Are motherboard screws supposed to fully contact the little metal bits around the screw hole?

jobert

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I just encountered an issue that I've never seen before in over 10 years of building computers and didn't really know if I should even worry about it or not. I have a new Phanteks P500A case and the motherboard screws are not like any other motherboard screws I've ever encountered. Normally the screw makes full contact with the little metal bits around the screw hole on the motherboard which I assumed was to help ground. The screws that come with this case do not do that and barely even touch them as they're nowhere near the width. At first I thought I was looking at the wrong screws but no I triple checked and these are the screws you're supposed to use to install the motherboard. Is this even something I should worry about or should I just go back and use some different motherboard screws?
 
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I had an instance in the past where the 2.5" HDD/SSD screws and the motherboard screws were so close that I had to get out a magnifying glass to tell them apart. The screws all being black did not help and neither does my aging eyesight.

Every single build I have done had the screws contacting the little metal bits and sitting snug. I was not aware of the ground issue- I thought the little metal bits acted as a lock washer because the screws are smooth on the underside. (Sometimes the PSU screws are smooth on the underside and sometimes they are not- and when they are not I don't use them on the outside of the case because they tear up the paint/plastic).

Could also be that your motherboard is thinner than other boards you have used?
 
It's nothing to do with a motherboard at all. The screws are screwed in all the way just fine and are holding the motherboard secure just like they should. Again it's just the screws that are included with this case just don't seem to be very wide and they're just barely making any contact with the metal around the motherboard screw holes. On every other build I've ever done including having this motherboard in a different case, the included motherboard screws with the case always completely covered those metal bits around the screw hole. And I am 100% positive that these are the screws that are supposed to be used.
 
Think my nzxt case had similar screws, and I ended up using case/psu screws instead (can't remember which). I'm 99% sure they cross-threaded or otherwise mangled the threads, but I rather have something that secures it as intended.

If you do the same, be sure you don't over torque them. They'll go in easy because the pitch or tpi is only slightly different, and or they're a bit smaller. But because of that, they can strip the standoffs easily.
 
Here is a pic to better clarify what I am describing. You can see it is hardly even contacting the little metal bits around the mobo screw hole. If you look closely though you can see where the previous case mobo screws left an outline which showed it was covering all of that metal before.

mb.png
 
doesn't look like a motherboard screw which has a washer like extension around the screw.

motherboard screw.jpg


if it is like the above and the image you posted isn't clear then you are fine the bits of metal as you call it are board reinforcements
 
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Are you worried about ground? People test systems sitting on nothing but a box with no screws at all.
 
I don't believe they are grounds. A little googlefu says they are there so when you tighten your screws you won't damage the PCB.

I also read they are used to ground your board to the case.

And another one to strengthen the hole.

Honestly, I run most systems on a box or table, so it's not important. Just mount it up and go. However, those aren't any mobo screws I'm accustomed to seeing, especially with the washer type portion. But I believe you!
 
Ok thanks for the replies. I just was a bit nervous having never seen mobo screws like this before.

And just to show I am not crazy and using the wrong screws here is the manual showing the mobo screws.

screws.jpg
 
Ok thanks for the replies. I just was a bit nervous having never seen mobo screws like this before.

And just to show I am not crazy and using the wrong screws here is the manual showing the mobo screws.

View attachment 324331
Yeah they are just to hold the mobo in the case, no issues I can see. I have seen some people go crazy with the screwdriver and chew off the top layer of PCB and expose some copper.
 
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