Can anyone tell me what specs Aqua Computer hold their water blocks to in flatness of the CPU side of the block?

Not at all, just tryng to discover whether my block is in spec or not. If it is out of spec then I will return it. If it is in spec I will just lap the bottom. Here in the USA most manufacturer's specify the flatness characteristics of their blocks. For example one manufactuer states "the base is lapped flat to 0.0005 of an inch." I did not see that information on the English site. Perhaps it is somewhere else that I can't read....so I am asking.

0.00127 mm is correct or about 50 millionths of an inch. I assume they check them on a granite surface plate as the ones typically used by machine shops are flat to that figure. I saw a post in the AC thread on the [H]ardForum where someone who had access to a Starret master level and he showed a pic of a concave Cuplex Pro. I had noticed the same on my first XT and I think it is the same on my silver XT that I just received a couple of weeks ago though I just used a gage block. So while I don't mind lapping the block I would like to know the specs so that I can decide whether to bother returning it. It took me about two hours of work to get rid of the concave surface on my first XT and if they are out of spec then I will return it and get another one.

Added:

Now I am not using really super accurate stuff here, but it seems that the block I have is pretty flat when you check it by aligning the gage block with the input and output threads if I am making myself clear. When I check in the opposite direction (from the mount to mount side) it appears to be concave?

Sure I will post tomorrow after I find some feeler gages. Looks to me like a couple of thousands of an inch (.05 to .08 mm).

In the mean time if your interested here is a link to a pic that shows the other block I was speaking about.

Zitat von »Infiltraitor«

Are you planning on using AS5 or something to mount the block, coz I've been led to believe having a perfectly flat surface isn't so good for heat transfer through the paste.

Actually I believe the issue was (Artic Silver) that having a pretty surface was detrimental and not whether it is flat or not. You can have flat and a brushed finish. I prefer flat over finish as the Artic Silver paste will take care of any problems with finish. This was first noticeable when I dry mounted my silver XT and from the marks on the block it appeared to be only contacting the die surface in about four (4) points.

Okay I just got done checking my Silver XT. If you lay a gage block on the side of the block parallel to the two mounting holes you can easily stick a .002" (.0508mm) feeler gage under the block. If you lay the gage block 90 degrees to the previous position then you can stick in a .001" (.0254mm) feeler gage.

Just lapped the block for a couple of minutes and the 1000 grit sandpaper doesn't even touch anything except the sides of the block.

I just checked my three TwinPlex's and they are pretty flat. I don't have any feeler gages less than .001", but I would say they have less than .0002" of deviation just by eyesight.

I suppose you are just kidding right? .0002" is very easy to see if you use the right testing setup. After you have seen many parts through an optical comparator, coordinate measuring machine, and other high end testing equipment you realize that some things can be easily checked if you use the right test setup by the eye alone. For instance I checked my Silver XT with a gage block and saw a gap though a strong light. I then measured it with a feeler gauge and verified that it was about .002" concave. I check my TwinPlex's with the same setup and my bionic eye reports to me that it is about 1/10th the size of the other gap...

BTW, do you think I should return my Silver XT? As I said before I don't mind lapping it, but I am concerned with how much material I take off as the bolts appear to be about .010" under the block surface and I don't know the thickness of the block at its thinnest point. Am I going to be in the okay range if I knock off about .005-.010" of material?


Added 7-14-05:

Okay with my dial caliper I checked the thickness of the base plate around the edges and it is about .040" (1.01mm) minus the .002 concavity so say about .038". Now this is not totally accurate as say a depth gage, but close enough for government work. So am I going to be okay to drop the plate thickness down to say about .035" (.889mm) or should I return this silver XT? I don't want to get into any warping problems after assembly so I figured to lap the block completely assembled. BTW, can you guys give me the torque settings for the bolts? I assume I should use a standard cross tightening pattern, but how much torque at a time should I apply?

Zitat von »boswell«

out of interest, why does it matter at all? It seems to me like all you do is post near-pointless posts onto this forum which clutter it up.

If that is what you believe why did you bothering reading and posting in this thread? Obviously I have different interests than you do so why don't we just leave it like that and thanks for sharing. :

Zitat von »Mr_modnaR«

Just keep tightening, till you see the plexiglas crack.


;D lol just thought i'd bring a little humour back into the thread, seems to have gotten a little negative.

Well I wasn't asking about those screws I was asking about the screws that bolt the jet plate to the silver bottom block...so no plexi ;D

BTW, does anyone know what flatness specifications AC holds their blocks to? Still waiting for an answer. MM or inches is fine with me. I mean every manufacturer has machining tolerances and I really not interested in anything other than the flatness spec on the bottom of the blocks.

Zitat von »boswell«

hi @ all,

I am just wondering why do u want to know the "flatness specification" ? because i do not see any difference between 0.0001mm and 0.0002 mm flatness.

I don't see any difference in .0001-.0002mm either, but I can see a whole bunch when it is several thousandth's of an inch out of being flat. See this pic for what I saw on my Silver Cuplex XT. This is not my pic, but mine was almost identical in look and concavity.