Vampire 2 A600: New mounting kit
 

Again with vampire mounting...

Trying to figure out how to fix my moving Vampire problem I stumpled upon again on Kipper's website where he has a video showing a new mounting system for the V2 (actually 2 screws).

But It doesn't say if it's available or what... anyone has some more information?

link: http://www.kipper2k.com/updates.html

All it was is two M1.6 x 16mm screws and nuts, and a plastic spacer on the right hand side screw. Nothing special, can buy the screws anywhere

Yep relatively simple, don't over-tighten and ensure the plc socket is flush to your amiga 600 board.. also the tiny little nuts go under the mainboard where you screw from the top, probably help to get some washers but not essential. The plastic spacer is on the right side like Lemaru said as the plc is essentially the spacer on the left. if you think the plc isnt sitting flush try cleaning the a600 plc area in case there is debris, if the plc socket still won't go flush and you can see the smd component is in the way then use a small cutter to cut away some of the plastic of the plc socket to give you additional clearance of the smd component, but this is at your own risk!

I'd start by only loosely fixing both sides, positioning the plc firm (you want this to be flush), keep your finger on the plc end downward pressure while you screw very slowly both sides, side by side taking your time.

Warning: I can't stress this enough, don't over-tighten! When you feel the screw come to a stop as you rotate gently it's time to stop turning it, over-tightening will put a temporary (permanent if you've gone too far) bend on the pcb as you're essentially pulling one side down and it'll be difficult to get contact at the PLC.

I'm not sure the screws are so easy to find, anyway what about the spacers? There should be two of the maybe a third also. So the kit is not sold?

At this point, don't know what happened, the Vampire only works if I press it manually and fiercily down the CPU. With the plastic mounts that came with it il loses conctat. I'm hoping this screws help me.

Yeah I don't use plastic mounts, just two screws and the spacer. Boots every time and is flush , check to see if your PCB is bent in any way, if not then you'll be good , got 10 of them screws on that famous auction website everyone uses for a few GBP, make sure you have the nuts too :)

BENT!? I suspected it judging from how the Vampire keeps popping out! But how? Maybe due to the recap?

how possibbly can I get it straight? :/ I guess screws are my only hope...

Thanks, you're being very helpful :)

Damn well if you've bent it, take it off immediately, screwing it down further will make things worse at this point. can you take photos of your mount screws, nuts, and vampire so everyone knows what we're dealing with?

I am not sure why you think the screws are not easy to find. They are a common item in a standard size, there is nothing special about them at all. As I said, the screws are countersunk and the size is M1.6 and the length is 16mm. The nuts are also a standard size item being M1.6... i brought some myself and it took barely a minute to find them on eBay.

The nuts actually go on top and not underneath the main board. You can see this in Kipper2k's demonstration video. So you need to put the screws through from the bottom of the motherboard, then sit the spacer into he right one. Then fit the vampire, and then out the nuts on. Do not do them up too tight and if you want to stop them coming undone easily then you can out a dab of nail varnish on the threads once it's been done up.

If you take a look at my picture of mine fitted you can see these screws and nuts in place. I actually made small thumb screws to sit the nuts in to make them easier to remove should I need to.

https://imgur.com/a/ba1RR

Regarding the spacer you will probably have to find an 8mm plastic or nylon spacer and then file it down to the correct height for your board.i measured the gap on mine and 3D printed my own.

As per you other thread and my comments there. All my issues were caused by the socket, and after replacing this to the same type socket as used on the Furia the I no longer have any issues. I do not even need to use any mounting screws or anything as the socket holds it on tight enough by itself. Even allowing me to lift the whole Amiga by it. You can actually see in my video that the screws are in place (well the right one is) but there are no buts fitted. The socket alone is now good enough.

https://youtu.be/NS7EkMx1xYY

Another thing worth doing, if it has not yet been done already, is rubbing the socket on some sandpaper until the edge of the socket is level with the top of the pins inside it. This is even mentioned in the troubleshooting section on the official Wiki page.

http://wiki.apollo-accelerators.com/doku.php/faq

You can see here that my socket has been sanded down to meet the pins. You can also see that two of my pins were squashed which cases similar issues to what you are seeing, and was another reading for my using a better quality socket.

https://m.imgur.com/a/u5M2n

Previously when I had issues, before the socket change, this alone helped alot with my issues and stopped it popping off the board by itself.

Lemaru you're right nuts at the top, I remember now nuts at the bottom won't allow the board to sit flush, and pcmcia doesn't play well like that lol! Although caseless it doesn't matter which is said about my amigas most of the time. hehe.

man you're making me panic! I remove everything, cleande, rubbed, cut and everything. Now it stays in place, not firmly but stays. At this point I just neet to put those pass-thru screws I think...

Because I have no idea even where to start looking for them... electronic parts shop? Ebay has some?

I'll try with some LEGO :) (seriously)

Thanks

eBay is a good place to find them. There's loads of sellers.

I would seriously check the socket has been sanded down. On the wiki it said Kipper2k already done this, but when I got mine it was not sanded down at all so I done it myself. It made it a much better fit

But the Vampire was in place since it arrived with the first batch, the problem happened when I took it off tio recap the mobo and tried to put it back. Btw I didn't sand it, I just rubbed it strongly with paper and alcool. Need the screws now :)

If it's never been sanded down then it will never be a very good fit. As I said before, the socket is not designed to be used upside down, hence the reason for sanding it down to make it fit better. Mine was the second batch from Kipper and just of missed being sanded down. Before I doe that it was never a very good fit.

Other option would be to push the pins in slightly using a pin to give it a tighter fit. Don't overdo it though.

If you have removed it and replaced it then you have probably just widened the pins slightly so it's a looser fit. The sockets used are not the best quality socket and the pins are very weak.

Best solution however... Change the socket for a better one.

Order up some screws. I would recommend the screws over the 3d printed bracket. As at the end of the day, the 3d printed one is still only held down by two screws through the HDD mounting holes.

How long are the nylon spacers?

Also Lemaru, do you have a part number or a link to where the better sockets can be found? Are they on EBay?

The spacers that originally come with it, if I remember correctly, were 8mm although I found they were too long so ended up 3D printing my own after measuring the gap between the card and motherboard

After changing the socket I measured it again and had to make some more (this time about 7.3mm). Although the card holds in place by the socket alone, I have now also out these in place anyway seeings as the screws were already through the board.

The socket I used was an Augat PCS-068A which has been discontinued but can still be found on eBay and places. I did however have to buy 10 of then so now have 7 spare. The old socket needs to be removed and the holes clearing of solder as much as possible as the pins on the new socket are thicker and a tighter fit. Works a treat when it's in place though

Well they weren't so difficult to find after all but I need to mention that I had to pay €15,39 for screws + bolts + P&P. So let me re-formulate: they're not easy to find cheaply :)