Spark 7 Too Hot!

I have a 2.4C @ 3GHz on a Abit IS7 and my idle temp with a Thermaltake Spark 7 is 45.5C and my load temp will go as high as 64.5C. I have reseated the heatsink and I'm using Artic Silver 3 thermal compound.

The Artic Silver 3 instructions are rather odd, that you apply it to the heatsink and the cpu and then rub it into the cpu clockwise and counter-clockwise with a plastic bag and then wipe it off the heatsink with lint free cloth. Wouldn't it be better just to leave the compound on?

I'm not sure if its just the heatsink, maybe I should get a SLK-900-U?

Here is my complete setup:

Abit IS7
P4 2.4C @ 3.0GHz
Corsair Twin-X 3200LLPT (2x256)
Thermaltake Spark 7 Heatsink
Thermaltake Xaser III Case

The idea is to rub the compound into the microscopic poures, and then wide the heatsink clean with a lint free cloth, using no cleaning agents. That way all the arctic silver on the CPU and Heatsink is in the microscopic gaps, and when you press them together, the thermal layer will ideally be the best you can get for heat transfer

You're not supposed to wipe it off of the CPU, just the heatsink. Spread it onto to cpu in a thin even layer.

there should be a very i mean very thin layer of as3 on the cpu itself, you can use a creditcard, or something flat to get it even and thin

I've got a spark7, too on my 2.4C @ 3.44ghz, and it gets up to 10degrees C hotter than what you're experiencing, I'm leaving it clocked down at 3ghz to keep it cooler, till the rest of my watercooling setup gets here.... I'd get a new heatsink.