I removed successfully the "glue" from the heatsink itself. I just scratched it with my nail on one corner and then it off in one piece. I need to test the card again, there is a slight change that the thermal compound was acting maybe not like a heat transfer compound but like a heat blocking barrier. And if this was the case than maybe those artifacts are fixed. Doubt, but I'm hoping so.

edit: added photos

Nah, you just need a heat gun and some common solvent to remove the glue residue. It's a matter of a few minutes and no risk of damage due to excessive force.

buying a heatgun just to remove a heatsink seems eccessive, I managed to get it out in no more than 10 seconds and without damage (visible, since the card was already half broken). Plus dental floss costs like 1-2 dollars

No heat gun, well, use a soldering iron or propane torch or whatever. It doesn't take much for this glue to melt down.

I don't have any of the following: Proper Soldering Iron, Propane torch, Flame thrower, Gravity Gun ... ecc 😜

Has anyone tried sanding the silicon down until they reach the core?

Logistics wrote:

Has anyone tried sanding the silicon down until they reach the core?

That's not silicon. EMC = epoxy mold compound. It contains some silicon dioxide or another kind of filler in order to improve thermal conductivity. You have to sand off about 75% of the epoxy by height in order to reach the core.

aaronkatrini wrote:

I removed successfully the "glue" from the heatsink itself. I just scratched it with my nail on one corner and then it off in on […]
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I removed successfully the "glue" from the heatsink itself. I just scratched it with my nail on one corner and then it off in one piece. I need to test the card again, there is a slight change that the thermal compound was acting maybe not like a heat transfer compound but like a heat blocking barrier. And if this was the case than maybe those artifacts are fixed. Doubt, but I'm hoping so.

edit: added photos

Did you manage to fix your "artifacting" problem?. I´ve got the same model and I`m experiencing the same issue. Thanks!