Backplate of CPU cooler touching the pins of the motherboard, is this fine ?

[Tigrou]

I'm mounting a new motherboard (Z390 based) to replace a dead one.

Right before installing the motherboard into the PC case I notified the following :

Some of the pins of the motherboard are touching the backplate of the cooler.

 

It's a ThermalRight Macho HR-02 cooler. The metal plate is non conductive, but only because of the paint.

There is small scratch around one screw hole and multimeter tell me it's conductive. So even if it supposed to be fine it might just be a matter of time before drama happen. Dropping the case on the floor (nicely) may cause the heavy cooler to move slightly relative to the motherboard and cause small scratches.

 

Here is how it's supposed to be mounted : 

The backplate cap is only for the 775 platform (this is LGA1155)

It seems the 4 washers delivered with the cooler are not tall enough.

There is 4 bigger washers (for AMD mount) but it's only bigger in diameter, not height.

 

This online manual suggest to put some mylar film in between the backplate and motherboard. The instruction I have (the one with the box) are older and does not mention such a thing (and I don't remember there was ever such a film).

 

http://www.thermalright.com/backup/installation+2066/Macho RevA(BW)/Macho RevA(BW).pdf

 

What should I do ?

[8-Bit Ninja]

If it was me I'd cut the pins as flush as possible. 

[jaslion]

If you are worried you can put some electrical tape or non conductive heat resistant tape on the backplate

[bezza...]

6 minutes ago, 8-Bit Ninja said:

If it was me I'd cut the pins as flush as possible. 

eletrical tape is a better option

[Kid.Lazer]

I will accept nothing less than you grabbing a grinder and going to town on those pins!

 

Joking aside, I'd personally go with deeper standoffs or washers if the screws are long enough to accommodate that. If you go with insulating material instead, I would personally recommend against electrical tape if it's going to be under constant pressure. The ends of those pins coupled with drive/fan vibrations could cause a short over time. I'd use something more substantial, like a plastic sheet. But again, I think the better approach is to simply get the back-plate away from those pins.

[Tigrou]

I think 4 small rubber seal (the flat, non round ones) might do the job.

I have inspected the old Asus motherboard (which died by itself 2 weeks ago), there is no such long pins. Those on the Gigabyte one (the new one) are used for caps around the CPU.

[Tigrou]

Finding washers of proper size (especially for the hole) is hard.

I think I might be able to safely cut those pins using a nail clipper. It's probably going to be damaged after the job done but since those are cheap it's OK

I have some cutting pliers but that's not going to work.

 

I have dismissed the idea of using some plastic sheet to put in between. Either it's too thin (and pins will still end up going trough it) or it might not like heat produced from CPU underneath.

[Robchil]

2 hours ago, Tigrou said:

Finding washers of proper size (especially for the hole) is hard.

I think I might be able to safely cut those pins using a nail clipper. It's probably going to be damaged after the job done but since those are cheap it's OK

I have some cutting pliers but that's not going to work.

 

I have dismissed the idea of using some plastic sheet to put in between. Either it's too thin (and pins will still end up going trough it) or it might not like heat produced from CPU underneath.

mounting bracets like that used to come with a foam insert to put between. 

or you can get a plastic backplate. https://www.amazon.ca/noctua-NM-I115X-Noctua-NM-i115x-Mounting/dp/B00BLS3YYO

 

[Tigrou]

I used a small nail clipper and everything went fine. I really recommend it.

It's important to go slowly and trim bit by bit (be careful to not damage the solder join).