How do you know when an NHD15 is properly tightened on?

[GloriousPain]

^title.

 

Building new PC with a Noctua NHD-15 Chromax. I'm mounting the heatsync down to the cpu right now, and I just don't feel like I'm actually tightening it into place at all... no matter what I do I can wiggle the cooler around a little. And when I just thought I finally had it tightened properly I pulled on it slightly and it came right off the cpu. 

 

Is this normal or am I just being an idiot?

[CommanderAlex]

I had the same issue as you before. I tightened the two screws down all the way.

 

Originally when I installed it, I tightened the top screw a couple turns and the bottom screw not that many.... Meanwhile after 16 months of using the cooler like that, I had fluctuating temperatures swings that I finally decided to repast and found the bottom screw barely spreaded the thermal paste while the top screw did nearly all of it. 

 

Lesson learned: tightened the screws all the way.

[GloriousPain]

1 minute ago, CommanderAlex said:

I had the same issue as you before. I tightened the two screws down all the way.

 

Originally when I installed it, I tightened the top screw a couple turns and the bottom screw not that many.... Meanwhile after 16 months of using the cooler like that, I had fluctuating temperatures swings that I finally decided to repast and found the bottom screw barely spreaded the thermal paste while the top screw did nearly all of it. 

 

Lesson learned: tightened the screws all the way.

How do you even tighten them all the way? Heck how do you even tighten them? the allen-key esque screw driver they give you sucks. I can't push down on it while I try to screw it at all... so it feels like I'm not moving the screw at all

[CommanderAlex]

1 minute ago, Abyssal Radon said:

While I don't have a NHD-15 heatsink, I have a NH-U14S. Based on my installation of the heatsink, Noctua designed the screws to stop completely while tightening the mounting screws. So basically, as soon as the screw completely stopped tightening, its good to go.

This is the exact reason why I tightened them all the way, even watching a Noctua installation video. 

 

1 minute ago, GloriousPain said:

How do you even tighten them all the way? Heck how do you even tighten them? the allen-key esque screw driver they give you sucks. I can't push down on it while I try to screw it at all... so it feels like I'm not moving the screw at all

Just use a regular screwdriver with a Phillips bit attached. Or use a electronics toolkit like iFixit with a Phillips #2. When I tighten the screws, I screw them as if I'm taking the cooler off and when I feel/hear it drop onto the threads, I now know that I won't cross thread. 

[GloriousPain]

10 minutes ago, CommanderAlex said:

Just use a regular screwdriver with a Phillips bit attached. Or use a electronics toolkit like iFixit with a Phillips #2. When I tighten the screws, I screw them as if I'm taking the cooler off and when I feel/hear it drop onto the threads, I now know that I won't cross thread. 

The rest of the cooler is in the way... 

 

Update: I got the bottom screw to actually start tightening... and I legitimately just "tightened" the top screw for 2 minutes straight... and the second I take my hand off the cooler. it immediately tilts towards the bottom screw. As if I had done nothing. 

 

Edit: and by 2 minutes straight I mean it; I used a stopwatch and all.

[CommanderAlex]

1 minute ago, GloriousPain said:

The rest of the cooler is in the way... 

 

Update: I got the bottom screw to actually start tightening... and I legitimately just "tightened" the top screw for 2 minutes straight... and the second I take my hand off the cooler. it immediately tilts towards the bottom screw. As if I had done nothing. 

Its uneven tightening of the CPU cooler. unscrew that boom screw back out and retry again. Use a long screwdriver so you don't cut yourself on the aluminum towers. How did you spread the thermal paste on the CPU? 

 

Line method? Dot method? Thin spread? 

[GloriousPain]

1 minute ago, CommanderAlex said:

Its uneven tightening of the CPU cooler. unscrew that boom screw back out and retry again. Use a long screwdriver so you don't cut yourself on the aluminum towers. How did you spread the thermal paste on the CPU? 

 

Line method? Dot method? Thin spread? 

After spending around 40 minutes trying so far to get one screw in I didn't wanna unscrew it but dammit I guess I have to. It literally feels no different when I'm actually tightening the screw vs just spinning the screw in place until I fully tighten it. 

 

and I just did 5 small dots. in an X pattern like you'd see on a dice.

[CommanderAlex]

Just now, GloriousPain said:

After spending around 40 minutes trying so far to get one screw in I didn't wanna unscrew it but dammit I guess I have to. It literally feels no different when I'm actually tightening the screw vs just spinning the screw in place until I fully tighten it. 

 

and I just did 5 small dots. in an X pattern like you'd see on a dice.

The application method should be fine. Was just worried that it would be a problem since the cooler was tightened unevenly. 

 

When you do unscrew it, "catch" the threads so that the screw is about to come off. Half a turn should be fine. Once you do, go every one turn on each screw, rotating between tightens. It may take time but its worth the frustration that you've encountered already. 

[GloriousPain]

2 minutes ago, CommanderAlex said:

The application method should be fine. Was just worried that it would be a problem since the cooler was tightened unevenly. 

 

When you do unscrew it, "catch" the threads so that the screw is about to come off. Half a turn should be fine. Once you do, go every one turn on each screw, rotating between tightens. It may take time but its worth the frustration that you've encountered already. 

Literally couldn't tell when it was about to come out... just untightened it and then heard a slight noise. And the screw came all the way out and now I can get neither of them in. Really learning to hate this mounting system. 

[CommanderAlex]

8 minutes ago, GloriousPain said:

Literally couldn't tell when it was about to come out... just untightened it and then heard a slight noise. And the screw came all the way out and now I can get neither of them in. Really learning to hate this mounting system. 

When you say the cooler came all the way out, do you mean off the cooler completely where the C-clip holding the screw in the cooler came off? I hope not and never had that issue. Put some downward force in to the screw when your tightening the screws after catching the threads. 

 

EDIT: If you're having a problem, here are some videos on Noctua's website for each different socket type. 

https://noctua.at/en/nh-d15/video

[GloriousPain]

10 minutes ago, CommanderAlex said:

When you say the cooler came all the way out, do you mean off the cooler completely where the C-clip holding the screw in the cooler came off? I hope not and never had that issue. Put some downward force in to the screw when your tightening the screws after catching the threads. 

 

EDIT: If you're having a problem, here are some videos on Noctua's website for each different socket type. 

https://noctua.at/en/nh-d15/video

Doing AM4. And No, just the cooler came off, not the C-Clip... And legit I can't tell when I'm catching threads almost feels like there are none. 

 

I've watched this video 4 times... And after nearly 2 HOURS. I can't get the cooler on properly. 

 

 

[CommanderAlex]

1 minute ago, GloriousPain said:

Doing AM4. And No, just the cooler came off, not the C-Clip... And legit I can't tell when I'm catching threads almost feels like there are none. 

 

I've watched this video 4 times... And after nearly 2 HOURS. I can't get the cooler on properly. 

 

 

This shouldn't be that long of a process... you sure the bolt end of the mounting bars are pointing towards you (away from the motherboard)? Try wiggling the screw as you try and tighten as that was an issue for me. 

[GloriousPain]

Just now, CommanderAlex said:

This shouldn't be that long of a process... you sure the bolt end of the mounting bars are pointing towards you (away from the motherboard)? Try wiggling the screw as you try and tighten as that was an issue for me. 

This is actually the single worst fucking mounting system I have ever used. I now see why Linus always recommends everyone copy's their mounting system; he's very sadistic. I've actually used both AMD/Intel stock coolers; Coolermaster, Corsair (AIO), Scythe, Be quiet, Thermaltake, and deepcool. 

 

And yes. I've checked that; like I said I can literally take the cooler off and see. They are both facing towards the ceiling. Also an update I can screw in the top OR the bottom one, but never both. I still cannot tell when ones threaded in or not... just suddenly I've been screwing for 30 seconds and BAM it's fully in... and I let go and the cooler is tilted one way or the other...

 

If I only spend 10-15 seconds screwing in each screw? Nothing. I didn't accompolish a thing at all. It's like each screw only has 2 threads and either it's fully in, or not at all. 

 

Also something I noticed from watching the video for a 5th time... is the springs on the mounting screws; compress as you screw them down... Yet when the coolers off the motherboard/cpu I try to press the screw down to see the spring compress and it's just straight up not. I can't push the screw down more than like half a millimeter even trying my absolute hardest. 

 

Either I'm just fucking up massively or something is wrong with my cooler... and maybe I'm just frustrated and so that's only making it worse but at this point I really wanna claim the cooler is messed up in someway.

[CommanderAlex]

3 minutes ago, GloriousPain said:

This is actually the single worst fucking mounting system I have ever used. I now see why Linus always recommends everyone copy's their mounting system; he's very sadistic. I've actually used both AMD/Intel stock coolers; Coolermaster, Corsair (AIO), Scythe, Be quiet, Thermaltake, and deepcool. 

 

And yes. I've checked that; like I said I can literally take the cooler off and see. They are both facing towards the ceiling. Also an update I can screw in the top OR the bottom one, but never both. I still cannot tell when ones threaded in or not... just suddenly I've been screwing for 30 seconds and BAM it's fully in... and I let go and the cooler is tilted one way or the other...

 

If I only spend 10-15 seconds screwing in each screw? Nothing. I didn't accompolish a thing at all. It's like each screw only has 2 threads and either it's fully in, or not at all. 

 

Also something I noticed from watching the video for a 5th time... is the springs on the mounting screws; compress as you screw them down... Yet when the coolers off the motherboard/cpu I try to press the screw down to see the spring compress and it's just straight up not. I can't push the screw down more than like half a millimeter even trying my absolute hardest. 

 

Either I'm just fucking up massively or something is wrong with my cooler... and maybe I'm just frustrated and so that's only making it worse but at this point I really wanna claim the cooler is messed up in someway.

The screws should have some wiggle room from side to side. These springs seem to have a high compression factor and it was hard for me to get them on myself. Don't tighten all the way on one screw as the other screw won't be able to be tighten at all. 

 

Take a breather and walk away for 5-10 minutes to relax .