makin some ramsinks

[RangerJoe]

alright, i have a 8" x 6" x 1" block of copper...i want to make some ram sinks for my gf2 pro, how should i go about doing this....like how thick should they be and such

[Diggrr]

Since your spending all that dough for copper, I'd guess you're using AS Epoxy. You'll want the sinks the same size as the surface of the chip to make sure none leaks out the sides when squished on. If you can get it on real thin, and trust yourself, go for 1/4" larger both ways for a better heat spread.

Make the base between an 1/8 and 1/4 thick, use the rest of the inch for fins. Something this small shouldn't need more fin than that. If you're going to tourture the card with a heavy OC, go for as much height as you can without hitting the next PCI card. I'd use a hacksaw to make as many fins as possible. (look at the very good cpu coolers to see why...many fins, narrow slots)

Have fun and don't kill the card you're trying to save.;)

[AntmanMike]

Use Arctic Alumina Adhesive. It's MUCH safer for RAMsinks.

[WarriorII]

OK, I know you'll laugh at this, but it works great.
I have had several probs w/ vid cards, and needing to send them back for RMA's. I wanted them in "stock" condition. That way My RMA couldn't be refused.
I made my ram sinks too. Used AS and Elmers glue to hold them on.:eek:
OK, laugh all you want, but they come off with little force and are completely secure for install and general use.

Save you some time and grief if the card dies. You can reuse them too afterwards.

anyway, just a thought.

:cool:

[TruckChase!]

Check this out:

http://www.arcticsilver.com/adhesive_instructions.htm

About halfway down the page they cover the pins with silicone to prevent accidental shortage with the epoxy. I wish I would've thought of that before I wrecked one of my GF3s.

[Maximus Nickus]

How are you going to make the fins??? Glue all the hundreds of em on:eek:

WOuld making one huge one to go over all the rams chips be better than individual ones? Why not active cool them....:beer:

[Diggrr]

Epoxying the pins would work very well. But it would make an RMA very suspect.;) You could use vaseline and wash it off if the board fries. A GF3 in the dishwasher...hahaha. Don't leave waterspots on it!

Nick, The sinks are mini versions of a cpu heatsink. You can saw many slits into it, but not all the way through. You leave the last 1/8" , the product looking like a nice hsf. Some manufacturers use a mill, but this cuts down on fin surface area, as you can only fit 3 fins. The size of the mill bits limits how small you can make the channels. That is why no one mills hsf's for cpu's. With fins this narrow, you must have a good fan .

Artic Alumina is a great idea, I didn't know they had the epoxy version out yet though...Thanks AntmanMike.

I've heard you can mix ASII and AS epoxy to make a removeable bond. Don't quote me on this, it's hearsay...try it with expendable items. Try it with Arctic alumina.

*edit* He could make a good watercooler, but he aircools (check his sig) He could also make his air cooled sink into a 'L' shape to cover all of them with one block. That would be easier to saw the fins, but heavier with a card holding it up.

[Silversinksam]

Originally posted by TruckChase!
Check this out:

http://www.arcticsilver.com/adhesive_instructions.htm

About halfway down the page they cover the pins with silicone to prevent accidental shortage with the epoxy. I wish I would've thought of that before I wrecked one of my GF3s.


A little masking tape on the Memory video pins goes a long way in preventing a video cards untimely death

[Mike K]

Originally posted by RangerJoe
alright, i have a 8" x 6" x 1" block of copper...i want to make some ram sinks for my gf2 pro, how should i go about doing this....like how thick should they be and such

just out of curiosity how much did you pay for that block of copper?
just asking because Thermaltake sells cooling kits for DDR memory-both DDR for your board and heatsinks for video memory. For $10 only! With small strips to attach the sinks to your memory.:beer:

[TruckChase!]

Originally posted by Silversinksam



A little masking tape on the Memory video pins goes a long way in preventing a video cards untimely death


Yah, that sounds like a better idea to me. I had a silicon "incident" with a old p3 that died from condensation... took me a couple hours just to get all that silicone off so I could RMA it. :) I guess I had too much confidence in my "steady hand" when I did the gf3 stuff. Let that be a lesson... never be confident in yourself. :D

[TruckChase!]

Originally posted by RangerJoe
alright, i have a 8" x 6" x 1" block of copper...i want to make some ram sinks for my gf2 pro, how should i go about doing this....like how thick should they be and such

Do you have any way to "machine" grooves into the sinks?

I guess how you make them would depend on the tools you have available to you. Best performing would obviously be the most surface area with the most airflow possible... take a look at the SK-6 heatsink as an example- very thin, closely spaced fins. You would need some pretty hefty tools and alot of time on your hands to make anything close that effecient tho.

[RangerJoe]

Originally posted by m_mike_k


just out of curiosity how much did you pay for that block of copper?
just asking because Thermaltake sells cooling kits for DDR memory-both DDR for your board and heatsinks for video memory. For $10 only! With small strips to attach the sinks to your memory.:beer: \

got it for absolutly nothing, my moms boyfriend's friend has a metal yard or something like that, and it was left over, and he couldnt use it

im gonna go make some drawings of what i want them to look like

TruckChase! --- my moms bf owns a flange monufacturing company and hes gonna help me make these things....and hes gonna do my copper waterblocks whenever i decide to watercool....but he has programmably equipment that we will use...very simple i think

[RangerJoe]

this is what i had in mind

[RoadWarrior]

Yeah, I couldn't help thinking that the scrap value of a lump like that must nearly be more than a decent set of premade ramsinks :)

However, since you're set on making something special and unique, and don't have to work withing the limits of a design intended for extrusion or casting, why not criss cross the fin cuts at 45 degrees or something, or 30/60.....

just a thought

Road Warrior

[Diggrr]

Beautiful. That'll work very well.

[RangerJoe]

sweet

eventually, whenever i go out, buy a new case, psu, and video card, im going to watercool an abit siluro gf3. look here (http://arstechnica.infopop.net/OpenTopic/page?q=Y&a=tpc&s=50009562&f=77909585&m=8090999182&p=1)
thats my ultimate plan...but that will take some work....he says if we need some more copper, he will ask him friend for as much as he doesnt need....so i might be makin my own CPU heatsinks if i am any good at this stuff...lol or i will make waterblocks for gf3 like the dude in the link did, but i have to make changes so that it will be "my" idea and not just copying....once i do all this, ill be sure to take hella pics...later dudes

[The Overclocker]

Originally posted by RangerJoe
this is what i had in mind

you could probably do that with a dremal

[RangerJoe]

i dont have a dremel...and it will be 10X easier and it will look better with a big machine. o well

[RoadWarrior]

15/16" deep cuts, long and straight, with a dremel..... :rolleyes:

Not the ideal tool I would say, even if you can get 2 1/2 inch cutting wheels. It would probably stall and jam in slots like that. Then you've gotta keep the little bugger straight without much to hold onto......

You'd have an easier time with 3 or 4 standard hacksaw blades on a hand hacksaw I would think, if you don't have anything better.

Anyways, use a dremel when you've got a CNC machine shop at your disposal ?...... That's like using your Japanese compact hatchback to pick up a load of bricks when you have a 7 ton truck in the driveway.

I know dremels are real useful for some small and delicate work, and for cutting wierd shaped holes in sheet metal, but for a job like this you need a real tool.

regards,

Road Warrior

[RangerJoe]

lol, yea hes gonna help me make all the ramsinks and waterblocks i need....but another question, what size watercooling tube should i use? 1/2 or 3/8? i will prolly end up getting a 4-500 gph pump i think with a built in reservoir...ill prolly end up getting a DD Copper Cube radiator, they seem to be nice, and what im gonna do for the summer months, i am going to get a huge ice chest next to my computer, and im going to go to a junkyard and get the radiator off of an old refridgerator and connect that to my system, place the radiator in the ice chest, and see what i can get this thing up to