Europeans: Need THERMAL PASTE/GREASE. Paris, London, Munich?

[Crunch]

Hi all...

I'll be in the above locations for the next three weeks. Quick explanation: I got myself a T7600 CPU for my T60p about three weeks ago in the U.S., but I had never gotten around to obtaining this one missing part to be able to install the CPU. Two attempts at getting it from Lenovo and ebay by way of mail order failed. In the last week, I was too apprehensive about potentially messing up my machine.

At any rate, I would now very much like to now finally install it now, and if anyone from the UK, France, and/or Germany could point me in a direction as to where I might buy it IN A STORE, that would be wonderful! Is there maybe a computer store chain I can get it from?

Online, I saw there was an ebay seller in the UK with this Artic Silver 5 paste and cleaner combo. I will re-attempt to order from ebay if I can't find it in an actual store, but I have more time now, so again, if anyone could please let me know, I would very much appreciate it.

Merci beaucoup, Vielen Dank, and Thank you very much!

Crunch

[RealBlackStuff]

When in the UK, go visit a Maplin shop, like here:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/StoreLocator.as ... storeid=97
Don't understand why you didn't go to RadioShack & co.

[ulrich.von.lich]

If you are still in Paris, there's an area in the 12th arrondissement (near the Bastille and Gare de Lyon) where you can find a lot of computer stores. They are all small individual (and kinda disorganized) stores, no chains. You can try at the FNAC but I doubt it would sell stuff like thermal compound.

Search "rue montgallet" on google maps or just ask someone in the street. Btw, don't go there today for almost everything is closed here on Sundays.

Have a great time in Paris!

[Crunch]

I noticed nothing was open yesterday or today, except the airport, so I am now outside of Munich. Oh well...Thank you, ulrich.von.lich, for your post. I liked Paris a lot and didn't have a chance to get online to get your info in time. My Treo did not want to register on a French tower for some reason even though I always have int'l roaming enabled. Plus, I enjoyed the city too much, so trying to get that dealt with took a back seat. If I can't find it in Germany, I'll know where to go in Paris next week...Thanks again!

RealBlackstuff: I know I could have just popped into a RadioShack or some other easily accessible stores after the two tries to get it shipped from Lenovo and ebay both did not work, which was strange, as both sellers gave me every assurance that I would receive it well ahead of my trip. I was just swamped and could barely find time to pack. Thank you as well for your post!

Now Germany...I understand there are carnivals which will likely prevent me from getting anything until Wednesday!???

I'll be here for about a week. There is one of those "specialty" stores, which hopefully has it. Can anybody from Germany give me any pointers?

[Nick Y]

>>I'll be here for about a week. There is one of those "specialty" stores, which hopefully has it. Can anybody from Germany give me any pointers?

There are quite a lot of posts from people in Germany and 20 matches from Munich, so perhaps doing a PM may help you. (Did search on Germany and then on Munich)

[RealBlackStuff]

For Munich:
The YMCA (CVJM in German) is located in the inner city, right at the Schillerstraße area where every second shop is a PC or electronic parts shop - maybe the most dense area of this kind in the whole world.
http://www.stadtplandienst.de/link.asp? ... f66347470a

[Crunch]

Man, you guys are great! Sorry for the jumping around with the cities. Ok, the Schillerstrasse it is it looks like...hmm...Would the "Media Markt" chain have it? It's 4am CET as I write this, so I guess I'll call them in 3-4 hours and get the hell out and buy this stuff once and for all...

Thanks again!!

[Crunch]

Alright, I am getting it delivered today for free. lol...It's not the Arctic Silver 5, but I think this guy, an IT guy who's been working for my dad fixing his computer problems, installing complicated WiFi networks, etc., for years, said he will be in this area later on and bring me some for free. I hope I'll get him to accept 5 Euros hopefully for gas money.

Anyway, I think he called it silicone something??? I told him it was for a Thinkpad and a T7600, and he said, oh yea, it doesn't matter what you use. He just uses this stuff and he's been working in IT for years, and is successful, so I guess it won't have to be Artic Silver 5? Silicone? Hmm...But he called his thermal paste, so what do you guys think? Sound like a good way to go?

[Crunch]

Alright...This guy came over today and delivered two little tubes of this thermal paste/grease. One says heatsink compounds (sounds like the company name) and it only says "Silver Grease" on it, and I checked and the stuff that comes out is shiny silver.

The other little tube says "artic cooling compound silicone heatsink compound"...Then it lists the ingredients: 50% silicone, 20% carbon, 30% metal oxide included. Also checked here, and pressing the tube, a white paste (vs. the above stated silver one) pushes out.

So final question: Should I just use a little of both? They're both .5g tubes where you can push the substance right onto where it's supposed to go.

Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[RealBlackStuff]

You can use either one, but do NOT mix them!
We are just partial to AC5, but both pastes you got will do the trick fine.
Of those 2, I would select the 'artic cooling...', but that's just my opinion.

[Robbyrobot]

Hi Crunch...

Good heavens, you do make a big thing of this

I (in Germany) just go to the nearest computer store - of which there are numerous ones even in smaller cities - and ask for "Wärmeleitungspaste" (heat-transfer paste). That gets you a tube of stuff that's either white (titanium dioxide) or silver colored (generally 10% silver), which is absolutely OK for any Thinkpad.

Sometimes you just get a smile when you offer to pay for it (they generally have more than they need), and sometimes it costs EUR 3-5. Not a big deal either way.

Europe isn't in the dark ages anymore

[Crunch]

Alright, it's done. lol...I am running it right now for the last 6 hours. It was interesting and didn't take long at all.

HOWEVER...I DID mix the two pastes. I didn't get the responses in time, so should I go back in, clean up, and use only the silver paste?

Cleaning the old stuff out from the now former T2600 was very straightforward. I also may have used too much. The stuff I took off wasn't as much as I put on, and now that I mixed it...oh man...so leave it alone? Go back in and re-do it?

I've been monitoring the temperature, and it didn't budge from 43C's for the longest time. The fan is on and working very well. The highest I've seen it was 53C's. Touching the underneath of it, I remember my T2600 being wayyy hotter than this.

I don't know if this matters, though, as far as the fact that I used BOTH pastes...??? Arghh....

[joester]

As a general rule, you should never mix technologies when it comes to chemicals. Not that a hazardous compunds would result, but the mixing of the chemicals can degrade eachother. Eventually, the mixture may fail, and temperatures would rise.
My suggestion would be to clean it up and go with a single type.

Joe

[Crunch]

Ok, I just went in and re-did it. lol...I read several websites as far as the amount I should put on, and I realized quickly that I had put WAY too much on it. So I went in, wiped, yes, wiped up that mixture mess in there haha, until every last edge was totally clean, and applied only the correct amount of the SILVER paste only.

I turn the [censored] thing on, FAN error...haha...In my (unnecessary) haste, I had forgotten to put the fan cable back on, so in 30 mins., I disassembled and reassembled this thing twice. It was interesting, though. I wonder if I should mess with anything else, such as the only two things that are left that this baby will take, both of which are not that important: The Thinkpad a/b/g/n card and maybe an AT&T WWAN swap from the Verizon one that's in there. I saw the Verizon WWAN card "on my way" back and forth to the CPU LOL...oh man...

All in all, pretty fun to have done this, especially in a laptop...

Thanks to everyone!!!! T7600 running smoothly at 52C. Does that sound about right?