heatsink lapping

[Bonka]

Bought some 220 and 600 grit sandpaper.did about 45 minutes worth of lapping on my gladiator. Results do infact look better.

Anyways, I'm not sure on how the finish should look like overall. In certain angles, the finish looks quite uniform. However, in other angles, I can see some streaks from my sanding. Does this sound like a finished product or do I need some more work? I spent about 20min sanding in one direction to eliminate streaks but not sure if that helped at all.

Also, the area around the core of the heatsink I sort of messed up while I was sanding. it was basically my landing spot on one end. Does this matter as well or do I have to sand the area around it too?

[Dissolved]

well do a search for lapping on here first.... but
u need a finer grit sandpaper... like 1000 or 1500
and i usualy go in a circle..
but you should lap this on some glass, like a glass table if you have one... and use water... water will help the lap looka lot cleaner..

[SickBoy]

Do it wet... and on a falt surface as noted, but do figure 8's. It'll produce a more even surface. And I think most people would say that it wouldn't hurt to go up to 1000 Grit. It should be somewhat reflective.

[gaccm]

is water really needed? I asked some ace hardware people the same question and they say that water is only needed when cutting/smoothing glass.

[Sonny]

Originally posted by gaccm
is water really needed? I asked some ace hardware people the same question and they say that water is only needed when cutting/smoothing glass. That is exactly why you want to use water asides from keeping the sandpaper unclogged.

[Bonka]

Thanks guys. I make a few searches and found what I was looking for.

Anyways, I'm still wondering about the unraised part of the heatsink (area around the raised copper). There are a lot of uneven sanding marks there. Should I worry or is it fine?

:burn:

[Dissolved]

Originally posted by Bonka
Thanks guys. I make a few searches and found what I was looking for.

Anyways, I'm still wondering about the unraised part of the heatsink (area around the raised copper). There are a lot of uneven sanding marks there. Should I worry or is it fine?

:burn:

just lap it till its totaly flat and smooth

[Sonny]

Originally posted by Bonka
Anyways, I'm still wondering about the unraised part of the heatsink (area around the raised copper). There are a lot of uneven sanding marks there. Should I worry or is it fine?If it doesnt contact the core then there really is no need to worry about that area.

[Bonka]

THanks Sonny. That's all I needed.

:D

[Sonny]

No problem:beer: I do like to draw:D

[eobard]

Originally posted by sonny
No problem:beer: I do like to draw:D

Can you make some "artistic" portraits of my cat for me?????

As for lapping a good and cheap source of glass is picture frames.

[Cluster]

How much of an effect does lapping have? Does it bring your temps down much?

[oc jason]

actually a little streaks will work better than a smooth surface, with microsopic grooves, it gives the thermal paste little crevaces to go into making a better seal between the two.

[Yodums]

Lapping usually brings down 3 degrees or more it varies of what kind of job you do a sloppy one or a bad one.

[Cluster]

so which is more beneficial, lapping the heatsink, or going from silicone to Artic Silver.

[Bonka]

Alright. Went to get some more sandpaper (200, 400, 600, 1000, 1500) and went crazy for 2-3 hours or so. Finally managed to get rid of that circle in the middle. It's not polished like a savage but I can see my reflection. Tested this damn thing on "Mavericko's" comp and load was "apparently" at 30c. Looks good. He's still complaining, heh heh heh :p

Anyways, I checked out my hs at home, putting it on a piece of glass. The sides of the hs look a little bit raised. I assume more lapping is required? If so, which grit should I start off with now?

Oh, I forgot, since I used soapy water, there's a lot of residue left between and on the fins. Would that be a problem or should I clean it off with isoproyl alcohol?

Also, thanks guys for the tips. Glass/mirror works like a charm :D

[Sonny]

Originally posted by eobard
Can you make some "artistic" portraits of my cat for me?????Sure why not:D Just mail me some good pics of her & I'll see what I can do;)

Bonka - Make sure that the glass your using is really flat. Not all are flat.