. When you say "grind off", what does that mean exactly? I guess the thought there is after sort of forcibly removing the hinges, I could simply buy new hinges and attach them? On the first hinge I worked on, where I was using a putty knife and hammer, I was able to elevate the hinge a bit and thought about sawing off the screws. However, if I did that with each hinge, would I be stripping 3 of the 6 screw holes per hinge?

 

Use a nail set that is thin enough to hit the pin down. But you'll need to get the hinges in line almost exact for it to slide through. I thought the pin might have a head on them and you could file the head off.

 

A nail sounds like a great idea! No heads on the pins. However, I just remembered that these small pins are threaded for a short length at one end, so that perhaps supports the idea that they're not designed to be removed.

 

Then I assume they have a tamper proof driver head or slot. There are bits available that can remove them. Might be hard to find. Can you post a clear pic of the pin head and one that you did remove?

 

Does this work? In one picture of the mini cover, it's right in line with the camera so it almost looks like it's not there. This small pin I put back in after removing it. At the time I had only removed one so I didn't feel like bagging it.

 

That looks difficult.

Are you willing to try another idea? I see a small space betewwen the hinges. Using a small Dremil tool and the thinnest cutting wheel try cutting through the pin between the hinge pieces. It might mean a little damage to the hinge slot where the pin goes through, but you can clean that up once their apart.



If you don't have a Dremil, this is a good excuse to get one. You'll use it for many other things in the future.

BTW...if the pins are threaded how did you get the few out so far?

 

Brute force worked on the small pins I was able to remove so far.

So with the Dremil idea, if I cut where you indicated, wouldn't I destroy the entire hinge? It seems to me it'd be better to cut the 3 small pins on the outside, not the main one on the inside. That way I can still reinstall the hinges using all 6 screws, and then maybe just use double-sided tape or something to keep the mini cover closed on top of 3 of the screws, since I won't have pins anymore to keep them closed.

Sorry for the late reply, my wife really likes this thing and I guess I'm not as handy as I'd like. Whole thing's rather frustrating.

 

Yes, you're right. But I think you should be able to find some steel rod that thin to fit that hinge. Try a hobby store.

 

Got it, thanks! That will be the next thing I try then.

 

BAM! I can't believe it. The day after I got my Dremel, my brother in law is visiting and mentions a gun assembly tool he's got called a pin punch. I won't say it worked like a charm, but it sure beat the hell out of what I had been doing. Knocked all the pins out, took the hinges off, reassembled the good panels, and tadaa! The one panel is almost perpendicular to the camera so you can't hardly see it, but there are 3 panels there.

Thanks again guys!

 

Good job. ______________________________________