Material things break all the time - one slightly wrong move and your beloved possession is cracked, damaged or shattered. My camera is no exception. Another SLR has slipped from a hand of my friend and landed on the corner of the preview screen of my Canon 500D causing an ugly crack:

Many folks like to buy new things whenever old ones break or pay a lot for repair. I prefer to fix as much as I can myself. It’s fun and very much in-line with the growing stoic inside of me.

Is it possible to fix this problem yourself?

Certainly. And the process is not complicated. All you need is a couple of household tools and the actual replacement screen which you can order from eBay.

Tools and supplies that I have used

I expect you already have a hair dryer and something sharp (like a knife or a blade). Here’s what I have used:

Leatherman Wave knife

Remington hair dryer

We will also need a small suction cup with a handle/head. I did not have any so I had to order one through eBay. I have paid 12$ (with shipping to Switzerland) for a set of 6 (size 1.5 inches). 6 is the smallest quantity I found. You can search for “suctioncups4u” on eBay to find the seller.

A replacement glass can be found on eBay too. Search for “500D outer screen window glass cover”. I have paid 12$ (with shipping).

Step-by-step instructions

  1. Heat up the sides of the preview glass for about 10-40 seconds on each edge to weaken the glue that holds the glass.

  2. Carefully slide a sharp knife or blade underneath the glass and slowly push it along the side.

  3. Put the suction cup on the glass and pull gently:

  4. Remove the broken glass:

  5. Remove residue glue:

  6. Take off the protective paper from the replacement glass:

  7. Carefully drop the new glass. Note that it’s not symmetrical so if it does not immediately fit rotate the glass by 180 degrees.

Camera fixed! Total cost of materials is 24$. The whole process took about 10 minutes. The same instructions apply equally well to some other SLRs. A YouTube video I found for Canon 5D confirms this: Replacing a scratched LCD cover on a Canon EOS 5D SLR

With the camera fixed I am off to the next adventure. Good luck!