wet sanding\polishing heastsink\cpu

Majormaggot · 23rd Jan 2006, 02:56 AM

i was reading that thermal paste is for filling the air gaps between the heatsink and processor. so would polishing or wetsanding the heatsink and the processor(the heatsink ontop of the dhip like the 64's) help lower temps, and require less thermal paste??? or would it make it worse??

-Major

PsYkHoTiK · 23rd Jan 2006, 05:24 AM

Well, i dunno about the less thermal paste but I do know u should put as little as possible (really thing layer) regardless if its been sanded down.

SilentBotts · 23rd Jan 2006, 05:28 AM

I'm not sure how much of a difference you will notice, but it will improve the heat transfer.
Most decent heatsinks have near mirror finishes which you won't improve much upon, but you may have noticed on some cpu heatspreaders that the corners are a bit higher than the center of the chip.
If you google "lapping the cpu" you will find a bunch of guides that will show you how you can sand down the cpu heatspreader and heantsink surfaces.
I don't really think its worth the effort unless you really want to squeeze a few extra degrees in.

Chai · 23rd Jan 2006, 11:07 AM

Yes, definitely. The best contact will not require thermal paste!

BUT only if you do it correctly. You can make it worse very easily. And mirror finish doesn't mean the surface is flat. Having the surface flat is far far more important than having a smooth surface.

Olle P · 23rd Jan 2006, 03:52 PM

I've polished my heatsinks, but would never try to do it with the CPU, since there's quite a big risk that it gets damaged in the process.

There's no difference in the amount of thermal paste used though.

Cheers
Olle

athlonxp · 23rd Jan 2006, 07:25 PM

long time ago ppl are lapping the core of the thunderbird athlon

luqman · 25th Jan 2006, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Majormaggot

i was reading that thermal paste is for filling the air gaps between the heatsink and processor. so would polishing or wetsanding the heatsink and the processor(the heatsink ontop of the dhip like the 64's) help lower temps, and require less thermal paste??? or would it make it worse??

-Major

am thinking yes less thermal paste

Majormaggot · 29th Jan 2006, 07:49 AM

thanks for the replies... no im not thinking about sanding the actuall cpu just the heat spreader they put on top. just curious for my next build, im not gonna go n try to screw up my current rig

Chai · 29th Jan 2006, 11:05 AM

Don't waste your time sanding. Just remove the IHS straight away. But be very careful of the heatsink you are using, since the pressure on the processor will be very different when you remove the IHS, and the socket cam might not clear the heatsink.

http://www.overclockers.com/tips1197/

23rd Jan 2006, 02:56 AM	#1 (permalink)
Majormaggot Getting there Join Date: 5 Sep 2005 Posts: 164 Reputation: 59 Rep Power: 4	wet sanding\polishing heastsink\cpu i was reading that thermal paste is for filling the air gaps between the heatsink and processor. so would polishing or wetsanding the heatsink and the processor(the heatsink ontop of the dhip like the 64's) help lower temps, and require less thermal paste??? or would it make it worse?? -Major __________________ Intel Pentium Dual Core E2160 @ 3.1 GHz 1.475 Vcore, Asus P5W DH Deluxe, 2GB Corsair XMS twin X 2, enermax galaxy 850w, Sound blaster X-FI Xtream Music, XFX 8800GT 512 MB, 2x 400GB Seagate HDD in Raid 0, 1x 250 GB WD HDD, 1x 120 GB WD HDD, A mighty Zalman 9500 cooler crying for help. and ArcticSliver 5, DVD drives n shizzle.

23rd Jan 2006, 05:24 AM	#2 (permalink)
PsYkHoTiK "Little" Devil Join Date: 8 Apr 2004 Location: On the "throne" Posts: 14,320 Reputation: 4003 Rep Power: 59	Well, i dunno about the less thermal paste but I do know u should put as little as possible (really thing layer) regardless if its been sanded down. __________________ Intel SLAPL 4.3GHz @ 1.35v : 2x2GB OCZ Platinum DDR2 1066 : Asus P5K Premium : WD Raptor X : G92 8800GTS 512mb 800MHz Core WIP : XFi Platinum : Silverstone OP650 : Silverstone TJ-07 : Vista Ultimate Edition : Dtek FuZion CPU : Swiftech MCW60 : MCP655 : Thermochill PA120.3 w Scythe Ultra Kaze : Tygon R3603 1/2" ID 3/4" OD CPU-Z: SLAPL : SLA9U : FX-55 : DDR 600 : VX www.techarp.com

23rd Jan 2006, 05:28 AM	#3 (permalink)
SilentBotts Just Started Join Date: 23 Aug 2005 Location: CT, USA Posts: 66 Reputation: 66 Rep Power: 0	I'm not sure how much of a difference you will notice, but it will improve the heat transfer. Most decent heatsinks have near mirror finishes which you won't improve much upon, but you may have noticed on some cpu heatspreaders that the corners are a bit higher than the center of the chip. If you google "lapping the cpu" you will find a bunch of guides that will show you how you can sand down the cpu heatspreader and heantsink surfaces. I don't really think its worth the effort unless you really want to squeeze a few extra degrees in. __________________ Sheila: AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (Venice Core) \| Asus A8N-SLI Premium \| 1024mb Corsair XMS (1 DIMM) \| 2x eVGA Geforce 7800GT COs @ stock (for now) \| Seagate Barracuda 80gb SATA \| Sony DVD-ROM \| Sony Dual Layer DVD-+R/-+RW \| Antec Neo HE550 PSU Video cards are like chicks, and chicks are like Voltron, the more you hook up the better it gets.

23rd Jan 2006, 11:07 AM	#4 (permalink)
Chai Administrator Join Date: 6 Oct 2002 Location: Maranello Posts: 26,757 Reputation: 3984 Rep Power: 72	Yes, definitely. The best contact will not require thermal paste! BUT only if you do it correctly. You can make it worse very easily. And mirror finish doesn't mean the surface is flat. Having the surface flat is far far more important than having a smooth surface. __________________ Chai (Contributor & Forum Admin) http://www.techarp.com/

23rd Jan 2006, 03:52 PM	#5 (permalink)
Olle P Active Join Date: 12 Jan 2005 Location: Sweden Posts: 815 Reputation: 315 Rep Power: 7	I've polished my heatsinks, but would never try to do it with the CPU, since there's quite a big risk that it gets damaged in the process. There's no difference in the amount of thermal paste used though. Cheers Olle __________________ If you're not living on the edge you take up too much space... Asus A8E-N, Athlon64 X2 4600+, 1024MB Kingston value, XFX GF7800GT, Seagate 160GB/8MB

23rd Jan 2006, 07:25 PM	#6 (permalink)
athlonxp Hyperactive Join Date: 21 Feb 2003 Location: Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia Posts: 4,560 Reputation: 347 Rep Power: 13	long time ago ppl are lapping the core of the thunderbird athlon __________________

29th Jan 2006, 07:49 AM	#8 (permalink)
Majormaggot Getting there Join Date: 5 Sep 2005 Posts: 164 Reputation: 59 Rep Power: 4	thanks for the replies... no im not thinking about sanding the actuall cpu just the heat spreader they put on top. just curious for my next build, im not gonna go n try to screw up my current rig __________________ Intel Pentium Dual Core E2160 @ 3.1 GHz 1.475 Vcore, Asus P5W DH Deluxe, 2GB Corsair XMS twin X 2, enermax galaxy 850w, Sound blaster X-FI Xtream Music, XFX 8800GT 512 MB, 2x 400GB Seagate HDD in Raid 0, 1x 250 GB WD HDD, 1x 120 GB WD HDD, A mighty Zalman 9500 cooler crying for help. and ArcticSliver 5, DVD drives n shizzle.

29th Jan 2006, 11:05 AM	#9 (permalink)
Chai Administrator Join Date: 6 Oct 2002 Location: Maranello Posts: 26,757 Reputation: 3984 Rep Power: 72	Don't waste your time sanding. Just remove the IHS straight away. But be very careful of the heatsink you are using, since the pressure on the processor will be very different when you remove the IHS, and the socket cam might not clear the heatsink. http://www.overclockers.com/tips1197/ __________________ Chai (Contributor & Forum Admin) http://www.techarp.com/