Ok... saw where @Y2KW57 posted on one of @Sous rabbit threads, about the new method of mounting the hydra to the pcm...
my question/concern is this... with the hydra extending past the housing of the pcm, is there not an issue of constant pressure, and jarring, against the holder wall? I was working on this, and was about to cut the relief, when i realized the two methods were considerably different. Just trying to make a fully educated decision.

 

I'm responding because you tagged me, and I did not want you to feel ignored.

But I don't have a definitive answer for your question, probably because I'm not really clear about your question.

I thought about trying to model it for you, since I have both a cut PCM holder, as well as an uncut PCM holder, on hand.

However, I can't remember where I put either of those holders at the moment, because for the past 5 years, my pcm has been laying on top of my transmission tunnel, underneath a 101 pin breakout box, covered by an upside down cardboard box.

I'm not much help... but like I said, I didn't want you to feel ignored.

 

I’ve always cut the box. It feels too crowded/tight in there to me if you don’t. I tape the chip to the PCM before putting it in the box/holder to secure it. Then route the cable in such a way it can be secured to avoid it being able to pull on the chip.

I also have no problems using the straight USB cable, but I read about people ‘needing’ a 90* cable and always wonder why???

Another tip for Hydra install is to use a dull pick tool to scratch the silicone off BETWEEN the pins on the PCM. This practice seems to help the chip get better purchase on the PCM and helps verify you’ve removed all of the silicone on the tinned pins.

 

I too will respond to the tag in an effort to help.

The "old" method was to cut a large hole in the black case that would allow for the chip to be removed. This is the method I utilized many years ago when internet lore took over my train of thought and figures I may have to remove the chip at any time.

Not the case....

The "new" method calls for a smaller hole in the black case that allows for the USB cable to come through. The Hydra chip is held into the PCM by duct or electrical tape wrapped around the metal case. The ribbon cable is routed out of the metal case and snakes around the black case. The USB cable is routed out of the metal case and through the hole in the black case. The black case is reinstalled on the metal case holding the duct tape to the metal case which securely holds the Hydra in place.

My Hydra was installed the old method which is fine, but I helped install a Hydra on a friend's truck via the new method and liked it much better. So much so that I almost bought another black case from Riffraff and reinstalled mine.

My Hydra rattled loose one time towing in TN after hitting a pot hole and I was lucky the PCM didn't brick itself.

Cleaning the contacts is easy enough with a toothpick, magnifying glass, electrical contact cleaner and lint free cloth.

Lastly...

The USB cable end was mentioned by SSJ and I feel the 90° end is a better method of installation. Riffraff sells their Hydra with a 90° USB cable, not sure about the rest of the vendors. Yours ago when I bought my Hydra from GH, it came with a straight cable.

The straight cable end works just fine and has for years. Although, the cable is inserted into the port on the chip which is perpendicular to the direction it is going to run out of the case. The cable makes a 90° turn, so why not have the cable start in this direction for the same money or a $3 purchase from Amazon, which is what I did years ago.

I have this same method applied in my home for some 120v AC cords. I bought some 360° rotation plugs and connect the light or appliance into that in order to have the cord be more aesthetically pleasing or to have a more secure method of routing the cable/wire. Sometimes space is a motivating factor, other times it is just for looks. Heck, I wrapped a couple of those plugs with brown electrical tape so they were not black and blended into the wall/setting better.

I have one of these I use on the exterior of our 5th wheel that I plug the awning lights into.

Not required, but after 22 years of working on electronics, cabling and wiring, I prefer to have wide radius bends and/or pressure free turns in wiring.

I hope this helps.

 

I appreciate the responses gentlemen.
@Y2KW57 i am both in awe, and horror... cant help but imagine a spilled dr pepper frying my pcm, in that location....
@SkySkiJason looking at it, it just seemed really tight, lengthwise to me, prompting the post in the first place.. considered "padding" the back of the box trying to protect the hydra from contact.
@Sous I too, prefer wide bends over tight radii, but in that case, while i wasnt sure about forcing the ribbon cable into an s bend... the chip and the board being under direct pressure was my main concern.
My hydra came from clay, so i have the 90° cable... i used a toothpick, the handle of the brass brush, and then the brush itself to clean the contacts, and the space between the contacts. I ducttaped the hydra in place, and zip tied the usb to the little hole in the board. Supper call went out before i cut the box, and so i went back where to where sous linked y2kw57 posting about the new method.... and here we are.

 

Just chiming in to detail one point that was hit on but not directly stated, at least not to my feeble mind.

The previous large hole in the box was to allow chip removal back when the TS6 was standard hardware. These chips needed removed to send off for reburns or to just run a test drive in true “no tuner” form (consider troubleshooting). Removing the box every time was annoying.

The Hydra never really has a reason to be removed. It has a usb cable that will allow reburns while still installed. And it also includes the “00” bypass mode for troubleshooting etc.

Just remember to go into bypass mode, the 00 must be set, allowed to switch (about 3 seconds for the blink), then key OFF, then start. Otherwise you’ll end up in a fake “stock tune”.

My box has a large hole from previous TS6 installation. After removing the chip a couple times you have no trouble hacking that box up to make it easier. Lol

So I say do whatever you like with the box. Just be sure to run a piece of tape across the chip to secure it to the PCM before buttoning it up. And make sure no cables are hanging down where a foot can grab it for a hefty tug.

 

I've had an opportunity to give some more thought to this, feeling somewhat obligated, since you referenced my posting of the "new" method of mounting, which does not involve cutting an oblong hole into the aft wall of the cradle for clearance.

Clearly, people are doing it this way. The still capture below is how the "7.3L Garage" executed their "7.3 Powerstroke PHP Hydra Chip install":



Yet, your concerns about "constant pressure, and jarring, against the holder wall" appear to be echoed by Bill Cohron, owner of PHP, the creator of the Hydra, as he describes beginning at minute marker 4:00 in his PCM cleaning video linked below:


It is very hard to argue with the guy who is the epicenter of expertise on hydra installs.

But let me argue just a little bit anyway, only because I'd have a hard time putting the PCM back together with zip ties in the aft screw ports as he suggests.

How do zip ties, once cinched, differ from the factory screws?

And if vibration is an issue, would there not need to be some slight difference in amplitude or frequency of vibrations between two parts in order for the vibration to induce some difference in the connection between the contacting parts?

If the parts were mechanically locked together, such as when putting tape across the back of the PCM to "fix" or "lock" the add on memory module in place, the module and the PCM would vibrate together, at the same amplitude and frequency.

Therefore, if the plastic back wall of the cradle were compressed against the protruding connector of the memory module, and the cradle was friction fit with the PCM, and locked into place via compression against the firewall port, and the cradle bolts to sheet metal PCM bracket under the dash, how much difference in vibration between these friction-fitted parts would be enough to disrupt their relationship?

There must be some other factor involved here.

So I turned my garage upside down.

Aha. Found them. Cut and uncut PCM cradles.

With these now in hand, this is what I also found:











Sous asked me to find a place for this thread in the 7.3L Tech Folder, for easier future reference on various methods of Hydra mounting.

Before doing so, it seemed best to combine some previous slides and posts on the topic that were referenced earlier in this thread.

"Old Method":




"New Method":

 

I had this exact concern a few months ago when I installed my hydra. I chose to cut the opening large enough, so that there would be no contact between the chip and the box. Also, the cables can be routed straight out and up. I did use a good amount of gorilla tape to keep the chip from potentially backing out. I don't think its going to be a problem.

 

I chose to cut for no contact... my pcm doesnt have the grounding clip, or the bump.... or the x pattern on the one side, lol.... e99, yay. I used copious amounts of duct tape to center the cables, and keep dust out of the box. Then zip tied the usb cable up under the fuze access dash panel. Got the hydra control set in the usual place. Set it to normal.

 

I believe the point Bill is trying to make here is to not force the position of the cradle. I see it as him agreeing with your assessment of a potential cantering of the chip if it gets pushed by the cradle. This could cause intermittent connection issues if it has the connection in a bind. By using zip ties it allows for a little give in the positioning of the cradle so it’s not applying much pressure on the chip.

My 2 cents anyhow.
And yes, I’m referencing another recent thread to just be silly. Reference Link


Great! Looking forward to reading your results post.

And I’ll add a warning to not look in the link I posted above. It’s too similar to one of your recent threads.

 

Howdy, all.

I know this thread is a year old. It's still good information and I will address what I can in regards to installing the Hydra... With and without cutting the case.

Without cutting the case (or just notching for cables):

- 1a) DO NOT reinstall the case using the original bolts without inserting something between the back of the PCM and the inside of the case that will prevent the case from putting pressure on the back of the chip. Because of the connector design, the chip will end up being canted on the PCM and will cause the contacts to lift from the PCM Edge Connector. This is not a good situation and in the best of situations the truck may just not start. In the worst situations the chip can possibly ground through any number of signal lines and kill the PCM.

- 1b) When using the original bolts, I'd recommend using a piece of filler about 3/16" thick to fill the empty space and prevent the case from putting unnecessary pressure against the chip.

-1c) If you wish to retain the ground clip, it will need to be stretched a little bit in order to maintain contact with the back of the PCM. This is only necessary if you're using the bolts as the ZIP Tie method below makes this pointless.

- 2) You may also install the case, but instead of using the bolts you can use 2 small zip ties. This will put enough pressure on the chip to keep it from vibrating without putting too much pressure and causing it to **** to one side. You may still want to use a small piece of filler just to be safe, but as long as you don't jam the case against the PCM, you should be in good shape.

With cutting/notching the PCM:

- This is the way we've done it for 25 years, even back in the Gold Superchips days. Notch or trim the back of the case, install the Hydra, and then using good quality fiberglass duct tape you can tape over the back of the chip. This will both prevent the chip from vibrating loose as well as cover the hole in the PCM and keep dust out.

In most situations, **MY** preferred method is to install the case unmodified and use the ZIP Ties to mount the case to the bracket. There are several reasons for this. 1) The ZIP Ties are included in the kit. 2) It requires no additional modifications to the PCM case so anyone can install it this way with a minimum of hand tools and technical skill. I also personally use tape on every installation as it still provides an added measure of dust protection and helps hold everything in place when installing.

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Something else someone brought up was to use a pick to clean the connector on the PCM. This is what the brass brush is for and is included in EVERY Hydra kit. The brass brush will clean the PCM better than ANY other method and WILL NOT damage the connector or the traces on the PCM. I've spent 25 years cleaning PCMs and have never come across anything that works better than this. Believe me, if it didn't work I wouldn't waste the money to include one in every kit. The only reason we include the Scotch Brite sqaure is just to lightly polish the contacts of the PCM. Do not use it to clean the silicone from the PCM as it will definitely wear down the contacts and possibly require them to be retinned.

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I know people like to do things their own way, and that's fine. Just think the process through and make sure you are taking precautions to prevent the chip from losing contact with the PCM. This is the number 1 reason for Chip & PCM failures.

In 25 years I've install thousands of chips (Superchips, TS, and Hydra), and I've never had a single PCM failure result from it and they've worked perfectly every time. And that's not even considering the number of PCMs we put out emulator boards on. Just take your time, be through, and you should be fine.

I hope this is helpful. Good luck and enjoy!

 

Very helpful, thank you!

As a north GA neighbor, I want to invite you to hang out with fellow gearheads in Blairsville at the next GTG in April. Our small group of friends have a lot of fun relaxing and listening to each other’s stories while the wives and girlfriends commiserate. Sometimes we even talk about our Ford trucks! It’s a potluck thing and there’s always plenty of great food too.

Scroll to the latest threads for details about the next one and message @Sous to get on the notification list for next time if you can’t make this one.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...22-2023-a.html