White water block lapping/flatting?

[ripit]

I was just wondering if anyone knows how thick the bottom plate is? I can measure it from the outside but there are groves machined in the bottom plate so I don't want to break through. By the way, I was a little disapointed with the block I got. Has anyone else gotten one like this recentlly? The bottom is mirror polished but baddly dished (lappings not going to do it, I'm going to need a file). One corner has a gap between the plates almost as if it wasn't screwed down all the way. I hope whatever they use to seal the plates is pretty strong. It arived in a ziplock bag without any instructions. I know there is not much to installing one but an information sheet and or instructions would be nice.

So does anyone know how much I can take off the botom?

[jivetrky]

I would say that if it's cupped badly enough that you're worried about lapping through the thing....aybe you could take the block apart and try to "de-cup" it? I can't speak for that particular block, but unless the cup is really THAT bad, you shouldn't be able to lap through the thing... that much lapping would make your arm fall off!

[learning curve]

Is it new or secondhand? If secondhand it sounds like it was way overtightened, but you should be able to lap it back to fairly flat. If it is new I would return it.

[ripit]

What do you mean by "de-cup" it? Do you mean take it apart and try to flatten the plate back out? It is dished a little in one direction and a lot in the other. I'm guessing that the minor dishing was from polishing and the major dishing (like its bent in one direction) might have very well been from them over tightening it when it was assembled.

It is brand new (just got it the other day). It wasn't bent installing it because it has never been installed (just ran water through it to check it out and thats it). because of the fact that it is only a 24$ part, I would have to pay return shipping, and cooltechnicia is impossible to deal with (I have tried to contact them and never get a response, even about wheather it has shipped or not), I'm thinking it would be more of a nightmare to deal with them, maybe with it taking a very long time, than to just try to fix it myself and write it off as a loss if I ruin it. I knew that cooltechnica had a rep like this (on reseler ratings) but they are the only one that caries it besides the manufacture and they were quite a bit cheaper (so I took a risk).

I was going to try to contact the manufacture and see what they said though. It would seem that the quality on these has dropped or they sent me a used on that was returned. It was in a ziplock bag with no printed packaging or instructions, and every one that I have seen online wasn't mirror polished (this one was), so I was thinking maybe someone tried to polish it, messed it up and returned it, or they have started polishing them and dont worry about keeping them flat.

This is my first water cooling so I wanted to be able to use a premade one to get used to setting up water cooling, but I want to make one so if things go wrong with corecting this one, I guess I could use it for parts?

[jivetrky]

yeah, I assumed that it was just bowed up in the middle (like bowl/cup shaped) so i was thinking that you could attempt to remove the top and use something to coerce it back to a little flatter-ed-niss-ity. Like maybe place it on a hard, flat surface, cover the top with a towl or something and give it a few gentle taps with a hammer. If nothing else this would get it closer to flat and cause less lapping. But then I'm sure you're still going to have to lap it. And being out of flat, you'll have to make sure what whatever you use to hold the sand paper is good and flat (so don't just use your fingers)

Good luck!

[R B Customs]

i had the same problem with mine
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=457748

give me a moment and ill take mine appart and measure if fotr ou... thats if i can find that ruddy imperial hex key... IMPERIAL, us english dont DO imperial !! lol
look out ofr my edit...

***EDIT***
base thickness is aprox 4.75mm
the recess is cut cut 3mm deep
so if my maths is correct, the thinnest part of the base is 1.75mm thick
(half way thriough measuring it apear my steel ruler is harder to find than the hex !!)

[ripit]

thanks for the link. That is exactlly how mine is and with it being only 1.75mm thick, I would have defanatlly broken through if I would have tried to file/lap it flat. I think I will heat it a bit with a torch to minamise metal fatigue and try to flatten it a little, then lap it. I'm thinking I'll make a shim that will go around the rubber ring to prevent it from bending the plate over it. I'm guessing I'll make the shim a little shorter than the ring protrution so that it will allow the ring to compress some. Thanks again for the help.

[SolidxSnake]

thanks for the link. That is exactlly how mine is and with it being only 1.75mm thick, I would have defanatlly broken through if I would have tried to file/lap it flat. I think I will heat it a bit with a torch to minamise metal fatigue and try to flatten it a little, then lap it. I'm thinking I'll make a shim that will go around the rubber ring to prevent it from bending the plate over it. I'm guessing I'll make the shim a little shorter than the ring protrution so that it will allow the ring to compress some. Thanks again for the help.


I got my white water second hand, and it was assembled fine... The plate was a little convex, a little lapping made it flat for the middle. The edges are still convexed. My o-ring is a perfect fit between the two blocks, neither of the plates bend...I'd send it back.

[R B Customs]

yea, mine was 2nd hand too ( loads of people sell these blocks !!!!)
if its new... its juts not cricket !, send it back pronto

[ripit]

I have tried contacting the manufacture as well as as the place I bought it and have not got a response from either. If I don't hear from them by mon or tue I think I'm just going to try to fix it myself. Its not worth all the trouble over a 24$ item, though you know I'm going to be leaving some bad reviews on reseller ratings etc. if they don't do something about it. It would be easier to fix it myself than to spend weeks trying to deal with them, meanwhile I don't have a water block to use.

I just took the block apart and most of the curvature went away. It would seem that it was over tightened over the o-ring bending it. I'm going to get some gasket material (if I cannot find the stuff I already have) and make a gasket to go all around the outside of the ring. that way when it is tightening, It will tighten on the gasket and the o-ring, not just the oring in the middle. That should hopefully prevent it from bending.