GCW Zero Disassembly

- '''DISCLAIMER: If you damage your console, you are solely responsible for the damage caused. Nobody will refund you if you damage your console. Do this at your own risk.''' -

Precautions
There are some thin wires that are easy to break if you're not careful. I was able to disassemble/reassemble my console without needing to solder anything back, but it would be safer to have some skill in soldering before trying this.

Tack a sticky note onto the front of your console, to prevent accidental scratches on the screen.

It's a good idea to touch something metal and attached to the ground, to discharge any static electricity from your body. You can repeat this every so often just to be safe.

Before you start
In this tutorial, I'll refer to the side of the GCW Zero with the screen as the front of the console, the side with the mini USB port, speakers, and micro SD card slot as the bottom, and the side with the shoulder buttons as the top of the console. Left and right will be relative to how the console is currently placed in the current tutorial step.

Using your fingernails, pull out the analog nub. There's no screws holding it in place. If you have a micro SD card inserted in the expansion slot, you need to remove it now.

Removing the rubber stoppers and back screws
Remove the rubber bits on the backside of your console. If they're stuck in too deep to pull out with your fingernails, bend a hook in a clean needle and hook it out. The hole made by the needle will be small enough to be unnoticeable afterwards. Then, use a phillips-head screwdriver to remove the screws on the back of the unit.

Pulling apart the back panel
Insert your fingernail in the space between one of the shoulder triggers and the back panel of your console (alternatively, you might find it easier starting from the bottom of the back panel). Slowly run your fingernail across the edge of the device until the back panel is separated. The back panel is held in place by small plastic backhooks; some force is necessary to pry the panel apart, but don't pry it too far away from the rest of the device - there are some thin wires still attached to the back panel.

After the back panel is separated from the rest of the device, slowly lift it up, starting from the bottom. Make sure you don't pull the shoulder triggers off along with the back panel. The battery is attached to the inside of the back panel with double sided tape. To the right, there are wires connecting the battery to the console, and wires connecting the rumble motor to the console. Remove the rumble motor with your fingernails first.

Removing the battery
The battery is strongly held in place with double sided tape. The battery is surprisingly soft, so be mindful of this when you try to remove it. I used a flat-head screwdriver to remove the battery. Insert the screwdriver blade in between the battery and the back panel, and twist. Avoid using the screwdriver like a crowbar, to avoid accidentally slipping and hitting the circuit board. Evenly spread pressure along the battery, to prevent bending it. After the battery is removed, stick some paper on the double sided tape, to make the battery easier to remove in the future.

Removing the PCB
You can first remove the two speakers at the bottom of your device, along with the speaker grills.

Then, you can remove the shoulder trigger buttons, and unattach the shoulder buttons' PCBs, cautious of the PCBs' thin wires. For the rest of this tutorial, be careful of the shoulder trigger wires. These are definitely the easiest wires to break.

The plastic power slider is held in place by small plastic backhooks. There's a large backhook visible to you on the top of the power slider, and two small ones on the bottom. To make the power slider easier to remove, you can use an X-Acto knife to shave off some of the backhook. Removing the power slider is probably the most frustrating step. But be patient - the (electrical) power slider is easy to break if you're not careful.

In the center of the circuit board is the ribbon cable connecting to the screen. Carefully lift the connector flap, and slide out the ribbon cable. Always double check the ribbon cable when removing the PCB from the shell. Breaking the ribbon cable means you're buying a new GCW Zero.

There are nine screws in total holding the PCB in place - five on the left, four on the right. Remove them with a phillips head screwdriver. It's easy to overtighten these screws - keep this in mind when reassembling the console.

Remove the silver IO plate on the top of the console first. It should slide off towards you. The bottom IO plate is an almost full ring around the console. It slides off in the same way.

With both IO plates removed, you can finally remove the PCB.

When you reassemble the console, put the top IO plate on the PCB first, then position both of them into the shell at the same time. The bottom IO plate can be reinstalled after.

Note that there is nothing holding the screen in place. Be careful that it doesn't fall out when moving your console around.

Reassembling your GCW Zero
This is pretty straightforward. As long as you've kept track of your screws and speaker grills, you can reassemble your console by following the steps in reverse. I have only a few things to say about reassembly:
 * Whenever you put your PCB back in the shell, make a habit of installing the top IO plate along with it. After everything is screwed in, the top IO plate will no longer be able to be installed, but the bottom IO plate can. This will save you a lot of time screwing and unscrewing everything after forgetting the top IO plate.
 * The two rubber protrusions on the shoulder trigger PCBs should be positioned in advance, before you start screwing in the main PCB. Bottom protrusion under the PCB, top protrusion above.
 * Make sure you don't forget the ribbon cable as well.
 * The screws are very easy to overtighten.
 * Before reinserting the plastic power slider, shave off some of the backhook with an X-Acto knife, for easier removal in the future.
 * If you removed the battery from the back panel, stick something on the double sided tape to make it easier to remove in the future.

Other
A video of disassembly by BAF BAF can be found here: click me. This video was not made by me; exact steps weren't followed. However, you can get an idea of the general process from the video.