@Zoe_Maxine Yeah, that definitely sounds like you’ll need to pick up a new Heatsink and Fan Kit. The good news is that it can easily be replaced! It’s in stock and will ship quickly.
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Okay, I thought that might be the case but I didn’t want to buy a new kit if I was wrong. But at least it’s straightfoward!
Thanks so much for the quick response!
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@Zoe_Maxine No problem at all! Swapping the Heatsink and Fan Kit is an absolute breeze as you can just follow the step-by-step guide I’ve linked below. It’ll take you 10 minutes. Just make sure to clean off the original thermal paste from the CPU before installing the new kit which has new thermal paste pre-installed.
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Okay, got it! I’ll make sure to follow the instructions carefully and look out for that paste. It looks simple enough otherwise!
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@Twistgibber Seeing as the fan is the only part of the kit that can “go bad” could we/will we see an option to just replace the fan in the future?
Last time I opened up my system I didn’t see a way to remove just the fan from the heatsink so I’m not saying it isn’t already possible. It just seems like a really wasteful way (and more expensive and worse for the environment) to repair a bad fan by shipping out a heatsink and fan unit, I mean where do we expect the old heatsink will end up? best case is it’s recycled and all the manufacturing and shipping was a waste…
They are manufactured as a kit and there are no current plans to separate them. We do not sell/replace many of these given the original kit can be repasted and reused. Replaced parts should always be taken to a e-recycler when possible for proper handling when no longer needed, but again, the volume of these requiring replacement due to fan failure is very low.
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Thanks for the response. Seems like it could be made modular and I’m hopeful that might change in the future after all recycling anything is not really a desirable solution, raw materials are reclaimed but the production that went into it is always lost. Reduce, reuse then recycle last right?
Perhaps I misunderstood but I’m not sure how you can reuse any of the kit if the fan is damaged, otherwise we agree the metal parts and infinitely reusable and that was my original point/reason for asking.
Please don’t take this the wrong way but Framework has been selling laptops for a little over 18 months so I don’ think that means as much as it would down the road when parts are actually old. I will grant you fans don’t fail that often though.
Thanks again for the response.
Well I have good news and bad news! The good news is that my new heatsink and fankit arrived safely today! I was impressed!
The bad news is that I think one of the screws holding the old fan in place is stripped? Or something? I don’t know how that could have happened since I haven’t tried to remove it before now
I am 80% sure you are using a bit a size or 2 too small. Which is also probably why the screws look kinda messed up.
I guess so? But I’m using the Framework screwdriver at the T-5 so it should be the right size but I guess the screw isn’t?
@Zoe_Maxine - You’re working on the wrong screws - edit, not true, I’m an idiot, what else is new… The ones to loosen and tighten - edit - for the heatsink - are numbered 1, 2, and 3. I’ll link the guide in a moment.
Edit - I’m wrong. Not the first time. Guide here: Heatsink and Fan Replacement Guide - Framework Guides
The bit on your driver does look like it is too small, which is strange.
@Zoe_Maxine That bit seems damaged (and small) based on the video you’ve shared, which is really strange if you’re using the Framework Screwdriver and the included t5 torx bit. All of the screws are t5 and the Framework Screwdriver should be able to handle all of them with the perfect fit. To loosen the stripped screws, you can use a rubber band and place it over the screw, then insert the bit into the rubber band. Please let us know in Framework Support if you are still stuck after that.
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A flat head screwdriver would work too if you have one that fits… (Give this a try first before going down the rubber band path. Rubber band requires more downward force…and you want to avoid if it possible…because you might be pushing the mounting plate down, and that pressing down against the bottom casing)
Well one of them isn’t right, it is also too small for the first screw but you have not stripped the very tips of the torx part there so it kinda works but it’s still not the right size.
Edit: also just took another look at the video, not sure if I see this right but I am pretty sure I can read 3 on the side of your bit which would be 2 sizes too small, might also be 5 but my brains says closer to 3 XD.
That sounds like your fan screws were damaged/worn before you touched them? I had this experience with one of my mainboard replacements.
If you compare them to the heatsink screws and the images in the guide you can see they have a metallic shine where they have wear/damage. Check/compare them to the screws in the replacement kit, they should be all one colour no metallic shine.
It is hard to be sure but it looks like your driver bit is also damaged, the end should be completely flat with the flutes having a 90° angle on the end, yours appears to have been rounded and that will likely cause damage to any screws you use it on (with a diminished contact surface the bit will likely slip).
Here is mine as a comparison (I have used it a lot).
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Oop, that doesn’t sound good. Thanks for the catch on that one and your observations.
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Since I didn’t have a different screwdriver I got help from a very kind person at a computer store who unscrewed the Problem Screw for me for no charge! That was nice 
After that everything went perfectly smoothly and the new fan is installed! It’s running so quietly now I was almost a little worried I did something wrong but it’s working.
Thanks everyone!
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Still get yourself a new t5 bit, otherwise you’ll mangle more screws over time.
There are pros and cons to torx having excelent toque transfer XD. It doesn’t slip like a philips head so eventually something has to give.
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Made me think of where these tiny bits of stripped metal might be hiding. You don’t want them inside your laptop where they could short things so a round with a can of compressed air might be good?
Could help or make the problem worse, for all we know those bits of metal could be everywhere.