DualShock 4 Analog Stick Covers Replacement

Written By: Maaz Hussaini

Comments: 65

DualShock 4 Analog Stick Covers Replacement

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

Time Required

10 minutes - 1 hour

Introduction

Use this guide to replace or clean the analog sticks on the Dualshock 4 controller.

Tools

Parts

DualShock 4 Controller Joystick Cover

Step 1

Using the Phillips #00 Screwdriver, remove the four 6.0 mm screws securing the rear cover to the controller.
Do not forcefully loosen the screws, as it will amount to permanent damage of the threads, making removal impossible.

Yo usé un Phillips #000, ya que el #00 quedaba grande y podía dañar el tornillo.

Adolfo Gomez Toledo - 19/12/20

A plain #0 works way better for me

Jennica Tapia -

Step 2

Four fragile plastic clips hold the casing together. You can see their locations more clearly in this guide.
The clips help hold the seams together. If you break these clips, the controller will still work.
Beginning with the left handle:
Pinch the left handle of the controller to introduce an opening.
Wedge a plastic opening tool into the opening and slide it up towards the joystick.
Pull down on the plier to crack open the casing.
Repeat these steps for the right handle.

Shoulders are where L1/L2/R1/R2 are, not the %#*@ handles. Confusing instructions.

foxhoundunit89 - 13/07/15

Quick tip: Be VERY careful at this step not to dislodge the tiny spring attached to the L2/R2 buttons. While removing the cover, it's easy to pull off either L2/R2 button. Inadvertently pulling off either button will also remove the tiny spring as well. While not too difficult to reassemble, it's not obvious where the spring goes as the spring is almost completely hidden along the side of the button (on the inside).

I just successfully completed analog stick replacements for two controllers. I completed the first repair without any trouble but managed to dislodge (and almost lose) the spring on the second time around. Needless to say, I spent some time trying to figure out where the spring is supposed to go (no photos of this anywhere). By sheer luck, I figured it out on my own. :)

Good luck and take your time--especially the first time!

Michael Whang - 28/11/15

couldn't have posted pics for me? :D

kimsballs - 25/01/16

Golden tip but I would add a thing or two.

Most probably both triggers R1&R2 will stay in lower half of the pad case with springs hanging there.

You must take them of their lower case sockets before assembly and fit them bellow L1&L2

When you feel click when fitting them and spring works like on normal assembled pad you're done.

If thats not the case do not try to assemble lower casing half as triggers will not work properly.

Simon - 22/02/16

if you lost the springs unfortunately, the triggers would still work but it is harder to get to the precise digital press. In other words you will have hard time to create a light press than a hard press.

meaningless - 11/06/16

My controller broke

Gary - 28/03/20

So what I seem to see a lot of sources fail to mention with this model (and promptly break without noticing) are the two plastic tabs attached to the front shell on either side of the headphone jack ; in order to properly pry that section open, all you need to do is lightly push those plastic tabs in, and the section should open up easily. That seems to be one of the main things that prevent people from prying the shell open.

The updated models have the tabs as well, but aren’t as stubborn considering the bars between the shoulder buttons on those are inside as opposed to being a part of the shell.

Hope this helps, and feel free to discuss, especially if you’re more familiar with the issue than me.

Rifter - 11/11/20

Thank you so much for mentioning exactly where the internal tabs are located, I couldn't for the life of me get into the controller otherwise.

I found using two thin plastic guitar picks, the kind that bend more freely, worked very well to shimmy into place on either side of the headphone jack and pop the tabs to get the device to open.

I did break a small piece from one of the teeth on the back half of the shell that inserts into the tabs, but I believe this was accidentally done before I came across your comment and was prying with a spudger willy-nilly.

Gently wiggling the front half of the shell containing the main portion of the electronics allowed me to release the triggers and open the controller the rest of the way.

Fizzwidgy -

Step 3

Wedge a plastic opening tool into the case-splittings and pull down to crack open the casing near the following buttons:
Share button
Options button
Split the plastic covers of the controller apart, taking note that they will still be attached by circuit board ribbons.
Three small pieces are often released from the framework. To prevent loss, maintain a controlled work field.
2 Trigger Springs
1 Grey Reset Button Extension

You can't just pull the casing halves apart. There is a plastic bar that is part of the casing and separates the L1 and R1 buttons from the L2 and R2 buttons. To get this loose, pull the casing outward perpendicular to the L and R buttons until you can slide the L2 and R2 buttons from behind the plastic bar.

dzturbd - 02/05/15

SO yesterday replaced the thumb stick on my controller, and now the R2 button is stuck, know any way to remedy this?

ScootsMcgoots - 03/05/15

I know you put a warning, but I lost the grey reset button extension. Any idea where to get a replacement part?

miamiman77 - 25/06/15

Hey, not even sure when you wrote this, but wanted to share my solution for this problem. I lost one of my reset button rubber pieces when I was doing a different repair, and found that a standard bamboo skewer is just about the perfect diameter to function as a replacement. Just cut it to the proper length and you should be able to get it in there and get your reset functionality back.

tcbrekke - 10/08/15

You don't really need it. A long paper clip will work fine.

Ron Smith - 29/09/15

I've removed and changed all buttons all seemed ok but now the options and share button don't work, as in when I pressed them down there is no longer a click (bounce) I'm certain it's back in the correct place and I don't think they can be put the wrong way up, does anyone have any advice please :)

Rachel - 20/01/16

My share button stopped 'clicking'. When I stripped the controller down I noticed a small copper coloured dimple on the motherboard was depressed instead of proud like the one for the options button. With bluetack I was able to pull it out but each time I tested it with my finger it clicked once and stayed depressed. I don't think there is a permanent solution to this as it's probably metal fatigue or similar so i put a tiny bit of blue tack overy the dimple so the plunger could push that bit further and hopefully pull it out each time. Seems to work as I reassemble the controller. Fingers crossed it holds out a while! I'd love to know if someone else had a different solution.

The5HD - 27/06/16

I had an extra part, and it wasn’t gray. Thank goodness for the picture of the black one. It’s rubbery. The small end should be inserted down towards the gold colored spot. It’s next to the word RESET on the mobo.

J Coyote - 28/12/17

When reassembling: If, like me, your R2/L2 buttons stayed with the bottom of the controller when you took it apart, it will be impossible to reassemble and get the tiny springs back in place.

To remedy, remove the buttons, and attach them, with the springs correctly placed, to the top of the controller. There are two tiny grooves, one on the button, and one on the controller top, into which the spring fits.

Jeff Human - 27/02/18

Jeff, we owe you a six pack for this comment.

James Goldie - 22/05/18

Thank You!! The spring came out and I looked for a way to reinsert it. So I led a thread through its opening (so it couldn´t jump away), and compressed it with pliers. So it was easy to put it in.

VauWeh - 23/09/18

Jeff, you've been a wonderfully helpful Human. Thanks for the ingenious tip.

Kris W - 15/09/19

Thanks man i was struggling there

Shut-_-Up -

My controller broke

Gary - 28/03/20

Something is stopping me from opening it cause it cut both by splitting tools

Josuke Higashikata - 03/08/20

Mine was also really really resistant to being pried open. In the end, i did my best to loosen the entire gap at least once, then inserted along the middle bottom and used more force than i would have been comfortable with. The plastic on the edges is slightly shot now and it’s not as smooth a grip-feeling anymore, but it came apart fine and I didn’t break anything important. There is just a lot of surface for a friction fit like this and the joysticks keep pulling it back down, which in combination makes it really resilliant. In my case it also was exuberated by a minor soda spill along the right handle which ‘glued’ it together, and i imagine that can also happen just with use and ‘hand cheese’, especially on the outer edges. There is a lot of surface area to stick together there.

Seleen Shadowpaw - 27/05/21

Step 4

Detach the motherboard ribbon connecting the two sides of the controller by pulling it straight out with your fingers.
Note the orientation of the cable and make sure it faces the right way when you reconnect it.
After the two halves are separated, place the top of the controller off to the side.

can you share the battery dimension?

luxusmirajane - 08/09/15

Step 5

Using the blunt forceps, remove the battery plug by gently rocking the forceps side-by-side to loosen the plug.
After removal of the plug from the motherboard, the battery can be lifted off of the controller.
Hasty removal of the battery plug could warp the plastic grips of the plug.

For the replacement battery I found that the Turnigy 2000mAh 1S 1C Lipo w/ 2 Pin JST-PH worked perfectly while also being a budget option at only $2.54 USD before shipping. However ONLY INSTALL AFTER CHANGING THE POLARITY OF THE CONNECTOR, this can be done with a pin or craft knife with relative ease. After doing this the controller has doubled in battery life. It required no modification to the controllers internals only extra care to ensure the longer cables didn’t get pinched in reassembly.

Ryan - 02/03/18

Got the battery detached without warping the plastic grips/ prongs, but it won't stick back to the board on reassembly. Is there an adhesive i should use?

Ferrum Phoxx - 02/05/19

Ferrum Phoxx - Did you just remove the plug from the socket? By that, I mean you didn’t pull the socket it was in off of the board too? If you did pull the socket off as well, I think that would require resoldering the socket to the board first. Tricky, but someone with some soldering experience ought to be able to fix it for you.

nowurgone - 13/07/19

I had trouble with analoge, I fixed that but FPC (flat connector) on mainboard broken and I soldered new 12 pin FPC on mainboard again, but in reverse!

then I put charging cable and the dualshock did not turn on , and I sensed that the dualshock is heating up, I remove charging cable as soon as possible.

problem is this : negative and positive putted in reverse.

I don’t kwow what happen if I solder new FPC in right position .

Does it work or somethings going to out of service?

sorry formy poor English language .

regards,

Hamed

hamed1379 - 26/09/20

I can’t pull the connector plug out of the socket. I’ve used my fingers, I’ve tried tweezers. I’ve been rocking it for 15 minutes but it won’t come out.

marcus2159 -

I found it difficult to unscrew the four screws on the back of my controller. I recommend a screwdriver that you can get a good grip on so you can turn it precisely.

My battery came with a screwdriver but when I turned it the handle broke in half. The second screwdriver came from an old set I'd got at Harbor Freight or somewhere. The screws stripped the screwdriver! Then I thought to get the screwdriver from the iFixit kit I'd used to replace the battery in my Galaxy S6 a few years ago. This worked much better. I might just buy a set of screwdriver bits here since both the bits and handle are far better constructed than the cheap stuff I broke.

Gary F -

Step 6

Remove the single 6.0 mm Phillips screw found below the battery retainer with the Phillips #00 Screwdriver.
Do not forcefully loosen the screw, as it may amount to permanent damage of the threads, making removal impossible.

Hello. I got a new graffiti controller (without hardware) and i wanted to switch my parts in the graffiti one. I have a PS4 Controller. Not a slim. But it seems like my motherboard screw is on the other side.. its on the right side of the motherboard and my graffiti is on the left.. what controller do i need to fix this?

TheTechnoMan - 14/06/17

Step 7

Gently detach the touchpad ribbon connected to the motherboard using the blunt forceps. The touchpad ribbon is connected to the motherboard by a connector that flips to tighten and loosen. During reassembly, to reattach the ribbon, the plastic tray will need to be gently removed from the motherboard and the flip-lock flipped up.

Be very careful when you detach the touchpad ribbon. You could disconnect the other end that is inside the touchpad. In fact I would recommend you use a plastic spudger to release the clips on the sides of the battery holder, and then lift the latch to the ZIF socket of the touchpad. If your touchpad is not working upon reassembly, then the other end of the ribbon cable my have came loose in the touchpad. Use a plastic opening tool to remove the back of the touchpad, and lift the brown latch of the ZIF socket and reinsert.

Patrick - 20/06/14

thanks for the advice

TMC - 22/07/14

currently doing this and have found the desoldering part the most difficult. i purchased a 40w solder on sale and attempted to remove with flux and wick to no avail. a buddy of mine tried with his station and no dice. at this point im thinking the contacts are lead? any advice?

swammieslippyslappy - 31/12/14

So the springs are annoying couldn't see were you talk about these as it's very fiddly to do the last step of putting it back together. Not just a reverse of taking it apart!

Frank Theplank - 14/05/15

I concur. The springs are the worst part of this job. It would be nice if someone edited this to add some tricks for reassembly.

raysmalley - 09/12/15

You just have to put the r2/l2 buttons on the top side. There's a space around that white rubber thing where you can just snap them in. So that you have all the shoulder buttons together before putting the 2 parts back together.

Flow Von D - 03/01/16

Tilt your controller and trigger so the triggers are pointing to the ground it stops the spring popping out so much place spring inside the trigger and clip on thats how i do it anyway :) the touchpad is my problem area replaced my stick covers and now it just doesnt work at all :(

drwhatfunk - 12/08/16

https://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9dWsZNn...

Dallas Smith - 26/12/16

Thank you for this recommendation. Made disassembly SO much smoother.

jeninholland02 - 22/11/15

What I did for the Springs was place the spring on the button. Turned the button to where the spring is up on top then attached the button to the controller this helps keep the spring in place as you reattach it that is really the only trick that I found to it.

Matthew Luna - 11/01/16

“The touchpad ribbon is connected to the motherboard by a connector that flips to tighten and loosen” —> Just fixed a controller I bought in 2017. There was definitely no flip connector there, the ribbon simply went in. I guesss the internals changed. So beware: don’t mess with the female connector on the motherboard if there’s no obvious flip switch.

jonl - 31/08/19

Thank you. I just broke a piece of the plastic because it will not flip. I could not figure it out and was wondering if the version in these demonstrations was different than mine. Thank you for addressing this.

nearthecross - 31/03/21

never had spring problem

DARKMATTER - 16/10/19

Just want to say big thanks to ifixit for mentioning the flap. It worked like a charm. I searched high and low on all the usual forums, Reddit, Youtube, you name it. Who knew it was as simple as flipping the flap and no one even thought of mentioning it until I found this website.

leehmclara -

I don't see a flap for the ZIF connector on the controller (CUH-ZCT2U) I'm working on, so I gently pulled it out with pliers. I may not have seen it, but I couldn't see a release mechanism.

Shane -

Step 8

Carefully dislodge the motherboard assembly from the front cover.
Vibration motors are loosely attached to the motherboard assembly. Provide support at the two ends to ease the separation.
When removing the motherboard assembly, try not to tilt the front cover upside down as the buttons and their covers may fall out.

Yeah, the factory solder job for those motors on the mobo is terrible. Every time I open these up, I add more solder to those joints just to be safe.

Robert - 02/04/21

Step 9

Successful disassembly of the controller will result in the following three parts, respectively:
Motherboard Assembly
Front Cover
Rear Cover

One day my R2 trigger refused to work all in a sudden. The second day it spread to my square button. I dissembled the controller to this step and found some liquid between the green motherboard and the black plastic holding it. I should not have bought a second-hand especially for a launch version. Anyways I cleaned it up and it still didn't work. I then went to ebay and bought a new motherboard. Basically it is a piece of delicate plastic like PCB. It is held in place by 3 plastic columns and 3 gaps for sliding underneath both triggers and the touch pad. Sorry for no pictures but a careful removal of the old one would give you the best illustration of how to put the new one back. First remove the rubber pads of the triggers, which allows you to slide in the PCB. Then there are another 2 small plastic columns at the back of the gap near the touch pad. There is no need to detach the rotors. A pair of tweezers would help greatly. My controller now works perfectly like new and thanks to the author.

meaningless - 11/06/16

Step 10

Pull the analog stick covers straight off the joystick posts attached to the motherboard with your fingers.

Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Author

Maaz Hussaini

Member since: 21/01/14

5407 Reputation

14 comments

So I followed all the steps, got the sticks in. But when I put the controller back together it Wouldent turn on. Do you guys have any clue as to what it could be?

blscott2270 - 03/09/16

Same exact thing happened to me, just wouldn't turn back on

Andrew Purcell - 28/10/16

Me too and all the reconnected cables are connected correctly, but it just won’t work.

Andy Hui - 07/07/18

Hope you guys still keep the parts, since the problem can be resolved by following the post below successfully. :)

https://www.google.com.hk/amp/s/amp.redd...

Andy Hui - 14/07/18

i think you didn't put a wire in

Gabrys Holcman - 07/10/16

Does this fix the issue with worn out sticks? Mine currently at idle will get stuck slightly pressing to the left, (in game, I'll be cruising left at a snail's pace) and pressing up/forward or sometimes pressing to the right doesn't fully work (in game this causes me to either not move at all, or move at about 2/3rds speed).

I've had them for about two years now, and they have seen some rigorous use, I tell you what. It is beginning to affect gameplay pretty badly, though.

doomjockey5000 - 18/10/16

The options and share button are loose when I try to put it back together any suggestions?

bdj1293 - 23/11/16

Thank you for the guide - it helped me fix a beaten up DS4 controller I found on the flea market. However, it would be nice to explain a bit more in detail how to crack the case pieces open. Some detailed pictures with the different inside clips and hinges would be nice. Also, there is no explanation as to how to assemble the L2/R2 triggers back together. Last, but not least, there is no explanation as to how to remove the battery tray, in order to connect the touchpad to the motherboard.

Vlad Mocanu Alexandru - 20/12/16

It actually opens quite easily. I'm female with shaky fingers and didn't have a plastic pry tool. Broke the last one opening iPhones. I took a very small flat too screw driver from my electronic tool set, stuck it in at the same spot he showed and just gently pried all around. It opened fairly easily with nothing breaking. When it was almost all the way open I did go to the opposite side and gently loosened up thevither end, just so it would open straight. It's easy as long as you are gentle with it

Dagmar Kugler - 09/06/17

If parts to the controller should be replaced how would you know? Is there a circuit test proceedure for the mother board? How would you know to replace other items when you are disassembling the controller? Thank you for the assistance with my controller and your time you have taken to help. Have a great one!

bonnie.anderson59 - 25/02/17

Thank you for the guide !

julio rosica - 25/07/18

PSA: If you pry open your controller from the sides as this guide recommends instead of the middle, you will create a hairline fracture because of prying against the hinges/locks on the inner sides of the controller.

Instead, open your controller from the middle to release the hinges first, after which you can pry open the entire bottom of the controller on both sides.

I have a black DS4 so it’s not the end of the world, but it’ll be very different on a non-black controller.

Ze Bra - 05/08/18

Used this guide to disassemble a PS4 controller and had no issues at all! Thank you for the guide

jvoric - 06/10/20

This doesn't look easy and there are opportunities to mess things up. Also, it might be hard to find an unused analog stick cover. I would try silicone joystick caps from eBay before attempting this guide.

Sometimes plastic or rubber items I handle become extremely sticky and can't be cleaned. This is a very annoying problem for me. I remember my stepdad yelling at me because I'd made swimming goggles sticky, and he also thought I'd covered bicycle handlebars with glue to make my hands stick better. Really I think it's just resins and plasticizers leeching out because of my sweat. I had the same problem with my PS4 controller's joysticks. No matter how carefully I wash my hands or clean the controller they're sticky. If I were to sell it for parts I wouldn't want someone to buy my sticky joystick covers.

I bought some silicone joystick caps from eBay and they were easy to install, I just stretched them over my existing joysticks. They've even got some little bumps that help with grip.

Gary F -