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Case Screws????

Baileybbk

Member
OK, I got a new case and it came with lots of screws and such.....some perhaps stupid questions:

Picture of Screws etc

I assume (3) are spacers for the motherboard? So why are there 12 of them?
What are (1) & (2) used for?

(5 - the black ones) are slightly smaller then (4 - silver)......I assume one set is for the hard drives?

Thanks for any help!!!
 
1 is a motherboard standoff. Not sure about 2 i have never figured out a use for the long ones. small are for cdrom-fdisk drive and others for hd/motherboard. You can see what kind of thread is in the brass standoffs, and use the appropriate screw.
 
Originally posted by: Steven the Leech
1 is a motherboard standoff. Not sure about 2 i have never figured out a use for the long ones. small are for cdrom-fdisk drive and others for hd/motherboard. You can see what kind of thread is in the brass standoffs, and use the appropriate screw.

Why do I have plastic standoffs and brass ones? Why only 2 plastic ones? Why so many brass ones? Why so many of those silver small screws??

I always assumed I'd need 5 or 6 standoffs, and that they would be nonconducting.....(sorry if these are stupid questions).

Thanks
 
#1 is a nylon standoff that you can use for holes where you run out of the brass standoffs that you'd normally use to screwdown the motherboard, or for places that it's hard to reach a screwdriver into. You don't want to use them in a spot that gets any up or down force during mounting of memory or adapters, since that will result in the board flexing. The corner behind the PS/2 ports is usually the hardest spot to fit a screwdriver, and is a safe place for that. Of course, real standoffs and screws is the best.

I dunno what #2 is meant for. Only recently have I seen that sort of longer screw coming with cases. I've never run into any need for them. Maybe they're meant for optional feet or something.

#3 are the brass standoffs -- screw those into the holes in the case motherboard tray, in the holes that align with the holes on your motherboard (only the holes with a silvery foil around them are meant for screws). These may use either a coarse or fine-threaded screw to mount, I've seen both types -- you can just test each one with a screw to make sure they go in easily but not too loosely, as the fine-thread screws are usually slightly smaller. If you have both, try to use all the same type in the system so there's no mixup.

The brass standoffs also don't need to be used if your motherboard tray has an integrated standoff, like a pillar either molded into the tray, or snapped in. Yours probably doesn't, but you may get one like that in the future, so just remember it.

#4 is kind of hard to make out; you probably have 2 or 3 different types actually in that pile, because that's an awful lot of screws.

The screws for securing case side panels are usually a coarse thread, with a knurled (kinda wavy) underside to the head, which is hexagonal as well as having a phillips cut. Those are also used for securing PCI/AGP cards. The knurls on the head help to keep them from loosening. There may also be a similar type but with a smooth underside on the head. Those can usually be used to secure the motherboard. The smooth surface won't scrape off the foil around the motherboard holes. You may also find some non-hexagonal headed screws with a smooth underside and coarse thread; those can be used for the motherboard as well.

Hard drives also use a coarse thread screw. You can use the same knurled screws used for the case panels or PCI slots, since they'll help to prevent any loosening due to vibration.

Optical drives and floppy drives use a fine-thread screw. You may have some with a hexagonal head, and some with a rounded head. They're pretty much inter-changeable -- just test a few in the drives first; they should go in easily but not feel loose, like you could just pull them straight out. The black #5 screws may in fact be those screws, just colored black to differentiate them.
 
RE:"Why so many brass ones? Why so many of those silver small screws??"


They gave you extras. A full size ATX mobo takes 9 or...
Use them everywhere there is a solder ring. You want them to conduct. Grounds the motherboard.
Just make sure everything is lined up where the screw heads are centered in the solder rings.

Some kits used to give you a bunch of the plastic standoffs but I prefer the screws. Easier to take on and off. I could see where a production line at a OEM might like so plastic snap on type to make assembly faster but thats not the case here.

The HD screws are coarser threads than the mobo screws and the optical drive screws as a general rule.

Some cases come with two screws that will screw into the standoffs. One has a bigger head than the other. Either can be used.

I dunno what those long screws ar for. Possible some read plate.

Just take your time...if the screw don't fit easy then don't force it.

A nut driver is handy for tightening the standoffs into the mobo plate. Don't crank them in too much. Brass is soft and they can break off.

Mac


 
Thanks everyone I appreciate the help.

FYI:
The case is a black Directron Black Super-Flower SF-201T which is the same as the Kingwin KT-436BK-WM.


I have tried to figure out whether (4), all those silver ones are different. When I look at the whole bunch some look different, but when I pick them up to compare them they look the same.....don't know if it is an illusion or not 😕
 
Having given the model of your case (I have a model in the family, and I love it 😉) I can tell you that the black screws are for optical and floppy drives. I have found they do not work so well for hard drives though. If your case is similar to mine, the inside is also black, and the black screws look much nicer with the black interior if you happen to have a side window.

As for #1, somemotherboards (ie, Soyo KT333 Ultra (Black) require these in specific places to mount the board. Of course, the motherboard usually comes with these, but I find extras (of everything, from nylon standoffs to brass ones 😉) to be a good thing, since I drop things and they vanish until I happen to walk around barefoot and then I seem to find them all...

\Dan
 
Originally posted by: EeyoreX
Having given the model of your case (I have a model in the family, and I love it 😉) I can tell you that the black screws are for optical and floppy drives. I have found they do not work so well for hard drives though. If your case is similar to mine, the inside is also black, and the black screws look much nicer with the black interior if you happen to have a side window.

...

\Dan

Thanks Dan.....Do you know why we have all those little silver screws? and what they are for?

On another note: There are windows on both sides and the top, where does one hide all the cables?!
Any way to know what kind of fans are in the case? They all say Super-Flower.
 
No problem. The silver screws i use for hard drives, as they seem threaded a little better and grab and hold the drives much better than the black ones, also if I remember right they match the threading for the brass motherboard standoffs. So, most likely they gave us enough to mount plenty of motherboard and drives. Or maybe a lot of extra screws is all. Kinda nice if you asked me. As a side note, I also have no idea about the long screws <shrug>.

Mine was the 201B version, had the side fan but I ordered a side panel with a pre-installed window (didn't want to do it my self and screw up this sweet case) so I have no problem hiding wires. I personally wasn't interested in the three windows for just this reason.

I think SuperFlower is the fan brand, but no idea about the specs (I think I saw them sold at PCMods.com, maybe they have the specs?). I have since replaced all of mine with low rpm red LED fans anyhow. But, they all cooled nicely when I used them, and I have them in my great big toolbox of extra 80mm fans...

\Dan
 
#1 are just plastic standoffs, which I don't think I've used since I had an AT board.
#2 are the longer screws that are probably used for putting into the brass standoffs
#3 brass standoffs. They probably just dropped in a bunch without counting. I've seen some cases come with just the "exact" number and no more no less.
#4 are meant for drives and usually they give you a bunch cause you need around 4 to bolt 1 drive down nicely.
#5 are probably other drive screws cause you have a black case, plus I'm not positive, but it could be for fans, since they usually use black screws since the fan is black as well.
 
I still don't know what the #2's are for, but I do know that they are too large for use in the brass standoffs. Plus there are only four, and that's not enough for securing a motherboard.

\Dan
 
Originally posted by: EeyoreX
I still don't know what the #2's are for, but I do know that they are too large for use in the brass standoffs. Plus there are only four, and that's not enough for securing a motherboard.

\Dan

i believe the #2's are used for the older Socket 423 pentium 4 (first gen) bolt on heatsinks.
 
Originally posted by: EeyoreX

...
I think SuperFlower is the fan brand, but no idea about the specs (I think I saw them sold at PCMods.com, maybe they have the specs?). I have since replaced all of mine with low rpm red LED fans anyhow. But, they all cooled nicely when I used them, and I have them in my great big toolbox of extra 80mm fans...

\Dan

Those SuperFlower fans don't pump too well! I finaly got it all together and expected more air flow from the case fans!
Also these fans don't seem to fastened with screws!

 
Originally posted by: Spikesoldier
i believe the #2's are used for the older Socket 423 pentium 4 (first gen) bolt on heatsinks.


That would explain why I had no idea. I am a pure AMD guy... 😉

As for the fans, I just knew I had fairly decent temps, but I guess it didn't "feel" like a lot of air. Of course, I have all ~2500rpm fans in my case now. My temps are not the lowest, but they are not super high either.

And the fans are attached with (forgive the lack of proper name, I am sure they have one) a type of plastic quick-tab type dealie. To change them, you need to pull the little black fastener out (it is two part, one, like a dull thumb-tack, the other a tube-type thing that expands when the "tumbtack" is inserted, thus holding the fans in place.) Good luck!

\Dan
 
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