Video Card PCB tweaked, not bad but fixable?

[EXCellR8]

Has anyone been successful at sorting out a tweaked PCB? I received an older Titan Black for some butter smooth 1080p gaming but the seller packed it terribly and both ends are slightly askew. I've already been refunded and they don't want it back but the card actually works; it has a half-cover waterblock on it. There's a hairline crack in the black coating at one corner of the card, but the board itself is not broken.

My first thought is to remove the water block and install the OE cooler with back plate... being careful not to stress the card, let it warm up, and then gradually tighten the backplate. Just wanted to know if anyone's run into a similar situation... any advice would be appreciated. Also, if anyone wants to lend me a GTX 780/TITAN ref cooler let me know.

I can post some pictures a bit later.

 

[Rifter]

so the PCB is cracked? around the edges/end/corner or does it go anywhere towards the middle?

If its just in the corner like you say you will probably be fine. I dropped a 4890 once and it landed on the corner of the PCB, cracked off a chunk of the PCB probably 1/2" or so, worked fine for years after. As long as there are no traces in that section you will be fine.

 

[EXCellR8]

the water block isn't full cover so there's a ton of weight in the center, and on one side next to the block (maybe 3/4 the way along the side of the card) the pcb started to bend. there's a little stress mark on the edge but it's not cracked, just the black finish coating on top. the end with the power connectors is slightly warped but nothing popped off. they had it in the box sideways, and obvious no no especially coming from a tech company.

i'll just use it for now and maybe i'll grab a komodo FC block they are usually on sale.

 

[EliteRetard]

Might not be smart to try and straighten it...kinda like bending a paper clip, there's potential you'll break it far worse by bending it again.

 

[EXCellR8]

I'm not home at the moment but i made this awful graphic representation of the card's condition: Titan Black

I would not try to bend it back cold, but like I said gradually with a full backplate. The PCB itself is not cracked, but I'm sure that I could break it easily.

 

[gbeirn]

If it works I'd leave it alone.

 

[Elixer]

I suppose it is possible they tightened the screws unevenly or used too much torque.
I would remove waterblock, and clean the GPU, apply new thermal paste, and apply the correct amount of torque on each screw.

 

[EXCellR8]

removed the water block last night so I could examine the card's condition a bit better. not sure it's due to the improper tightening of the screws to the backplate as much as it was packing the card diagonally in the box. it was a good thing I removed the block anyways though, because they used too much paste. other than that the board looks fine so i'll apply a little bit of heat to the rear and see if that nets any flexibility. if not, I'll just leave it be.

 

[EliteRetard]

removed the water block last night so I could examine the card's condition a bit better. not sure it's due to the improper tightening of the screws to the backplate as much as it was packing the card diagonally in the box. it was a good thing I removed the block anyways though, because they used too much paste. other than that the board looks fine so i'll apply a little bit of heat to the rear and see if that nets any flexibility. if not, I'll just leave it be.

I can tell you that a PCB wont get noticeably more flexible with heat below solder melting point. I've baked (and fried) a few cards in my time.