Heatsink Connector repair

[PotatoBox]

So, I was replacing the thermal paste on my Thinkpad T430 and I accidentally chipped off a part of the plastic part for the cable (I suppose the plastic became brittle because of constant heating), so some of the wires can now come out of the plastic, but they slide on the pins fine. I don't feel comfortable leaving my laptop like this (as the wire could slide off the pin and cause the fan to shut off), does anyone know what this port is called so that I can solder in a new connector.

[Armadillo]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/20-XH2-54-5P-Connector-Kits-2-54mm-Pin-Header-20-5P-Housing-100-Terminal-/252489098689?hash=item3ac985e5c1:g:CKEAAOSwimdXpF0R

Its not by soldering. Its by crimping. So you should have a crimping plier. Proper plier is not cheap. Otherwise improper one, the wire will easily come loose.

Might as well buy short piece of cabled connector, cut and solder the wires and tape.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/XH2-54mm-10cm-Wire-Cable-Double-Connector-2P-3P-4P-5P-6P-7P-8P-10P-/272299280234?var=&hash=item3f664d476a:m:mx2RZn8BUAicePwkkmyftVw

[Gyro]

You might just be better just securing the wires in situ once plugged in. Maybe a fine cable tie which stops the loose wires sliding against the still secure ones. Maybe even a thick adhesive (caulk, nail varnish?) that won't wick down into the connector contacts.

Edit: Alternatively, just get a new plastic connector housing, you can clip the existing crimped contacts into that with no need to re-terminate anything (they enter from the back as you have found).

[voltz]

Yes, find a connector with attached cable from somewhere (ebay or junk box). Chop off your old connector and re-solder the new connector in place. Keep the overall cable length the same as it is now otherwise it may not fit back into the laptop. Insulate the wire joints with thin silicon rubber sleeving. May be worth staggering the position of the cuts in the wires to stop it bunching in one big group.

Another way would be push the pins back in the plug as far as they go, then apply a small amount of hot glue at the back to hold them in. Not very nice but it would work at a pinch.

A proper fix would involve buying a new fan/heatink assembly, or buying a crimp tool and changing the plug, but then the wires may be too short depending on how tight the fit is to the laptop socket.

Hope that helps.