We have a snapped off 3.5mm jack inside audio socket


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Hey Guys, bit of a nightmare situation here...

In the green audio socket on the back of my friends PC, he has accidentally yanked his headphones and snapped off the 3.5mm jack, so half of the 3.5mm jack is left in the socket!

Luckily he can use the front audio panel on his PC for the time being, but how would you guys approach getting this jack out of the socket? i was thinking of glue on the end of the broken 3.5mm jack and leaving it in there to set, then hopefully pulling the whole thing out, but if i use to much glue it could become wedged for good?

Any help would be grand,

Thank You :)

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Glue would maybe work but like you say, too much and it might get wedged in for good...or even if you do get the other piece out, the socket itself might not work if there is any more glue left in it.

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Glue is the best I can think of but yeah careful with using too much glue. I think it comes down to what type of glue you use. what you could do is use a bit of oil to fill in all around the piece and then wipe carefully and use glue. pick a glue that has a lower density than oil to make sure it doesn't go further into the jack.

cleaning the oil will be your next headache :( but since it's not conductive, it won't actually break anything if you don't get it all.

I think air pressure is also a good tool. do you have one of those two way pumps? a small enough shot class on top of the hole with a tiny hole to suck the air out would work.

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This happened to me earlier this year with the socket in the front audio panel on my PC.

I used a cotton bud and super glue. I cut one of the ends off of the cotton bud and put super glue on it. Then I put it in the socket, waited a little while, and it came out.

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This happened to me earlier this year with the socket in the front audio panel on my PC.

I used a cotton bud and super glue. I cut one of the ends off of the cotton bud and put super glue on it. Then I put in the socket, waited a little while, and it came out.

That's how I did it before. Just don't use a lot.

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Get the smallest drill bit you can (1 mm or so).

Drill gently about 1/2 cm into the hollow middle of the broken plug.

Use a small screwdriver to thread a screw about halfway in.

Pull out the plug by holding the screw with needle-nose pliers.

This worked like a charm for me.

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Solder might be better than glue

It also increases the chances of making matters worse. Not to mention the fact most people don't have a soldering kit at home.

I'd go along with the superglue idea as well.

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I'd have thought most members here would have a soldering kit, I do.

Some of the cheap solder irons have finicky tips and can cause smudging of solder. Unless he's really careful about the amount of solder he's placing onto the rod he's using to pull out the plug, there's a risk he can spill solder onto the wall of the audio plug.

Plus, solder crystallizes pretty quickly, much much faster than glue. He'd have to be really quick after placing liquid solder onto a rod and sticking it to the plug before it cools down.

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Get the smallest drill bit you can (1 mm or so).

Drill gently about 1/2 cm into the hollow middle of the broken plug.

Use a small screwdriver to thread a screw about halfway in.

Pull out the plug by holding the screw with needle-nose pliers.

This worked like a charm for me.

That's exactly how I did mine. +1

Don't mess with glue or or solder. Do this.

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Magnets. Get the strongest one you have and hold it on the back of the computer. The thing will just pop out of there. If it doesn't just rub it on the back the computer until it does.

I'd make sure to get the hard drives as far away as those magnets before doing that. Besides, there's a little clip that keeps the plug inside the socket which I'm skeptical of magnets' ability to overcome.

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I'd make sure to get the hard drives as far away as those magnets before doing that. Besides, there's a little clip that keeps the plug inside the socket which I'm skeptical of magnets' ability to overcome.

FYI:

Inside all mechanical hard drives, there is a very powerful magnet.

If this doesn't have any effect on the drive, I doubt an external magnet will.

This is a popular misconception.

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Some of the cheap solder irons have finicky tips and can cause smudging of solder. Unless he's really careful about the amount of solder he's placing onto the rod he's using to pull out the plug, there's a risk he can spill solder onto the wall of the audio plug. Plus, solder crystallizes pretty quickly, much much faster than glue. He'd have to be really quick after placing liquid solder onto a rod and sticking it to the plug before it cools down.

Yea that's how I'd do it, solder a piece of metal then stick it to the back of the broken jack, would be asking for trouble trying to solder direct to the jack :)

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Umm.....Most audio jacks are open on the other side.

If you open the computer and look at the audio jacks most have slots or holes and you can use a paper clip to push it back outwards instead of using glue. It always easier to push then pull.

I am sure in some universe there is a audio jack that is closed on the other side but you should double check. I have found most connectors to be open including other like SPDIF , etc ...

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Not to mention the fact most people don't have a soldering kit at home.

I'd have assumed every tecchie does.

Umm.....Most audio jacks are open on the other side.

And in-turn obscured by the housing for the jack.

My money is the drill method.

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I've fixed this with the glue trick a few times. I use a small flat-headed nail and put a tiny drop of CA (super) glue) on the head then touch it to the plug and wait. It's easier if you put something next to the equipment with the jack that you can rest the nail on. If you hold it in place you'll smear the glue and might end up gluing the nail to the jack instead of just the plug. :)

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