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Step
one is to get comfortable. You might be doing this
for a while so sit somewhere you won't need to keep
moving.
Take
your coarsest paper (the 400), sit it on the glass
and wet it.
The
coarser grits should be used with care as their task
is simply to flatten the surface ready for the finer
grits to polish up. Knowing when you've got a flat
base is relatively simple if the surface  is
heavily oxidised because the layers that are not in
contact with the sandpaper will appear duller than
those around them so you know to keep going.
A
trick I use is to draw a couple of crosses on the
base with a permanent marker so I can more easily
identify if some areas are a little high. It needs
to be a permanent marker so the lines don't wash off
with all the water you're using.
Make
sure you have everything you might need to hand, rinse
your glass to make sure it's clean and has nothing
adhering to it then place your heat sink on the sandpaper.
A few drops of water between the paper and the glass
will stop it sliding but you'll probably still need
a thumb and forefinger to steady everything. Make
sure the glass is also on a fairly flat surface otherwise
it will bow slightly or even break, both of which
will kind of spoil the party.
The
instructions suggest you use a combination of linear
and circular strokes, while a lot of people say linear
only strokes give the best effect. Just to be awkward
I always use a circular or figure-of-eight motion
which is not as easy until you get into your rhythm,
but which in my opinion does a better job of ejecting
the fine particles of metal from under the sink and
forcing them to the edges of the paper out of harm's
way.
Once
you're sure the base is flat you then need to start
working your way through each of the papers from coarsest
to finest spending about five minutes with each of
the red Rhynowet papers and about ten minutes with
each of the finer papers.
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Use
A Circular or LinearMotion
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There
should be no need to apply any downward pressure though
with very light aluminium sinks a little pressure
may help speed the process. Rotate the sink in your
hand from time to time and when you feel it's time
to move to a new paper remember to stop all movement
BEFORE you lift the sink, then lift it straight up.
Lifting the sink while it's still in motion can leave
scuff marks that then need to be polished away.
Use
plenty of water to wash away the fine particles of
grit and metal from both the surface of the sandpaper
and from the base of the heat sink. Every few minutes
lift the sandpaper and rinse the bottom of it and
the glass, as any small particles of torn paper or
grit getting under the sandpaper will cause small
raised areas in the paper that will mark the base.
In short keep everything as clean as possible throughout.
I
tend to use less water with the very fine grit papers
because the base tends to aquaplane, to ride on a
cushion of water that makes the process take way longer
than it needs to. Soak the paper as a very final stage
by all means but when you first start on each of the
two finest grits go for damp rather than wet and shake
the paper after rinsing.
Eventually,
with a little patience you should end up with a surface
that's as close to a mirror finish as you'll get without
using a super-fine polishing compound, which EasyPCKits
have now added to their range by the way should you
want to take it that extra mile. Give the base a final
wipe with alcohol or a clean cloth to remove the last
of any residue and you're done!
If
you don't intend fitting the heat sink right away,
you could smear a few drops of light oil on there
and maybe cover it with a piece of plastic to help
keep it safe until you're ready for it. *(Please
read the update on this at the foot of the page)
So
does it help? Well, I got a two degree improvement
in temperatures on out Athlon64 3400+ which should
increase by at least a further one or two degrees
as the thermal grease settles, so it's not exactly
a spectacular improvement but it's an improvement
all the same. Whether your results are better or worse
than this depends on your case, your cooling, your
processor, your heat sink and a plethora of other
variables that make it impossible to predict.
Conclusion
The
3DVelocity 'Dual Conclusions Concept' Explained: After
discussing this concept with users as well as companies
and vendors we work with, 3DVelocity have decided
that where necessary we shall aim to introduce our
'Dual Conclusions Concept' to sum up our thoughts
and impressions on the hardware we review. As the
needs of the more experienced users and enthusiasts
have increased, it has become more difficult to factor
in all the aspects that such a user would find important,
while also being fair to products that may lack these
high end "bonus" capabilities but which
still represent a very good buy for the more traditional
and more prevalent mainstream user. The two categories
we've used are:
The
Mainstream User ~ The mainstream user is likely
to put price, stock performance, value for money,
reliability and/or warranty terms ahead of the need
for hardware that operates beyond its design specifications.
The mainstream user may be a PC novice or may be an
experienced user, however their needs are clearly
very different to those of the enthusiast, in that
they want to buy products that operate efficiently
and reliably within their advertised parameters.
The
Enthusiast ~ The enthusiast cares about all
the things that the mainstream user cares about but
is more likely to accept a weakness in one or more
of these things in exchange for some measure of performance
or functionality beyond its design brief. For example,
a high priced motherboard may be tolerated in exchange
for unusually high levels of overclocking ability
or alternatively an unusually large heat sink with
a very poor fixing mechanism may be considered acceptable
if it offers significantly superior cooling in return.
The
Mainstream User ~
Me
trying to suggest you all need to lap your heat sinks
is clearly not going to work,
quite obviously you don't. That's not to say you shouldn't
though. It's interesting, strangely therapeutic and
undoubtedly a talking point down the pub. It also
improves your PC's efficiency even if it's not by
a massive margin.
If
lapping is something you'd like to try I can't think
of a better way to do it than with one of these kits.
Hard to fault!
The
Enthusiast ~
Unless
you have a bulk lapping session planned, EasyPCKits
have put together a well priced and extremely convenient
way to tackle at least a couple of separate jobs.
The
paper is strong and of excellent quality, the thermal
grease is some of the best on the market and once
you have the glass you can just order a paper pack
to top up.
With
less heat sinks than ever needing lapping to any great
extent, this is probably the way to go rather than
heading out and buying multi-sheet packs from the
hardware store. Quick, easy and above all professional
results for a good price. What's not to like?
*Never
let it be said we don't listen to those who know better!
:) I was contacted by an industry cooling specialist
who explained tome that using oil to protect the base
of a heatsink can be a counter-productive step as
it stops your thermal grease forming an efficient
interface. Apparently, the oil fills the microscoping
imperfections in the base and is all but impossible
to remove without resorting to lapping again!
Although
oil is often used to protect the industrial sinks
I have worked with in the past, these are shifting
less heat from larger surface areas and so the interface
is less critical.
So
what did our anymous source suggest instead? Kind
of simple really...Saran Wrap, or Clingfilm as we
know it in the UK. So there you have it. Forget the
oil!
Another
day, another lesson learned!
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