How to reattach Colecovision heat sink?

[Christophero Sly]

This heat sink has fallen off one of the IC's in my Colecovision. I assume it belongs on the TMS. What adhesive can I use to reattach it?

 

[GonzoCV-1]

This heat sink has fallen off one of the IC's in my Colecovision. I assume it belongs on the TMS. What adhesive can I use to reattach it?

 

 

Try arctic silver thermal epoxy.

[Christophero Sly]

This heat sink has fallen off one of the IC's in my Colecovision. I assume it belongs on the TMS. What adhesive can I use to reattach it?

 

 

Try arctic silver thermal epoxy.

I live in a rural area, so I probably can't get that locally. Is there anything less exotic I can use? Something I can find at the local hardware store?

Edited December 20, 2008 by Christophero Sly

[Longhorn Engineer]

If its just a surface to surface contact (no thermal paste that is) you can just take a small drop of super glue and tack it onto one corner of the IC. Remember only a small drop and press down on it till it sets (Krazy Glue sets in like seconds). Now if you want to do it correctly I would get some Thermal Epoxy. Link. Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

[Christophero Sly]

If its just a surface to surface contact (no thermal paste that is) you can just take a small drop of super glue and tack it onto one corner of the IC. Remember only a small drop and press down on it till it sets (Krazy Glue sets in like seconds). Now if you want to do it correctly I would get some Thermal Epoxy. Link. Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

Thanks. I think it's just a surface contact. There's some sort of clear enamely residue on the both the sink and IC, which I assume was the adhesive. My instinct was to use a dab of super glue, but I wasn't sure if it would harm the surface of the IC. I'd order the thermal epoxy, but it probably won't arrive till after the holidays, and I don't want to wait because I just got some new CV games that I really want to play. Edited December 20, 2008 by Christophero Sly

[Longhorn Engineer]

If its just a surface to surface contact (no thermal paste that is) you can just take a small drop of super glue and tack it onto one corner of the IC. Remember only a small drop and press down on it till it sets (Krazy Glue sets in like seconds). Now if you want to do it correctly I would get some Thermal Epoxy. Link. Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

Thanks. My instinct was to use a dab of super glue, but I wasn't sure if it would harm the surface of the IC. I'd order the thermal epoxy, but it probably won't arrive till after the holidays, and I don't want to wait because I just got some new CV games that I really want to play.

 

Just make sure to use very little just encase you have to remove the Heatsink later. If you do end up using the epoxy just note that it is quite impossible to remove

Edited December 20, 2008 by Longhorn Engineer

[Christophero Sly]

If its just a surface to surface contact (no thermal paste that is) you can just take a small drop of super glue and tack it onto one corner of the IC. Remember only a small drop and press down on it till it sets (Krazy Glue sets in like seconds). Now if you want to do it correctly I would get some Thermal Epoxy. Link. Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

Thanks. My instinct was to use a dab of super glue, but I wasn't sure if it would harm the surface of the IC. I'd order the thermal epoxy, but it probably won't arrive till after the holidays, and I don't want to wait because I just got some new CV games that I really want to play.

 

Just make sure to use very little just encase you have to remove the Heatsink later. If you do end up using the epoxy just not that it is quite impossible to remove

A small dab... check.

[doubledown]

The heat sink was attached to the VDP (TMS9928ANL). From the factory it was attached to the chip with a clear double-sided adhesive thermal tape. If you go the super glue route I'd suggest finding some thermal paste (Radio Shack or any computer hardware store) to smear over the bulk of the surface and only super glue a small drop on the left and right edges as super glue isn't a great thermal conductor.

[+remowilliams]

as super glue isn't a great thermal conductor.

Agreed, I'd use thermal epoxy or thermal tape. Super glue sort of defeats the purpose of contact heat transfer. Worst case you might even wind up causing hot spots on the IC.

Edited December 22, 2008 by remowilliams

[Christophero Sly]

as super glue isn't a great thermal conductor.

Agreed, I'd use thermal epoxy or thermal tape. Super glue sort of defeats the purpose of contact heat transfer. Worst case you might even wind up causing hot spots on the IC.

I've already gone ahead and reattached it using glue.

 

I just used a single spot to hold the sink in place though.

[+remowilliams]

I just used a single spot to hold the sink in place though.

Well, hopefully you didn't put that single spot in the middle of the IC, as that's where the chip core is.

[Christophero Sly]

I just used a single spot to hold the sink in place though.

Well, hopefully you didn't put that single spot in the middle of the IC, as that's where the chip core is.

[gdement]

Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

 

I've read comments from many people that JB Weld seems to work as well on heatsinks as the boutique brand Arctic Silver stuff. I haven't tried it myself but wouldn't hesitate to.

At one point I was considering this, and looking all over google I couldn't find any evidence to contradict it, just people who've done it and others speculating that it "probably" wasn't a good idea. One person in particular in another forum I'm certain works on PCs daily and he actually prefers it over AS. I'd love to see an objective test though.

Edited December 23, 2008 by gdement

[Longhorn Engineer]

Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

 

I've read comments from many people that JB Weld seems to work as well on heatsinks as the boutique brand Arctic Silver stuff. I haven't tried it myself but wouldn't hesitate to.

At one point I was considering this, and looking all over google I couldn't find any evidence to contradict it, just people who've done it and others speculating that it "probably" wasn't a good idea. One person in particular in another forum I'm certain works on PCs daily and he actually prefers it over AS. I'd love to see an objective test though.

 

Never heard of using JB weld. Could work. I would not use it on PCs as you have to remove the heat sinks to replace the CPU. A better temp solution is toothpaste. It makes a pretty decent thermal paste when you are in a pinch. It won't last longer then a week or so cause it will dry out. But it is said to perform on par with Arctic Silver.

 

I really doubt the Colecovision VDP really needs a thermal compound. I have some Pentiums that don't use the stuff. As long as you make good contact with the Chip you will we fine. This is of course that the VDP isnt as hot as a P4

[GonzoCV-1]

Do not use regular epoxy as its thermal qualities are poor and would more likely burn your chip.

 

I've read comments from many people that JB Weld seems to work as well on heatsinks as the boutique brand Arctic Silver stuff. I haven't tried it myself but wouldn't hesitate to.

At one point I was considering this, and looking all over google I couldn't find any evidence to contradict it, just people who've done it and others speculating that it "probably" wasn't a good idea. One person in particular in another forum I'm certain works on PCs daily and he actually prefers it over AS. I'd love to see an objective test though.

 

Never heard of using JB weld. Could work. I would not use it on PCs as you have to remove the heat sinks to replace the CPU. A better temp solution is toothpaste. It makes a pretty decent thermal paste when you are in a pinch. It won't last longer then a week or so cause it will dry out. But it is said to perform on par with Arctic Silver.

 

I really doubt the Colecovision VDP really needs a thermal compound. I have some Pentiums that don't use the stuff. As long as you make good contact with the Chip you will we fine. This is of course that the VDP isnt as hot as a P4

 

 

I did a test. I took a penny, smeared about a mm thick layer of jb weld and then placed the penny (JB weld side down) along with another penny on the hot burner element. Even at low heat, there was a MAJOR difference... the untreated penny was taking heat and the treated on was not.

 

I can only conclude that JB Weld is by and large an insulator. Now, if you took JB weld and added powdered aluminum or magnesium in high quantity that might be OK, but I have to say for the record that JB weld seems to be a poor choice for a thermal transfer medium.

[gdement]

I did a test. I took a penny, smeared about a mm thick layer of jb weld and then placed the penny (JB weld side down) along with another penny on the hot burner element. Even at low heat, there was a MAJOR difference... the untreated penny was taking heat and the treated on was not.

 

I can only conclude that JB Weld is by and large an insulator. Now, if you took JB weld and added powdered aluminum or magnesium in high quantity that might be OK, but I have to say for the record that JB weld seems to be a poor choice for a thermal transfer medium.

 

Interesting, and you could be right then. But if I interpret correctly it sounds like you were testing only half of the mixture, and not bonded to the burner. Not that I can say if that makes any difference.

 

I should probably try this sometime. I may just repeat your results but I'm intrigued, and have both JB Weld and AS Adhesive on hand.

The best test I can think of would be to epoxy a couple identical aluminum heatsinks to a common piece of smooth metal, and put that on a burner. That way the 2 products are being compared in their fully-adhered state.

 

Maybe an even better test would be to attach to some real processors, and I do have a pair of old K6-2 350MHz 2.2v AFR chips I could sacrifice. But there might be variations between chips. I suppose I could check for that using removable heatsinks first.

[gdement]

I would not use it on PCs as you have to remove the heat sinks to replace the CPU.

You're right of course, it doesn't make sense to permanently attach a heatsink if you can avoid it. But it comes in handy on occasion. In my case I was considering this for a motherboard where the heatsink retaining clip was broken off. I ordered the AS product but never ended up using it.

The 2 most common uses on a PC are probably for mosfets and replacing the goofy heatsinks on video cards.

 

A better temp solution is toothpaste. It makes a pretty decent thermal paste when you are in a pinch. It won't last longer then a week or so cause it will dry out. But it is said to perform on par with Arctic Silver.

Yeah, I remember reading that on a site that was doing objective heatsink tests. I don't have the link anymore but I suppose you might have seen the same article. Never been in a position to need it but it sounds like a great way to pick up the nickname "MacGyver".

[+thegoldenband]

I have this problem too! Dunno when it broke off, but I noticed that something was obstructing my cart slot today, and there it was.

 

Will Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive do the trick, or should I stick with Arctic Silver Thermal Epoxy? How much should I use? I assume the heatsink should be centered lengthwise on the TMS chip?

[Osgeld]

any thermal glue will work, use a small dab and keep in mind the part generating all the heat is a square dead center of the chip, so put it there and if you feel the need the corners for extra holding power

 

most people dont realize that even in a dip chip, most of it is empty space just to extend the connections from the die in the middle out to manageable pins