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clip (snap rivet) for Northbridge heat-sink on 2009 Mac Pro 2X2.26

Hey guys I'm in the same situation, I was upgrading the CPUs and noticed one rivet is missing so my system isn't booting anymore. I was thinking to use screws and springs, or maybe zipties with springs?
EDIT:
I've ordered the rivets from china but for the meantime I'd like to find some temporary solution..
 
Nut & bolt solution.
Northbridge nut & Bolt setup 02.jpg

From the Northbridgetop . .

1. M3 bolt ( from memory length 20mm ).
2. 1/2 of a ballpoint pen spring.
Northbridge heatsink top

=========================================

Northbridge heatsink bottom
3. Non-conductive M3 washer
4. M3 Metal washer
5. M3 nut
6. M3 nut = to lock the upper M3 nut at about the same tension that the spring
of a plastic rivet would normally be set at.
( gently pull one of the OK rivets to get a 'feel' for it.
 
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...and so, today, one of the northbridge rivets on my Mac Pro 4.1>5.1 went to rivets heaven.

Thank god it was the one "on the outside", not the one under the CPU heatsink, so I just have to find another one and push it in.

Anyone have any recommendation? It would be cool to find something on Amazon so I don't have to wait 2 months to get it from China.

EDIT: I have zero experience in disassembling the CPU tray, so dismantling it to put a zip tie or anything else is a no go for me.
 
Eh, I've been looking for it for a good hour and there's no sign of the damn thing.

Is there an alternative in europe? Can't really wait 1+ month for them to arrive.
 
donluca said:
Eh, I've been looking for it for a good hour and there's no sign of the damn thing.

Is there an alternative in europe? Can't really wait 1+ month for them to arrive.
Click to expand...

use a 3 mm bolt, the spring you NEED to find, and a 3 mm stop nut.

but then you need to get to the backside of the PCB, can't remember yet if you can reach all screws without removing the processor heat sinks.
 
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Still no trace of the spring and the rest of the broken rivet, it must have skyrocketed somewere, maybe inside the fans, I'll take a torchlight and take a peek.

Yes, I'm in Italy, I'll update my profile.
 
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The whole point of the thing is that I don't want to touch anything and I want something easily reversible if I mess it up.

@Macschrauber I'll see if I can find a good routing for a zip tie.

Meanwhile, I have a friend who has some spare rivets from broken 4,1 trays so I think I'll just wait for them to arrive.
And in the meantime I'll definitely get some backup from China, so when the time comes I'll be prepared.

Thanks for all the input so far, much appreciated!
 
donluca said:
The whole point of the thing is that I don't want to touch anything and I want something easily reversible if I mess it up.

@Macschrauber I'll see if I can find a good routing for a zip tie.

Meanwhile, I have a friend who has some spare rivets from broken 4,1 trays so I think I'll just wait for them to arrive.
And in the meantime I'll definitely get some backup from China, so when the time comes I'll be prepared.

Thanks for all the input so far, much appreciated!
Click to expand...
If you check my earlier post, they are available form Amazon.
 
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I've found an italian seller on ebay who has the exact same ones, so I grabbed them. Always nice to have some spares around!
 
DPUser said:
If you check my earlier post, they are available form Amazon.
Click to expand...

I take it that you were successful using this.

Did it work for you as purchased, or did you have to customize/improvise?

(Got a couple of extras? I’d be happy to pay for them. :) )
 
I used the plastic rivets to upgrade some dual trays. The size is different so the white plastic rivets obstruct the heat sink. You have to drill a hole in the bottom of the CPUA (BOOSTA) fan so you're not putting pressure on top of the plastic screw. What I do is put a touch of paint on the screw head and lower the heatsink so the paint marks where the hole should be drilled.
 
MacProRestoreGuy said:
I used the plastic rivets to upgrade some dual trays. The size is different so the white plastic rivets obstruct the heat sink. You have to drill a hole in the bottom of the CPUA (BOOSTA) fan so you're not putting pressure on top of the plastic screw. What I do is put a touch of paint on the screw head and lower the heatsink so the paint marks where the hole should be drilled.
Click to expand...
Ouch, easier than drilling the heatsink, just clip off the top of the plastic spring rivet!
 
atonaldenim said:
Ouch, easier than drilling the heatsink, just clip off the top of the plastic spring rivet!
Click to expand...
Didn't drill the heatsink. Just through the plastic on the bottom of the fan. I thought about clipping the head but don't want to disturb the heatsink as it messes up the thermal paste.
 
DPUser said:
With diagonal cutter or scissors, clip the top of the sliding part of the rivet. Simple. Effective.

That's what I did with perfect results.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the suggestion. Good to know we have options. Maybe I will try it on one of the other trays I have to do.
 
Just had these clips fail on my 2009 dual cpu board. Thankfully I found this thread and the amazon link. They should be arriving Thursday, I'm going to do what @DPUser did and just trim the top off one of the rivets.
a HUGE thank you to all the replies and provided such good information about alternatives and options for replacement parts.
 
merval said:
Just had these clips fail on my 2009 dual cpu board. Thankfully I found this thread and the amazon link. They should be arriving Thursday, I'm going to do what @DPUser did and just trim the top off one of the rivets.
a HUGE thank you to all the replies and provided such good information about alternatives and options for replacement parts.
Click to expand...
Trimming the top of the plastic screw with cable snips is best. I suggest trimming the head before you mount the heatsink to the circuit board. It's difficult to snip the head after it's been mounted without shifting the Northbridge.
Don't drill a hole in fan bottom like I said earlier as the screw hits the fan blade. The thermal paste will likely be baked on so you can use a plastic scraper to remove it. Here's a link: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mac+Pro+Single+CPU+Northbridge+Heatsink+Repair/125875
Another option I forgot about:
More expensive but possibly better. I've had one of the plastic rivet screws pop out on it's own accord.
Thanks and good luck.
 
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MacProRestoreGuy said:
Trimming the top of the plastic screw with cable snips is best. I suggest trimming the head before you mount the heatsink to the circuit board. It's difficult to snip the head after it's been mounted without shifting the Northbridge.
Don't drill a hole in fan bottom like I said earlier as the screw hits the fan blade. The thermal paste will likely be baked on so you can use a plastic scraper to remove it. Here's a link: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mac+Pro+Single+CPU+Northbridge+Heatsink+Repair/125875
Another option I forgot about:
More expensive but possibly better. I've had one of the plastic rivet screws pop out on it's own accord.
Thanks and good luck.
Click to expand...

Using these heatsink clips works perfectly! I used snips to trim the top off one of the clips.
 

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I've serviced several northbridge heatsinks using the plastic rivet method. Today I was swapping trays and the machine wouldn't boot. I thought that was strange as all the trays and towers have been serviced. Then I noticed the plastic rivet was missing. It popped out and the northbridge wasn't mounted and so the computer wouldn't boot. They are cheap and easy to install but the method using hardware is likely less to fail, in my opinion. Edit: Maybe you could squeeze the end of the plastic rivet with needle nose pliers, underneath to make it wider and less likely to pop out. Most were fine but this is the second rivet I've had pop out after install. Good luck.
 
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