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Solve : Found this gem of a CPU on ebay .... surprised people want it?

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Was looking to see if there was any deals on the AMD FX8350, and saw this one here that someone bought. Tried to force the CPU in the wrong way bending and breaking off pins. And then they listed it on ebay and 8 people have bid so far on it for like $51.

Question I have is, does anyone know of a way to repair for missing pins that were snapped off?

I have been lucky with getting some second or third hand CPU's given to me in the past that had a few bent pins that I was able to straighten out and get to fit into a motherboards cpu socket to make a functional system, but if there are pins busted off, I am not aware of any repair kit etc to replace snapped off pins.

My guess is that these people bidding on this have no idea that there are missing pins that are missing from being damaged or there may be a way to fix missing pins that I am unaware of...

Sure there are pins that are intentionally missing by design, but in the picture I THINK I see 2 pins that should be there that are completely sheered off gone.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/AMD-FX-8350-8-Core-Processor-CPU-with-Bent-Missing-Pins-/261493452989?pt=CPUs&hash=item3ce23970bd#ht_120wt_1153

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Barely used AMD FX 8350 with some pins bent and some missing. I tried to shove it into the motherboard the wrong way. Learned my lesson. It's hard to tell, but it looks like there are 5 bent and 3 missing.
Let us know when you get the pins back on I seriously doubt that without master soldering skills...or other skills that missing pins can be fixed...
Proceed with caution...after all it's only a CPU.There is a surprisingly big market for "flipping" broken components like this. Some people will the ability will buy broken items, fix them, and then sell them again for a profit (because now they are working).

A good example of this is old game consoles. some of the youtube channels I subscribe to essentially make videos of this; one instance had them buying a lot of 40 "for parts/not working" SNES consoles for a little less than 100 dollars or so. They made a series of videos on each one where they fixed it and the problems it had; replacing Capacitors and whatnot. A few were not salvagable, but in the end he had over 25 working consoles that he was then able to sell onto ebay as working systems for 40 dollars or so each.

This is sometimes a good way to get a cheap new system. People will often sell their "broken" handheld systems, consoles, and computer components as not working, and because they aren't working, they are usually much cheaper than one that is working. Another instance had one guy buying a broken/as-is/for parts Nintendo DS for 5 UK Pounds, and the only problem was a loose cable connecting the display screen that he was able to fix quite easily.

In this case it's probably a similar THING; if you think you can fix it you can get it a lot cheaper than a known-working component.Quote
I seriously doubt that without master soldering skills...or other skills that missing pins can be fixed...
Proceed with caution...after all it's only a CPU.

and

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Let us know when you get the pins back on

I am steering clear away from this myself. I have no interest in taking chances on this damaged CPU. Shared it here to see what everyone had to share on the subject.

I have done soldering of small surface mount J-legs etc, but never a CPU to replace a pin that is missing where you have neighboring pins surrounding it and no easy way to get in there without tinning neighboring gold plated pins. Additionally heating up the pad on the waffer could cause it to seperate from the CPU if overheated when applying the replacement pin metal. One way this might be able to be fixed would be to remove a leg from another say Pentium 75 CPU and add a small drop of solder paste to the pad and then suspend the leg perfectly center to where it needs to be soldered and then use a heat wand to get the solder paste to flow bonding the pad to the pin, but the small lead or silver/tin bond would be super fragile. One little bump or bend force from the side and it would probably bust off again.

The only thing I can see maybe making this easiest for repair would be if there was a pin that had a flat round top that could be inserted into the socket in reference to the pin that is missing and when the CPU is pushed down into the socket and locked it bridges the connection between the CPU and the socket making in functional, but any vibration or movement could break this pin bridge.

To have a more solid pin replaced in its spot I would think you would need to tack weld it. But, tack welding requires you to be able to apply a amp load to the pad and pin to fuse them together, but the heat created thru this process would likely kill the CPU.

Last option I can think of is a pin that can be placed into the socket that has spring loaded a pointed top to it that bites into the pad where the pin would normally be. In electronics manufacturing testing there are pin beds that are used mostly for ATE test beds where you manufacture CIRCUIT boards and then place the board onto a pin bed and the circuit board is held down against the pin bed by vacuum, meanwhile the ATE computer automated testing powers the board and runs diagnostics on it and gives you a print out or Pass/Fail. Here are the pins I have used in the past, but they are nothing that can be easily modded to act as a pin replacement. http://www.coda-systems.co.uk/catalog/CODATestProductCatalogue.pdf

On BC's info he shared.... I myself have made good money buying broken devices on ebay fixing them up and reselling them working. I was buying, fixing, and reselling as well as keeping for my own collection old 1970 and early 1980 hand held and portable mini arcades like this Coleco Donkey Kong http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1981-Coleco-Donkey-Kong-Mini-Table-Top-Arcade-Game-/291163050655?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43caab929f#ht_25wt_1153 where I was able to buy these up for $5 to $20 broken, and fix them and sell them for $75 or more depending on rarety, condition, and if people are going to have a bidding war to have it like the Pac Man that I sold for $190 like this one here http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAC-MAN-VINTAGE-WORKING-1981-COLECO-MIDWAY-MINI-TABLETOP-ARCADE-GAME-/281351795278?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4181dfb24e#ht_82wt_1153 The reason why the Pac Man went for $190 is because I bought it broken in its original box for $30 via buy-it-now. The original owner packed it away in the box with the 1981 vintage batteries still in it and they leaked and destroyed the battery compartment contacts. I was able to remove the mess and replace the + flat plates and - springs with another parts only unit and make the battery compartment look like it never had leaking batteries in it. Reassemble it and install 4 x C batteries and it played like new and was like new condition. Thinking back I probably should have kept that one for my collection of old hand held arcades, but the instant money to be made on my $30 investment to get $160 for 1 hour of work, I pretty much had to cash in and take the money. The original boxes are very scarce for these and the box itself is probably worth 4x the value of the arcade game that goes in it since most kids took the game out and threw the boxes away. So I have experienced first hand how easy money can be made if you can find the right stuff at the right price, able to then fix it and flip it for a profit.

I think the hardest thing about my collection of these old arcades is when my 8 yr old daughter wants to play them and I am like... um, they are antiques and no longer toys. I did however let her play them with my immediate supervision to make sure that they wouldnt get abused, but trying to explain to a child that its not really meant to be played anymore, they look at you like you have 2 heads and it makes no sense. When I explain that if the vacuum display gets busted the main board is pretty much toast and that they stopped making these almost 30 years ago, I am still faced with the look like I have 2 heads...LOL So I have them in safe hiding away from childrens hands. Yeah, that will be pretty much impossible to fix - No idea why people are bidding on it, it's only value now is as scrap.

I recently dropped my old 486 machine (yes, I'm an idiot) and the CPU came flying out the socket bending several pins - I was able to bend them back and get the machine working again but it was extremely difficult, and the pins on that are fairly large and spaced apart, not like on a modern chip!

Buying some stuff to fix makes sense such as mobile devices, PCs, laptops, TVs.etc as they are generally reasonably serviceable, however something like a CPU is far too small and fragile to be easily fixable and even if you could somehow solder the pins back on, I wouldn't imagine they will be strong or hold up to much abuse.

I also quite like buying broken stuff and fixing it - For example I got an original IBM PC XT on eBay fairly cheap and was able to find the original monitor for it for £20. The machine was sold as untested and indeed was faulty but I was able to get it running again (single bad capacitor on the motherboard) and a bad hard drive which I was amazingly able to get a replacement for! Got the machine working and am extremely happy with it - I could probably sell it for a decent little profit but I'm going to hang onto it since it's really cool and fun to play with.The Impassible Dream.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPqLRkj19vw
Does it work? Watch the video!Quote from: Geek-9pm on June 07, 2014, 08:06:45 PM
The Impassible Dream.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPqLRkj19vw
Does it work? Watch the video!

I remember LinusTechTips tried that here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdDccsbv5hA and got it working. I suppose it's fine as a last resort but I wouldn't explicitly buy a broken CPU with the intention of doing it. I'd also be worried about the pin somehow falling inside the socket and getting stuck (Not sure how they are constructed inside) ruining the board as well as the CPU! (Tongue in cheek)Quote
AMD is working on a new hybrid CPU that is part silicon and part insect.
If damaged, it can grow new legs.
Source: rumorsucudneverbelieve.org
I am still pretty surprised that AMD are still using PGA chips rather than LGA like Intel (Unless there is some legal thing that means only Intel can do it). At least to me, LGA seems a lot safer in terms of damaging pins - CPUs are fairly easy to drop and damage pins on and (at least at the higher end) the CPU generally costs more than the board so for that reason I would prefer to damage the pins in a £100 board rather than a £200+ CPU. With LGA you also remove the possibility of ripping the CPU out of the socket if you are careless when removing the cooler.Quote
I am still pretty surprised that AMD are still using PGA chips rather than LGA like Intel (Unless there is some legal thing that means only Intel can do it).

I was thinking the same thing myself. Then looked into LGA wiki and found this:

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AMD offered the Athlon 64 FX series on socket 1207FX through ASUS's L1N64-SLI WS motherboards. It was the only desktop LGA solution offered by AMD.

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The AMD server LGA socket is designated Socket G34 (LGA 1944). Like Intel, AMD decided to use LGA sockets for their higher pin densities, as a 1944-pin PGA would simply be too large for most motherboards.

I found it interesting that the wiki references only as early as 1996 for LGA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_grid_array as for I seen this pinless CPU design used before on as early as 80186 and 80286 CPU's when used in Allen Bradley Automation Controls that I use to service back in 1995 and the chips were dated prior to 1995 but were CLCC as seen here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:KL_Intel_80286_CLCC.jpg which is similar to LGA in that its pinless and goes into a CPU socket that instead has the pins that connect to the CPU. I suppose the reason why wiki has the 1996 reference is because that is when "LGA" was officially introduced, however this was based on a prior design used with Embedded Systems etc.

As far as why AMD still makes CPU's with fragile pins. It may be for fear of a lawsuit from intel since they have for years been fighting over designs similar to the other etc. Fact of the matter is that in order for them to both produce a CPU that works with similar hardware and operating systems, there is going to have to be some similarity in their internal core structure, but they also probably need to make the outside which is more noticeable DIFFERENT as well. Although for the fact that AMD has had a LGA equivilent in the past, I can not find any lawsuits/infringements related to these 2 quoted AMD pinless references above from the wiki.The answer my friends is blowing in the winds...

When you can't solder something because it will get too hot, you cold solder it (not the cold solder tool from TV).

This is not the first time someone would need to find a way to cold solder something. Engineers do it all the time.

You would need a 'conductive epoxy' probably. It would need to be held still while hardening too. That would be all you would need to make it work like new.Necromancer...Probably they are bidding without reading the listing.


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