how are heatsinks constructed?

[RoadWarrior]

Looking at the later crop of sinks I notice they are put together from several pieces rather than being single pieces from extrusions or casts or machined from a block etc,

So, how are they held together????

I hear some are soldered.... with what? don't tell me regular solder has particularly good conductive abilities.

I was wondering if some are just sieze fitted together, really tight.

Just wondering, because I was looking at some ringed aluminum siding nails the other day, thinking they looked really like the fins on one of those newer sinks, can't recall the manufacturer. I thought it would be resonably straightforward, to clip the heads off, then get say a thick copper plate and drill it, just a little too small, heat up the copper some and bash the suckers in, until you had a nattily porcupined sink. They would have to be hammered right through to the bottom and then when it all cooled you could lap it flat......

Does that sound like it would work?

thanks

Road Warrior

[Silversinksam]

When Alpha makes a heatsink with a copper insert they forge the heatsinks The fins and copper base are formed simultaneously under high pressure to insure metal to metal contact and minimize thermal resistance.


http://www.alphanovatech.com/images/top3.jpg

[The Overclocker]

Originally posted by Silversinksam
When Alpha makes a heatsink with a copper insert they forge the heatsinks The fins and copper base are formed simultaneously under high pressure to insure metal to metal contact and minimize thermal resistance.


http://www.alphanovatech.com/images/top3.jpg

wow look at the heatsinks. dribble dribble (all over new imac keyboard)

[Maximus Nickus]

LOL!!!!!:D :D :D :D :D

[Ridenow]

Your idea would work, however, those that are made commercially with presses would have better connections with the pins and the base. Your homemade sink would not have the cooling ability that a manufactured one would have.

Heat sinks are made in many ways. Some are like what you suggest. They have a baseplate that pins or fins are pressed into it with a hydrolic press. Some are soldered in, but most are not. Other sinks are made from a solid piece of metal and the space between the fins are cut from it, producing a heatsink that is all one contigious piece of metal.

I almost forgot, check out some of our Joe C's reviews and tips on the front page. He is one of the premier cooling experts and often details how a sink is made in his reviews.

[Dissolved]

i wish i had my own plant to make any size/shape sink i wanted :)

[Maximus Nickus]

Yeah...5Miles of copper to cool a 286....
Guiness Book of Records: Largest HSF = 5tons....:beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

[whooping_a_panda]

i think some of the simpeler aluminum ones are just exctruded and cut into the desired size, there is an aluminum extrusion plant next to where i live... wonder if they can make me a nice new replacement for my blorb.... :)

[RoadWarrior]

Yeah I used to work in an extrusion plant, they made sinks there, just one long ribbed section about 50m then they cut it up into squares.

I snaffled some offcuts for my 486es at the time.

They had some REALLY nice sections used in radiators as well, would've made
amazing water blocks. Was say around 5mm thick and 60mm wide, had square channels that were ribbed. You woulda hadda drilled in the ends a bit and looped some pipe round, but it would have been a good block I think.

Anyhoo, thanks ridenow, figured some were pressed together. Hmmm, wonder if my vice would do a better job than the hammer then?

Also could stick the siding nails in the deep freeze and warm up the base really well, and hammer or press them in like that, should get them real tight I would think.

The nails might be cast though and have some flash on, might be a little work to make sure they are a decent fit in the holes, roundness wise.

All things figgered though, do ya think this method might have a better chance of making a decent modern sink than any other home mekkanikking might?

Hmmm wonder what would happen if when I had them all in place I just tapped them with a few volts, borrow an arc welder or something, does that have more chance of oxidising the joins or making them a tad better?

Thanks

Road Warrior

[RoadWarrior]

Aha, it's the swiftech I was thinking about .....
this one (http://www.overclockers.com/articles500/)
IF that's the very best air cooling around at the moment, then by emulating some of the design elements, I can't go that far off beam can I?

Might get as good as the next best or so.

Road Warrior

[AntmanMike]

Can an Athlond Clips hold a 30ton copper sink? *me steals the swiftech factory*

[RoadWarrior]

Huh?

From what I think you mean, I guess there comes a certain point where you no longer mount the heatsink to the cpu and motherboard, but you mount the CPU and motherboard to the sink :)

Road Warrior

[Maximus Nickus]

Its gonna take more than a few mounting holes to keep a 30tn HSF in place....*bring out plan A*....

[RoadWarrior]

Hmmm thinking some more about how to fit those pins into the base.....

Howabout if I made the holes small, and got a high RPM drill press with some leverage to get decent pressure. Then drilled them in like that as fast and hard as possible. Might even weld them a little???

My current drill press is a pile of cack, it's one of those that holds a hand drill. Shakes like an alchy on the wagon. However, it's christmas soon and there's an offer on them at a local hardware store...... :)


Road Warrior

[ButcherUK]

Originally posted by RoadWarrior
Hmmm thinking some more about how to fit those pins into the base.....

Howabout if I made the holes small, and got a high RPM drill press with some leverage to get decent pressure. Then drilled them in like that as fast and hard as possible. Might even weld them a little???

My current drill press is a pile of cack, it's one of those that holds a hand drill. Shakes like an alchy on the wagon. However, it's christmas soon and there's an offer on them at a local hardware store...... :)


That'd probably just wear the hole wider rather than getting a better fit.
As for welding, it depends but that's not going to give better results than adding some solder (which isn't that bad for heat transfer, about 1/4 of the transfer of Al). If you have mixed Al/Cu there though you won't be able to solder or weld without a lot of effort thought.