waterblock Is there a safe way to remove the 4-pin fan connector from GPU pcb?

[KazeNoRashid]

Hi everyone, I was trying to install a waterblock for my gtx 1080ti (evga gtx 1080ti sc2). Since the card is a evga variant and I did not find a perfect waterblock for it. Instead, I found one which should work if I remove one of the fan connector (plastic socket and the metallic pins) shown in the following picture. So just wondering if that could be safely removed and how? Thanks!

 

[Hmmtaco]

Your could probably just desolder the contact points on the back of the pcb

[Hmmtaco]

Just be careful removing the plastic it's most likely connected to the board by some sort of adhesive

[char3327]

Like @Hmmtaco said, if you desolder the points on the back of the pcb it should come off but be careful cause gpus are finicky...good luck and let us know how it goes!

[Cyracus]

If you can't desolder it you may be able to cut it down to size with a dremel, just obviously be careful you don't nick the board

[KazeNoRashid]

21 minutes ago, Hmmtaco said:

Just be careful removing the plastic it's most likely connected to the board by some sort of adhesive

hmm I see. Then I probably wouldn't bother installing the waterblock as the risk of damaging the pcb is too high for me. Thanks for the reply!

[KazeNoRashid]

21 minutes ago, char3327 said:

Like @Hmmtaco said, if you desolder the points on the back of the pcb it should come off but be careful cause gpus are finicky...good luck and let us know how it goes!

I think I'll just go with the original air cooler lol. The desoldering and cutting seems to trick for my skill level. 

[char3327]

@KazeNoRashid You could just use a dremel or some tool to cut the connector?

[Bombastinator]

1 hour ago, char3327 said:

@KazeNoRashid You could just use a dremel or some tool to cut the connector?

This I can see going very badly. The problem is metal is extremely hard to cut and plastic is extremely easy to cut to the point that there is an issue avoiding melting it. You’d need wrists of steel to not over overshoot it as the resistance rapidly changed and wrecking something nearby.  To the point that I think the only safe way to do this type of thing would be to use some sort of milling machine.  Not something to freehand. If one happens to have a milling machine handy it could work though. Hand held Dremel tool though? Bad idea.

[Bombastinator]

1 hour ago, KazeNoRashid said:

I think I'll just go with the original air cooler lol. The desoldering and cutting seems to trick for my skill level. 

It’s true I don’t see an easy unskilled minimal tools way to do it.  Very much a pick your poison type of venture.  There is something to be said for picking a poison in this instance.  One tends to learn later useful skills in ventures like that. 

[BobVonBob]

4 minutes ago, Bombastinator said:

It’s true I don’t see an easy unskilled minimal tools way to do it.  Very much a pick your poison type of venture.  There is something to be said for picking a poison in this instance.  One tends to learn later useful skills in ventures like that. 

The easy unskilled way is just using a pair of diagonal cutters. No risk to any of the other components. Cheaper than both a soldering iron or a dremel.

 

I'd advise against removing the header for a different reason. Removing that connector means you can't resell the card as anything other than water cooled card, and people spending all the extra money to go with custom water cooling are unlikely to be the type trying to save a buck on an old used card.