Newbie request - my i7-860 stock fan/sink fell off - now what?

[kghastie]

The question: If I run by Microcenter tomorrow, what CPU Fan/Heatsink should I purchase that will be easy to install (preferably without removing the mobo)? I don't plan on overclocking, so priorities are ease of installation, then price, then quietness. Hoping not to spend more than $30 but willing to if there is some model that is super easy to install. I have an i7-860 (1156) and a Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3 mobo. Also was planning to buy some Arctic Silver 5.

The full story:

So a couple of weeks after I got my home build up and running (first timer), the machine starts shutting down within about 30s to 3 mins of running (usually closer to 30-60s). I noticed that the heatsink and fan seemed loose (and I had had trouble installing those plastic pins in the first place). I tried to tighten it, but that didn't help (I'm guessing the compound had already dried and/or become uneven after being pulled apart a bit).

So I have now take off the sink and fan and am running to MC tomorrow. I'm considering:

$22 Cooler Master Hyper TX3 92mm HP CPU Cooler (also on NewEgg)

Also, does anyone know where to find helpful installation instructions for this model (or any other suggested models?) I hear the box instructions are pretty terrible, and obviously I screwed it up once already...

(BTW, I tried pulling out each RAM card, detaching the HDD and DVDD, checked all connections, and the problem persisted, so I don't think it's any of those things....)

((Not sure if I should have put this in Homebuilt or here, but I figure this is more specific.))

 

[simon12]

I can confirm the TX3 is great value and the instructions are awful. It was simple enough for me to install but on an AMD platform so sorry can't comment on intel also it was simple enough but no exactly simple.

 

[davcon]

Follow the instructions for push-pins in the cpu box.
They'll be identical for any cooler that feature push-pins.
It's Intel proprietary.
It takes a bit of force to push the heads through.
The CM Hyper TX3 is an improvement over stock unit.

 

[kghastie]

Well, that's good to know that I am on the right track, but I am in trouble if the instructions are identical, since I already ruined a fan/sink and almost a cpu even after staring at the intel instructions for the stock fan.

I even went through the instructions again last night trying to figure out how the dang things work, and I ended up snapping off two pieces of the pushpins off. I clearly am missing something here.

Can anyone explain either what to do with the pins, or maybe the principle behind how the rotation works? I remember the pins spinning freely when I first got the fan out of the box, so how do I know that I have it rotated in the right position to begin with? All it says is to rotate 90 degrees clockwise. But from where? Or does it not matter? Maybe if I understood how they work it would make more sense.

I've looked through a ton of youtube vids, but no pushpins. Anyone know of an example vid with one? I fear that I'm going down the same path again...

 

[delluser1]

I remember the pins spinning freely

The pins should not have spun freely, a quarter turn in either direction is all the movement they should have.
Look at the top of the pin, see the arrow ? If the point of that arrow is "kissing" the heatsink the pin is in the unlocked position, a quarter turn clockwise will set to the locked position, it needs to be there before you attempt to set the pin.

 

[davcon]

Here's a vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2u_coq06lc
Btw i find push-pin heat-sinks easy to install it's the removal that can be a pain.

 

[kghastie]

The pins should not have spun freely

LOL well I must have done something wrong, because they sure do now! Ug, I can assemble a working computer but I can't for the life of me get a push pin to work?? /sigh

 

[kghastie]

Here's a vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2u_coq06lc
Btw i find push-pin heat-sinks easy to install it's the removal that can be a pain.

LOL he doesn't rotate the pins at all in the vid, as it says to do in the instructions. What gives? Maybe that's the right move. I think I might have messed my pins up by over-rotating them...

 

[kghastie]

Best answer selected by kghastie.

 

[kghastie]

[quotemsgLook at the top of the pin, see the arrow ? If the point of that arrow is "kissing" the heatsink the pin is in the unlocked position, a quarter turn clockwise will set to the locked position, it needs to be there before you attempt to set the pin.[/quotemsg]

The wording is a bit confusing here. So am I supposed to:

Unlock them
Push in the 4 pins
At this point it is pretty firmly in place
Lock the 4 pins?

 

[delluser1]

The wording is a bit confusing here. So am I supposed to:

Unlock them
Push in the 4 pins
At this point it is pretty firmly in place
Lock the 4 pins?

No, they should be in the locked position prior to installation, that's why the guy in the video didn't rotate them.

 

[gerry410]

Delluser1 is correct you dont turn them to install. You turn them to uninstall. Really crappy instructions i agree. I dont know why its so frekin difficult for these ahole manufacturers to write clear instructions. just push in firmly to lock.

 

[kghastie]

No, they should be in the locked position prior to installation, that's why the guy in the video didn't rotate them.

Woah. Can I reselect best answer? I assumed that they should be Unlocked before you install, that you install them, and then Lock them into place. But you start with them Locked, push in the pins, and then Unlock them? Mindblowingly counterintuitive. But much more effective - thanks! (Replying to this old thread because I just bumped the sink and ended up loosening all of the pins instead of tightening the one that I had loosened.)