Thinkpads Forum

Hi!
I have a thinkpad w500, and i have a problem - but i dont know how much it will cost to repair?

The problem is that my heat sink, has taken a little damage because my thinkpad was knocked off a table and down on the floor. Nothing else has been damaged, and this is the first time i recognize it. But i dont think that the standard warranty will cover this accident?
Im living in denmark, and it has been in to repair once, to get the screen replaced.

Best regards!

Andreas

Seems odd that the heatsink would sustain damage since it's internal to the structure of the machine, unless the keyboard took a direct hit and was resting on top of the heatsink. What exactly is the damage?

standard warranty doesn't cover accidental damages like things falling off. It is probably cheaper for you to organise a new heatsink from IBM parts or places like ebay.

http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/7481/tpheatsink.jpg
Its a huge picture, taken with my phone.. Its hard to see, but possible

OK, I see. It is a fuzzy picture but it looks like you have a couple of bent fins on the heatsink. I would not worry about that unless your CPU or GPU temps have changed drastically after the accident. Other than that you have some broken plastic grilling. That would require a bottom case replacement. Since it was dropped it would not be covered unless you have the optional accidental damage warranty.

as Harryc have said, i wouldn't be overtly worried about these damages. You can re-bent back the fin fairly easily with a narrow nosed plier if you are really worried about this. While, the broken plastic grill on the cases should be bent back into position, then use some high quality cement glue or super glue to fix them into place. This would also prevent any sharp edges from cutting your fingers if you inadvertently run your finger up the side.

My old T61 had suffered similar damages, but i had accidental protection warranty and that was covered in the warranty.

Its very hard to see, but the Heat sink, behind the grill is damaged.. Not much, but a little.
I noticed my fan began to run a little faster, but i thought it was dust, but nothing extraordinary. So i will just let it be.

//Andreas

what damage are you talking about other than the bending of the heatsink fin? the fan may run faster due to the restricted airflow as the result of the bent fins.

Its very hard to see on the picture, but the heat sink is "bend", its not a very big problem, just annoying

You might be able to disassemble, straighten the mating surface and refresh the grease. I would check the magnesium frame. You might have broken the frame where the fan is screwed down.

I dont think the Magnesium frame is broken.. Its only the heat sink (see picture in this post)
This picture isn´t good, but better:
http://img574.imageshack.us/i/tpheatsink2.jpg/

I havnt noticed anything, except what i can see (and my fan run a little faster). And it have been over two weeks now, since it has been dropped

use the macro mode on your camera to take close up shots.