Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

[gonzo0815]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I agrree, if you fell better you can easily remove that flux with any alcohol and a thootbrush. If yióu can do ne pic`s with flux removed we can better se how the soldering is done. The flux makes this on digital photos nearly imposssible, as it is looking similar to bad solder joints.
But again for 50 bux i think they should have at least replaced all caps with good ones. But anyway, if i compared it with Germans profesionals, most won`t do that fo that price and if i wouldn`t expect better work. In fact, as far as i have the time and the information i try to repair as mutch as possible for my self. The average cost for one labor h for an wasching maschine repair service are usually at 60 to 70€ here in Germany. So you se there are not mutch about profesionall cap replacement wich needs far more skills in Germay.

[spaced<->out]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Good calls guys, the camera flash is intent on reflecting off everything so my previous pic isn't really representative of what the card actually looks like to hold in your hand. The areas davmax identified as splattered, they are not covered with silver material but a glossy dark matter that I'm guessing is the flux. The biggest area of this, near/under the warranty sticker, is lumpy as well, I thought initially the board might be charred but it's probably just trapped dirt.

I tried some more photography; the following pairs of images are cropped from the two best pics (which were outdoors under full sunlight and shade respectively). I hope these can give a clearer idea.



1a | 1b
2a | 2b
3a | 3b
4a | 4b

[Spacedye69]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Solder job sucks period. Pic 1b looks like green coat is blistered and burnt. I would be worried if it was 4 layer board. It will look much better after you clean off the flux, though. I use isopropyl and q tips, then blow off fuzzy left by the q tips.

[willawake]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I think this gay had have some Power problems with his normal Soldering station and used an normal cheapo 80w Iron to get the job done.

looking at that soldering i think the typo is perhaps not a typo

[tiresias]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

looking at that soldering i think the typo is perhaps not a typo

Yes indeed!

I didn't want to say anything about it to avoid 'hijacking' the thread - but you have had some atrocious luck, spaced-out. I'm hardly a professional electronician (not a real word, NB) myself, but even my younger kid has been able to do cleaner soldering jobs than that. Factor in the $50, and the fact that he successfully used your card to 'blow something up'...

I wish you and your card a speedy recovery!

[davmax]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Thanks for detail pics. Yes the soldering is real bad. Yes the board surface looks burnt. The real concern is that who ever did the job has risked a short circuit. I have marked up your picture with arrows. The red arrows point out the vias(solder points) that are surrounded by a copper plane, there is a small insulating ring around each via that must be maintained. The blue arrows point to the bad soldering that appears to place the insulating ring at risk, 2 and 3 do not appear to have any insulating ring left. If the ring is bridged there will be a short circuit.


Check it out.

[MD Willington]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Jeez.. Are you sure he didn't get an apprentice plumber to do that... I've seen better jobs done on copper plumbing..

[spaced<->out]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Well the good news is that it scrubbed up a treat, and revealed that there seems to be no scorching of the actual board.



I used Isocol 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol (it smelled "friendlier" than methylated spirits, lol ) and cleaned the board using paper towel, cotton buds, and tissue gripped in and wrapped around needlenose pliers where I needed more precision. All up it took me some 90+ minutes of patient effort to finish.

Detail "after" pics:
1a | 1b
2a | 2b
3a | 3b
4a | 4b
Spots on top of the board by the "1" capacitor as well: before | after

The 2, 3, and 4 solder point pairs cleaned fairly easily, and the same for peeling off the warranty sticker (seems a bit redundant now ) and cleaning off the sticky residue. The soldering looks clean, I can only make out some silver flecks nearby the single via of 4.

That first soldered cap was clearly a complete disaster though, the mess adhered to the board was coming off in black lumps and particles. It was a bit like cleaning road tar off a car... ended up resorting to gently scraping with the back of a scapel blade to encourage it to dislodge.

there is a small insulating ring around each via that must be maintained
...2 and 3 do not appear to have any insulating ring left. If the ring is bridged there will be a short circuit.

Mate, you're doing well to pick that out without being able to inspect the board first-hand. Looking at it myself I think you are right but at least they seem to be just within tolerance. I'm sure I would've struggled if I'd elected to do it myself.

you have had some atrocious luck, spaced-out

Well that's probably what I get for skimping on research. I probably should've shopped around more and tried to get some solid repair quotes rather than just head for the first Jaycar outlet, but that's hindsight.


Again, thanks all for the assistance.

[tiresias]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Detail "after" pics

I'm afraid I cannot see any of your 'after' pics, they seem to be "missing"... and I suspect none of the others can see them either.

Try posting them again if you're still reading this thread - we'd be interested to see what became of your card!

[spaced<->out]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

Huh, I wonder how I managed to do that. Thanks for pointing that out.



1a | 1b | flipside before | flipside after
2a | 2b
3a | 3b
4a | 4b

[Topcat]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I just recapped that video card's long lost identical twin. I replaced the 470uF and 1000uF GSC's. card works perfect now.

[cloaked_chaos]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I know this thread is a little old, but it describes my problem very well. Two of the three green caps on my Leadtek WinFast A250 are bulging, one of which has the tan substance coming out of the top. The reason this came to my attention is because this video card failed and would work no longer. I want to know the chances that this card will work if I replace the caps, and where I can buy the caps at (preferably online).

[willawake]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

its only a few caps. definitely worth a go. if it doesnt work then we can advise things to check.

pm topcat for the caps

[BiGdUsTy]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I have this very same card and just replaced the same 3 bad GSC caps.
A friend of mine gave me the card after his computer kept crashing, after installing a new card his problems stoped. The first look I got at this board i new those caps needed to be replaced. I replaced them with some KMG caps I'm sure there not the best brand but it's working well. The next thing is to replace the cooling on this board as one of the fans is missing.

[Big Pope]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I do not suggest to replace with UCC KMG with this display card. I have an experience with Radeon 8500. Most of Radeon 8500 have 4 pcs of 470uF 10v (D10mm) on the card.

I have tried to recap it with KMG on Radeon 8500, and tested with 3Dmark2001 SE, the screen is borken, then i replaced with Low ESR caps immediately, problem is gone.

[Maxxarcade]

Re: Leadtek Winfast A250 with bulging caps

I have a couple smaller values of KMG caps I use at work. I couldn't find the value I needed in KY or other lower ESR type. But the KMG's have much lower ESR than the Nichicon VZ's that we used to use all the time.

Lately I've favored UCC and Panasonic caps for all my work since discovering this forum. Most notably the UCC KY, LXY and LXZ, and the Panasonic FC. I use the KY's for most motherboard repairs (cheaper than FC's at Digikey) and LXY/LXZ for SMPS repair.