Lapping

[Raxus]

Hey Folks,

Tried searching and came up with nothing so here goes. Do you all lap your Cpu and/or Heatsinnk? If you do or do not please explain why..and yes I know that lapping the cpu voids warranty.


Thanks!

Rax

 

[overshocked]

Lapping will increase the connection between the cpu and the heatsink by making the surgaces flatter. It can drop the temp by about 7c.

 

[sportsfanboy]

I lapped my Tuniq Tower because it wasn't the greatest machining job in the world.

I could see lines on the heat sink so I sanded it to a mirror finish. Can't give you a temperature comparison, as I did this out of the box. I didn't lap my cpu, I'm too chicken,lol

 

[richardscott]

if you have balls you can lap all the way down to the silicone of the chip an reduce temps even more but it does take skill and balls tbh

 

[sportsfanboy]

From what I have read, lapping the ihs may net you a 1-3c drop in temperature. I have never felt it a worth while process.

 

[jsc]

The machine work on the base of most HSF's is good enough that lapping isn't necessary. Having said that, the base of my old TRUE had a definite off center bulge.

 

[sportsfanboy]

No doubt... You would think with the money their getting for these things, they could make a smooth flat surface. I did a better job on my friends Bridgeport and a bunch of Guinness.

 

[Raxus]

So are you all saying that the cpu should definitely be lapped and it's a maybe on the HS?

Rax

 

[sportsfanboy]

I think we are leaning towards just the heat sink, but to each his/her own.

 

[mrmez]

Lapped both my E4400 and Q6600.
Used water blocks which were flat so i didnt bother with them.
I wont cover a 'how to' here, but its a fairly safe and easy procedure and can yeild small results.

If you are a hardcore OC'er etc you will know that you need this. Its a lot of work for minimal gains so again... if you are asking "should i?"
The answer is no.

 

[overshocked]

Id say definetly lap the hs and if you have balls lapp the cpu.

 

[4745454b]

I say lap neither. I've never seen a CPU IHS thats so bad that it needs lapping. Add in the risk of damage (smaller now that the pins are on the mobo) and I can't see why you'd try. I would only lap the HSF if its not flat. I'm not talking about lines, thats what the TIM is for. I'm talking about those HSFs that are so concave/convex that you wonder how it ever left the factory. I have never owned one, but I've seen picures online.

You have to remember that as long as you use a quality TIM, you don't have to worry about small imperfections. Quality TIMs contain silver, which is an excellent conductor of heat. So as long as your HSF isn't totally warped, you should be fine.

 

[jsc]

I would only lap the HSF if its not flat.

My TRUE was like that.

 

[4Ryan6]

#1 Do you all lap your Cpu and/or Heatsinnk?

#2 If you do or do not please explain why..and yes I know that lapping the cpu voids warranty.

#1 Of course not, everyone has their own reasoning behind the decision to lapp anything.

I'd say sure if this was the official (CPU and Heatsink Lapping Club), but its not, more than likely only THGF users that have successfully performed the lapping process and know whats involved, and the gains or possible damage, would even be the encourager of lapping in the first place.

#2 The why is obvious, lower temps, higher overclocking headroom, and since you already know lapping instantly voids the CPU warranty, you may be soon to join the Unofficial CPU Heatsink Lapping Club yourself, as curiosity killed the cat, so to speak, educate yourself thoroughly before you decide to dive in, if you even do.

I lapped my Xigmatek S1283, and my Q9550, added an additional 120mm fan to the Xiggy for a push pull airflow setup that resulted in a 10C drop in temps across the board, even better than I had hoped for allowing a rock solid 24/7 3.83G OC of the Q9550.

Also closed the gap of the differential core temp reading across the 4 core temperatures, where Core Temp reported a big variation between Core 0 & 1 readings and Core 2 & 3, those readings are now constantly within 1c to 2c of each other., depending on core load.

Thats what happened for me, theres no guarantee you'll get the same results, lapping is serious business, you cannot undo it, don't forget that.

I'm a definite Go For It, but my lapping experiences so far has yielded great results for me, but educate yourself first! Good Luck if you do! Ryan