3DS Glue back the rubber circle pad?

[PenguinManiac]

Playing 3DSmash and Kid Icarus: Uprising too much on my 3DS hasn't done much good to it, and now the grey rubber thing sitting on the circle pad came off. I can still put it back, but it's not as stable anymore and it slips away whenever I play with sweaty hands.
Can I just glue it back, or is the risk of damaging the whole pad too high to give it a try? I can live using the actual pad (it's smaller, but somehow I get a better grip on it), but I'd prefer to fix it.

 

[Segata]

Take it apart and glue it back
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Nintendo+3DS+Circle+Pad+Replacement/6064

 

[StockRolls]

^ You can do that definitely, but one of the things these people never talk about is how resilient it is afterwards and make sure the glue is on there evenly. If anything, I would say use as little glue as possible on both sides, let it dry a bit, put a center dab in the middle (very little so it doesnt come out of the sides when ya squish it down) and let some of the excess come out of the sides and form a bit of a seal for extra strength. It is likely to snap off again in the future, fyi.

 

[PenguinManiac]

I'm not much of an expert when taking electronic devices apart is involved, so I'm scared to mess something up in the process. I mean, the circle pad itself is fine, I only need to fix the external protection.
So, I was thinking about glueing it back as you said, but if it's gonna come off anyway I don't mind sticking with the way it is now. It's bearable, and I'd prefer not taking the risk of damaging something.

 

[StockRolls]

Nah, you should be fine if it's only partial, your best bet though is to also glue some type of plastic for reinforcement around it. Sugru might help - sugru is amazing, you should look it up

 

[rz3300]

In my opinion a little damage to the controller or the console just means that you are trying. If you are not breaking your devices than you are not trying hard enough. Of course I am kidding, but I have had my fair share of silly mishaps that result in damage, the most common being throwing the controller as hard as I can against a wall. I can get quite angry if everything goes wrong.

 

[pwarbi]

As others have said, while it can be glued back on, the chances of it not coming off again are slim, as if it's come off once, then the more you keep on playing then the more likely it is to happen again. If you can still use it no and it doesn't really bother you that much then I'd probably leave it off to be honest.

Maybe only glue it back on if you are coming to sell it and you want it to look like it's as new and unused as possible. Second hand buyers often expect a little wear and tear anyway so even if they do noticed it's been glued on it won't make all that much difference.