Crack that SECC2 Cartridge open!

Now it's important to clean that muck off of there.  Best way to go about this is by using rubbing alcohol.  After we get this cleaned off we have another decision to make.  What type of thermal material are we going to use?  You have the TIM (thermal interface material), which are those pads you will occasionally see.  Then we have thermal paste, thermal tape (aka Frag Tape), and thermal epoxy.  Today, we are going to use thermal paste.  Paste and epoxy simply conduct heat the best.  Epoxy is good for some uses but I don't want to use epoxy if I don't have to.  Now a lot of people rant on and on about not using too much thermal paste.  In my opinion, this is crap.  Because a) when you clamp your heatsink down you squeeze any extra out like smushing an Oreo cookie.  and b) the heat from the chip will cook off the excess.  

 

Now remember how we pulled off the back plate earlier?  We have created a problem by doing this.  Fortunately, one that is easy to work around.  Notice below how the fastening mechanism that came with our Global Win sink,  is too long?  The pins are going in to far because by loosing the back cover.  In doing this we also lost a quarter inch or so.

What we need is some type of shim.  Of course it has to be functional but it also needs to look cool.  Necessity is truly the mother of invention.  See how the Cable Ferrules have those two hollow aluminum spacers?  These will most certainly fit the bill.  You can use whatever you want as long as it gets the job done.  Some folks are using ballpoint pens that they have cut into segments.  I think ours is by far the coolest looking though.

 

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