Corsair Hydro H50 radiator screws too tight

[spaceboy909]

Just got this for my new build and the screws won't go in. This is the 'Intel only' kit so there's only one set of screws.

They catch just enough that I think I can force them in, but then it will likely rethread the holes and possibly produce metal shavings which could potentially end up on the motherboard or other components.

What do you guys think? I know the screws have to be snug since there are no nuts and otherwise it might eventually vibrate loose. So maybe I'm misreading this and they are supposed to be this tight.

Those of you who have installed Hydro or similar 'nutless' setups, how have your experiences been?

Thanks for any help.

 

[lehtv]

You must've bought it used - you sure the seller provided the correct screws?

 

[spaceboy909]

You must've bought it used - you sure the seller provided the correct screws?

I got it new, from Newegg.

 

[lehtv]

Didn't they already discontinue that cooler years ago... Maybe this is a new version, cos it was originally released in 2009!

Hopefully Corsair themselves can help you with this ,they're pretty good with customer support

 

[spaceboy909]

Didn't they already discontinue that cooler years ago... Maybe this is a new version, cos it was originally released in 2009!

Hopefully Corsair themselves can help you with this ,they're pretty good with customer support

Well they definitely modified it, because it no longer comes with a fan grommet, the backplate has changed to a symmetrical style, and they have added a new retaining clip.

Unfortunately the instructions don't mention the new clip, so you have to figure it out. It's not terribly difficult, but I'm one of those people who much prefers explicit instructions.

The clip helps enormously, though, because you can pre-assemble the entire water block and then just screw it down as one unit, where as before you had to apply upward pressure with one hand to hold the combo together, and screw it in with the other hand (that's how the old video shows it)

Anyway, I decided to go ahead and force the screws and see what would happen. As it turns out, only one of the holes offered any serious resistance, and it did produce metal shavings. I did this test outside of the case to be safe. I used some rolled up scotch tape to try and get the metal shavings, and then finished by blowing it out with a few deep breaths.

I then installed the cooler. I did run into another issue with the large retaining screws, and I won't know if I did things right until I power up, but they have large thump grips around the screws now, which is very nice, but the instructions don't say whether to only tighten by hand, or to finish with the screwdriver. The old video shows the Corsair tech using a screwdriver, so I assumed it needed a typical firm tighten.

I started by screwing them all the way down by hand. At one point, one of the grips starting feeling like it was slipping, but I couldn't be sure. I then began to finish up with a screwdriver. I was very surprised at how many turns these screws were taking in total, and I started to get concerned.

They finally started to tighten up, but the one that slipped earlier didn't seem to want to. Now that it's a new day, I have forgotten if that one got tightened like the others at the end, or I just decided to leave it. Anyway, it needs testing, and that will be later today. I'll report back.