Hello all, I hope this mini guide is of value to someone attempting to sleeve their PSU. This may be especially useful if you don't want to buy Molex and ATX pin removal tools, and don't have two super-small Watch/Jewelry Repair screwdrivers on hand.

After some speelunking, I discovered a thread on another forum where a modder used staples to help remove the ATX 20/24-pin connector's wire pins. It didn't really explain the details of how he did this, and after much trail, error, and frustration, I found a fairly easy way to do this. I want to share what worked for me.

Tools needed...

• Staples. You want some that are still glued to each other, not previously run through a stapler
• Small Standard Screwdriver: We'll need one with a tip that is slightly wider than the square ATX pins, but still fits within the plastic pin holders on the ATX connector.

First, pull off staples from your glued staple strip to get exactly 2 staples glued together. Do this twice for a pair of glued staples. A single staple will not always give you adequate coverage inside the ATX connector to push in the metal fins of the ATX pins. A single staple can work, but will give you more grief if you're just a little off when inserting it.


Next, straighten out one side of these dual staples to form an L-shape. Be gentle, because it's very easy to overpower the glue holding them together. Here's mine and my smallest standard screw drivers (which don't work nearly as well as the staples)...



Insert the staples to the left and right of an ATX pin (with the top being the ATX connector's clip). Make sure the staples go all the way down into the plastic housing, stopping when it reaches a more narrow chamber. Be sure not to catch one of the two glued staples on the ATX pin itself, as it will surely seperate if forced.



If you're having trouble getting the staples past the ATX pin connector, push the attached cable a bit to make room as shown...



Once the staples are inserted, take your small screwdriver and push on the pin while holding the ATX connector housing. Avoid pulling on the cable to avoid losening the cable to pin crimp -- instead let the screwdriver do all the work. It takes a little bit of force, but not too much. It may feel like pushing on it will do nothing, but keep going and the pin will come out without damaging the fins. If it still feels like you're using too much force, recheck the staples to make sure they're positioned as shown in the pics.



With the right screwdriver, pushing down will also twist the staples just a bit to add additional pressure on each ATX pin fin. After you've successfully removed a couple of pins, you should be able to get into a groove, making it easier to do the remaining 18 or 22 pins. This method should work just as well with the 4-pin P4 +12V connectors.


I hope this helps. Let me know if you find any errors in this mini-guide

This is sure to be a tedious way to do it, but helpful...the atx pin remover i saw (i think i saw) on Frozencpu was 12 dollars. That's 12 dollars i don't want to spend.

Oh my goodness, that's a great way to do it. Who goes for those fancy-pantsed ATX molex removers anyways?
Im going to have to try staples. When I did it the "poor" - or smart - way, I grabbed a coat hanger, cut it up and grinded the sides down into flat... I made them flat with my dremel and then used them where you used staples. Your method makes more sense, though.

Silvafish, yes, I too didn't want to buy just a $9-13 ATX pin remover, and I didn't really want to pay $30 for a whole kit. I was already ordering $200+ worth of hardware and passed over the pin removal tools to get OCZ memory rather than generic stuff. I was on a tight budget and my bank account said 'skip the tools, you can find a way to do it.'

Quote: Originally Posted by Fire Hawk Oh my goodness, that's a great way to do it. Who goes for those fancy-pantsed ATX molex removers anyways? Im going to have to try staples. When I did it the "poor" - or smart - way, I grabbed a coat hanger, cut it up and grinded the sides down into flat... I made them flat with my dremel and then used them where you used staples. Your method makes more sense, though.

Thanks Fire Hawk... I originally got the idea here: http://www.overclock.net/overclock.p...ving-guide.htm. That post didn't explain the process in detail, but it did mention the staples trick.

As for the sharpened coat hanger, that's quite resourceful. I thought about grinding down my two smallest Jeweler's screwdrivers, but was too lazy, lol. The first time I used the staples, it tooke me some time to get used to it. The second time I used it (to sleeve a co-worker's PSU cables), it came much easier and I finished the pin removal in a minute or so.

nice... i might try this.. cuz my Antec PSU is a pain in the ass to strip!

Well, i think i'm now going to attempt this at this very moment. I'm gonna sleeve my psu wires before i paint the inside of my case (would do it all at once, but it's too hot here this weekend, i'll be spraying in the garage).