Intel Retail Heat Sink removal troubles!

[DBD100]

Hey all, Need help...

Am having serious trouble removing a PIII 850E retail heatsink, i've followed the instructions http://www.overclockers.com/tips33/ about how to remove the sink but just can't get those plastic clips off after the fan has been removed. The screw on a hard surface thing doesn't work either and i don't want to put too much pressure on incase i screw my chip up and crack it or sumthing!!!

Any tips or suggestions on how to get those plastic holders off then? Or what tool to use? If i could just cut them off i'd be fine but space is limited so no big knifes, and i don't want to use brute force and get some pnumatic drill thing out!!! ;)

Cheers guys, I know sum1 will think of sumthing! :)

[Liquid_N2]

You could try using a pair of wire cutters to cut away the plastic clips.

Or you could get a very thin chisel to break the clips.

Failing that - Dremel the B******d :) :) :)

[DBD100]

:) I feel like doing just that!

[Placid]

I have removed many heat sinks using the screw method.
I have never damaged a cpu using that method.
You do have to use a good amount of pressure to push the pins out.
I know you are uncomfortable doing this but it really is the best way.

[Eliminator]

I had the same problem with my PIII 800. I ended up using some needlenose pliers and broke off the plastic pins, then I used a small screwdriver to push the remaining pins out that were left behind.

[Falkentyne]

DBD100 (May 16, 2001 03:45 p.m.):
Hey all, Need help...

Any tips or suggestions on how to get those plastic holders off then? Or what tool to use? If i could just cut them off i'd be fine but space is limited so no big knifes, and i don't want to use brute force and get some pnumatic drill thing out!!! ;)

Cheers guys, I know sum1 will think of sumthing! :)

I've removed the retail heatsink and fan many times, and never had any problems (except with my first cA2 600e, which died--there were many posts 1-2 years ago here about cpus that died just from putting new heatsinks on--it was a problem acknowledged by Intel).

Anyway, I did this just fine with a P3-450 and several times with my 2nd cA2 600e.

The push screw method is safe, but it requires a LOT of force. More than you might think. It will work.

And the nice thing is that you can keep the clips and *PUT the thing back on again* if you want to reuse the heatsink, or if you want to return a dead chip for RMA.

[DBD100]

Fewwwwwwwww!!!!!! I did it!
Booted up fine, no problems.

In the end I went out and got a set of mini pliers, twisted, snapped, made alot of crunch "**** the processors cracked" noises but managed to rid the chip of the reinforced intel "i don't wanna come off" heatsink!

Secondly i was stuck with all the pins still being in the board, and i just can't bear to put so much pressure on the PCB board... so i made a custom rig using small cardboard cut outs which i then made a small circle in each. Then carefully I placed the cardboards cutouts onto each of the four pins, so they protected the PCB board from my now shaking hand and some oversized dangerous "one slip and it's all over" pliers.

Then i used the screw approach when the board was free and you do have to use a damn lot of power to budge those things! but in the end all was sweet

After a good hour of prescision cutting I had got the damn things off, set up the heat sink (2 mins only)

and booted up...

Worked fine!

Only problem now is I have ANOTHER one to do!
As its a dual board!!!

This time i think i will just use the screw approach only!! :)

[el]

Yeah last week I tried taking off a p600e and I started to freak out because I am use Athlons which will be destroyed with anywhere near the pressure this beast required to get off. All I wanted to do was put on some AS2 and I finally just gave up because I was not willing to kill it.

[*spazzed*]

DBD100 (May 17, 2001 08:20 a.m.):


In the end I went out and got a set of mini pliers, twisted, snapped, made alot of crunch "sh*t the processors cracked" noises but managed to rid the chip of the reinforced intel "i don't wanna come off" heatsink!





you might want to watch the language.....just warning ya :) (before you do it again)

[DBD100]

hehe! i wasn't sure if u were allowed to swear but i thought what the heck :)

I'll watch it next time,
An el, I know what you mean.. I too nearly gave up and was gonna stick with the intel default sink. If you are to try again get a really good mini plier set, a good 4/5 hours of dedicated work is need to snip and twist, but you'll be alright in the end.

Laters,
Al