Applying CoolerMaster ShenEtsu paste?

I just bought this stuff... my guess is it does not contain 100% ShenEtsu paste, but the dirty part is applying this thing... trouble is it sticks to fingers, applicator and ceiling but doesn't hold still neither on the die nor on the heatsink base... considering the price I'd rather not experiment any more till I get some advice... should I put the tube under hot water in the first place, etc.? tips guys?

Hi

From the 3 or 4 times I've applied the C.Master Shin Etsu compound:

- Heating it slightly does make it a little easier to apply. I don't know whether it's necessary to use very hot water (people have recommended leaving it on top of the television for about 10min). You only want to soften it slightly, as opposed to turning it into a runnier, fluid-like substance.

- After trying the included form (that demarkates the area where the CPU is located), I make my own using some wide cellophane/stationery tape. It does reduce the amount of messing.

- The most effective, but wasteful, approach is to put tiny little blobs (the smallest you can manage, less than 1/2 of a grain of rice) all over the intended area. This area can either marked on the heatsink with a felt-tip marker, or by using the form.

- Use either the included card or something like an old creditcard, to spread the compound.

- Then using firm pressure, slide the card over the blobs to create a layer as smooth and as thin as possible. I've always only moved the card in one direction, to avoid causing holes to form in the layer.

- When spreading, it helps to press your fingertips a little way inwards from the card's edge, so that the pressure is applied from a flat surface, rather than the card's edge (since this could scrape the compound away, instead of spreading it).

Good luck!

are you using it for a P4 or AMD rig?

for the P4: put a small drop in the center of the IHS and install the heatsink , the downforce of the heatsink will spread the paste nicely

for the AMD AXP: follow Killem guidelines, heating up the tube a bit to make the content more liquid

Thanks guys, I guess the most important thing about applying this thing is brute force... got a good layer, thanks again...

it only needs a very small layer to be effective already!
if you put a layer which is too thick then you will decrease performance

'Good' as in thin, even & smooth This is one helluva substance at any rate...

AS5 is better and easier to apply though

'Helluva substance' as in 'thermal paste from hell to apply' Yeah, so is AS3, but it's not available here

jmke said:

AS5 is better and easier to apply though

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That's good to know. I have no experience with AS5, but folks on these forums sing its praises. I save a few bucks using C.Master's Shin Etsu stuff, rather than AS5.

Indeed, I'd rather use the Shin Etsu compound than AS3, which I found to be darned messy to work with.

I don't know. Everyone says AS5 is > *... however, when compared to the ShinEtsu/AS3 there's a 1-2 C difference, if any... I can't say anything from experience since I haven't even seen the compound, but my personal hands-on exp. goes like this:

Barton 2500@3200+, stock voltage
CoolerMaster Jet 7+, (modded for better airflow)
CoolerMaster ShinEtsu compound

Idle - 39 C
Full Load 12 hrs. - never goes above 47 C

AS5 is easier to apply and performs at the worse the same as the CM ShinEtsu.

it's also less messy the AS3 as the compound is ticker

Easiest way I've found is to apply a dab on the core and use an open safety pin and knead it with the pin. Only thing I can think of which resembles the same motion is cutting cocain with a razor.......NOT that I know how to do it from experience It barely sticks to the pin, so you can spread it out. Once you have it spread out pretty evenly, you can take a piece of Saran wrap and gently pat out the peaks so it's nice and flat. Then I'll smear a very light coat onto the heat sink base.

Breach said:

Idle - 39 C
Full Load 12 hrs. - never goes above 47 C

Click to expand...

I think those are acceptable temps for your o/c'd settings. Have you done some intensive tests? The suggested ones are:

- Prime95's torture test. Run for several hours (12 or more) and it'll give you a good indication of your CPU load temps

- Your FPS game of choice, also run for a few hours. IMO this tests the overall hardware better than Prime95. Having the sound and video also processing is a better test.

If you do think your temps are too high, then you could look into further measures like case cooling and CPU ducts.

I guess there are acceptable too... My rig runs stable at these settings... I'd just like to squeeze whatever cooling possible (the less C -- the better