Gamebuino Meta Replacement Plastic

Not yet, but soon ! :)

yeah, I had made a point to get a spare set once they where available. The shell is pretty strong, but the part by the USB port seems to be a slightly fragile. It's a nice shell though.

I'm not sure what part, I never add issues... could you share pictures ?

My META arrived with a hairline fracture in the upper-left corner of the USB port (when viewed from bottom while the device is face down).  Hasn't impacted my ability to use or enjoy the device - not a big deal - but wanted to confirm what @DFX2KX mentioned... :)

You could consider patching it from the inside with a small piece of plastic and some superglue (or regular, old 'yellow' glue suitable for plastic), then you'd never have to think about it again. (Make sure your patch doesn't obstruct the board fitting in correctly)

Ideally -but this is getting pretty specific now - you could, in addition- seal the crack with just a tiny swipe of lacquer. Clear color nailpolish works great for things like that, when you need a lacquer that's thick and also only need a tiny bit.

Thanks! <3

 Here's mine. I'm not entirely sure what caused it. And the crack doesn't seem to be getting any worse. If there is any weak point in this shell, the USB port cutout might well be it. This shell is built like a tank otherwise.

Well color me shocked, now that I checked, I found I have a small 'mark' almost identical to the one in @DFX2KX 's photo. How strange, I wonder what caused it.

I also took a x25 loupe to it and with this level of magnification could determine that the crack is either really tight, limited in it's area, or not going through; or not a crack, but a scratch.

Please post if you have a similar 'mark'. If there are two, I wonder if there are others. I will also investigate under magnification some more.

Oooh that ! It's not broken at all, and it's present on all Gamebuino. it's because of the way the plastic flows in the mold. You have the same thing in the bottom right corner of each button opening on the front case as well.

Oh, I see! That illustration is helpful. So the plastic (after being injected into the mold), flows around the part that is forming the button hole right now and welds together with itself on the opposite side.

I believe I could see that under magnification because it's a very smooth, organic looking 'mark', not straight and with sharp bits like something caused by impact or stress.

learned something. Cool.

Oh! I just learned something about molds today. When I do the more detailed review of the META, I'll be sure to note it lest anyone buying it new also notices that.

Than it was a "bad" Mold/Tool designer.

I apologize being a bad mold designer >___<

It was the first time I designed injection molded parts. Sometimes you have to make compromises. Because there is also the PCB to design, the cardboard box, the label, the website, the content... and I didn't want to wait 10 years. All this was done (mainly) alone in a matter of months. Plus I've seen injected parts from mother startups, trust me it could have been waaaay way worse. But hey, doing my best. If you can suggest solutions please do!

I have also done 2 Molds :) and yes its not that easy, there are many things to pay attention.