lapping a slk900 but a problem has come up

[digitalemperor]

Ok, so looking at my heatsink I see that there is like a "scuff" of copper taken out right around where the heatsink attaches to the cpu. I have some sandpaper (from 400grit to 2000grit with a few in between). I plan to go ahead and lap the bottom using a glass base (from a picture frame) and get a nice mirror finish. The problem i ran into is, there are those little "felt" or whatever white feet sitting on the bottom of the heatsink. I would have to take those off if I were to lap it. Are those little "feet" really needed on a slk900? can I remove them and reattach the heatsink without them? Will I risk damaging something?

 

[Davegod]

er, I'd be wanting to put them back on, especially since it surely cant be that much effort to re-apply them. just measure or trace it, and stick the pads back on with an adhesive that is OK about heat.

 

[screw3d]

Originally posted by: Davegod
er, I'd be wanting to put them back on, especially since it surely cant be that much effort to re-apply them. just measure or trace it, and stick the pads back on with an adhesive that is OK about heat.

It's not easy to take off the pads, and they definitely won't be in shape to apply them back even if I managed to remove it..

 

[digitalemperor]

hrmm .. im not you but you replied with a response much similar to what i was going to say.

in that case .. what she said.

 

[sodcha0s]

Use a razor to remove the pads, glue them back on when you're done.

 

[digitalemperor]

so i do need them?

 

[xbassman]

Originally posted by: digitalemperor
so i do need them?

Yes you need them....
Actually I lapped my son's ALX-800 and forgot to put them back on. It ran pretty hot until I fixed it.
Thing is... the base on your heatsink isn't wide enough to make contact with the 4 rubber pads on top of the CPU. That's why Thermalright includes those felt pads.

I just carefully peeled them off, lapped away, then before reinstalling it I stuck em back on. (They didn't need glue since the adhesive was still there) Just make sure to put them in a safe place, cause if you were to lose them that is a new problem.

I remember reading a post where sombody used a blade and removed the rubber pads from the processor. Then glued them back closer together so the base could actually rest on them.

 

[digitalemperor]

where can i get new ones. they are already in bad shape and will not reattach

 

[screw3d]

Originally posted by: digitalemperor
where can i get new ones. they are already in bad shape and will not reattach

I'm interested too. Mine's all flattened and they don't work much better than a piece of paper now

 

[xbassman]

Originally posted by: digitalemperor
where can i get new ones. they are already in bad shape and will not reattach

Well Thermalright will send you replacements if you send them a pic of you receipt. (refer to question#8 on the link)
Thermalright FAQ General

I am not really sure if Thermalright is responsive to end users though. Some manufacturers really aren't.
So that got me to thinking...(I had knee surgery 1 1/2 weeks ago so I have plenty of time for that...)

I dug through my spare parts and found a foam square the the pads come on and compared it with a roll of 3M foam tape I use to quiet case fans. It appears to be the same thickness. I also compared it to the thickness of the pads on a Palomino processor and again it appeared to be the same. You could cut some little squares of this and attach them to your heatsink.

Here's a link I Googled to show you a pic of the product. 3M foam tape
You can get 3M foam tape at pretty much any hardware store or Wal-Mart. maybe even auto parts store.

I am not sure how the compression resistance is compared to what Thermalright ships, but it looks like it would work just fine. I would just monitor the temps as a precaution.

 

[Anubis]

mu SLK-900a didnt come with them attached, asnd i didnt put them on, its working fine keeping my 2400+ @ 2.5GHz cool at 32C right now it will hgit 40 under load

 

[Jaxidian]

These little rubber/felt "spacers" purpose is to help keep you from chipping your processor die. You don't necessarily need them but I highly recommend you get them back on. Otherwise, with the weight of an SLK900, just sitting it on the corner of your CPU die can and will crack it (which is what the felt/rubber things are supposed to prevent from happening).

If you want to replace them, find a material that can handle temperatures up to about 100C (just in case), some adhesive that won't melt up to at least 100C (again, just in case), and you're set. You need the material to be thicker than your CPU die is (and if for some reason where you mount them on your HS isn't flush with the surface of the HS that touches the die, account for that) and it needs to be able to compress. HOWEVER, it also needs to be strong enough to hold your HS's weight without it touching the CPU die.

 

[fwtong]

Originally posted by: xbassman

Originally posted by: digitalemperor
so i do need them?

Yes you need them....
Actually I lapped my son's ALX-800 and forgot to put them back on. It ran pretty hot until I fixed it.
Thing is... the base on your heatsink isn't wide enough to make contact with the 4 rubber pads on top of the CPU. That's why Thermalright includes those felt pads.

I just carefully peeled them off, lapped away, then before reinstalling it I stuck em back on. (They didn't need glue since the adhesive was still there) Just make sure to put them in a safe place, cause if you were to lose them that is a new problem.

I remember reading a post where sombody used a blade and removed the rubber pads from the processor. Then glued them back closer together so the base could actually rest on them.

Same thing happened to my ALX-800. After I put on the pads, temperature dropped a few degrees.

 

[Anubis]

so shoudl I take my HS off and put them on? my barton 2400+ had them on the CPU itself but they didnt come attached to my SLK-900a and i didnt put them on , my sys is at 200x11.5 @ 1.75v, Im running SETI 24/7 and my temps are never higher then 38C

 

[Thump553]

You can buy new white pads directly from Thermalright-they charged me $1.32. Pretty high for something I anticipated they would just drop in the mail for customer relations, but at least you can get them. After a few reinstalls of the heatsink, they are usually in pretty sad shape.

PS-I originally ran my SLK-800 without the white pads way back when and it would not boot.