Cleaning the 8100

I went to Lowe's this weekend and picked up a Mini Torx screwdriver set for $5. Probably the best $5 I've spent in a long time.

The intent was to clean up some dust that I noticed on the inside of my 8100's screen. Not sure how it got like that but as with most electronic devices, it's always a good idea to give them a good cleaning once in a while.

Having never opened a Pearl before, I was basically winging this. Having since taking it apart 4 or 5 times this weekend, I can no do it in under 5 minutes. This is for you guys what want to clean out your phones.

Tools:

Torx 7 screwdriver
5-10 Q-Tips
Windex
Small Saucer or bowl
Large plate or something similar to keep all the pieces

Steps:

Fully power down the 8100
remove the battery (sim & SD cards can remain)
unscrew the 2 exposed torx 7 screws on the top rear
carefully pry loose the bottom end cap
remove the 2 torx 7 screws from the bottom front
pry loose the chrome side end pieces.
pry loose the black plastic shell/frame housing the guts of the Pearl. Be very careful not to lose any pieces attached to the frame, such as the microphone, speakerphone or ear speaker.
clean all parts that appear to need cleaning. I dipped the q-tips in a saucer containing Windex and swabbed all my dirty/dusty parts. I did not touch the main circuit board, but i did wipe the lcd screen and the underside of the front cover/screen. I also did my keypad.
re-assembly is the reverse order

I must admit, the phone is put together quite nicely. And it goes apart and back together fairly easily.

Hope this helps. I didn't get in to too many details, but if anyone has any specific questions, please ask.