Replacing my heatsink.

[The Sly Syl]

I've removed stock AMD heatsinks before, and it took much effort and once i accidently ripped out the CPU with it. (luckily it still works perfectly, as no pins were lost...)

However, i'm sure there is a way to do it that doesn't require force - as i'd much rather not do that again.

Any tips for removing an old heatsink?

Also - any tips for removing the stock heatsink on a 6800GT? I'm replacing mine with a Zalman unit.

 

[kalrith]

For the AMD heatsink, don't you just unhook the retention clip and lift the heatsink off. I've installed them before, but I've never removed them. I can't imagine it pulling out the CPU with it unless it's connected with thermal tape.

I just replaced the stock heatsink on my XFX 6600GT AGP card with the Zalman VF700. I just had to remove the card, flip it over, and squeeze the black plastic connectors so that the pins holding on the heatsink came out. I wasn't able to squeeze them by hand, so I used a pair of long-nose pliers.

Also, in case you don't know this, be sure to use acetone or rubbing alcohol to clean all the goup off both the CPU and the GPU. Then cover them with a very thin layer of thermal compound (like Arctic Silver 5) before installing the new heatsinks.

 

[imported_Graeme]

Thats really strange. I wonder if they used a thermal adhesive instead of the more commonly used thermal compounds on the one that ripped out the CPU. Normally the thermal compounds only have a very slight 'hold' on the cpu, not really much of a bond.

 

[The Sly Syl]

It was using Artic Silver 5 i believe.

I currently have Artic Silver 5 on the CPU heatsink i need to remove as well.

I don't want to risk ripping out the CPU again - and i'm removing a Gigabyte 3d rocket cooler pro, (but it has a retention system similar to stock)

 

[jmke]

you have to wiggle and turn the heatsink a bit before pulling; when you pull do it slowly and continue to wiggle/turn.

I have pulled of the A64 CPU with the heatsink many times now, and while the wiggling (hehe) does help, with some coolers it won't resolve the issue.

 

[potato28]

Also if the HF/F doesnt come off, heat it up. Use a hairdryer to heat it up.

 

[The Sly Syl]

Originally posted by: potato28
Also if the HF/F doesnt come off, heat it up. Use a hairdryer to heat it up.

What will heating it up accomplish? (Though i doubt it could hurt anything)

 

[imported_Graeme]

Well.....assuming its AS5 and not ASAdhesive then all you really have is silver and ceramic particles along with a small amount of oxides and some synthetic oil as the suspension. In other words there really are no adhesives so it shouldnt stick to the cpu. Now if its simply that the thermal compound has 'set' (most of the suspension oils boiled off leaving a semi-solid mass) then it still shouldnt have much in the way of bonding. The heating may loosen up the compound a bit and the twisting or wiggling of the HS should release what bond there is.

I am still amazed that it managed to pull the cpu out of the socket the first time. Was that also Arctic Silver 5 used the first time?

 

[The Sly Syl]

I think it was, I honestly don't remember.

It could have been the stock stuff that came with the AMD processer.

I also know that i'm not the only one who did it - a friend of mine had to replace a 3200+ he had (motherboard fried) and he managed to yank out his processer as well...

 

[Ping to the Pong]

Originally posted by: jmke
you have to wiggle and turn the heatsink a bit before pulling; when you pull do it slowly and continue to wiggle/turn.

I have pulled of the A64 CPU with the heatsink many times now, and while the wiggling (hehe) does help, with some coolers it won't resolve the issue.

This always works great for me....

 

[blackstealth007]

Ive also pulled out my amd 3000 with arctic silver 5. That stuff is REALLY sticky compared to the other stuff, but im happy with how it keeps mine cool (28 C at 2.44ghz)

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: The Sly Syl

Originally posted by: potato28
Also if the HF/F doesnt come off, heat it up. Use a hairdryer to heat it up.

What will heating it up accomplish? (Though i doubt it could hurt anything)

It makes the paste less viscous, making it easier to lift it.