# RAM Cooler modding - need ideas



## Chryonn (Jan 19, 2010)

so i bought myself several 40mm fans for use on the mobo, and other places, and i came to thinking about trying to cool my RAM sticks.  currently i don't want to buy any aftermarket cooler bracket for my RAM so i thought "why not make my own?"
here's the question: what's a good material to make a RAM cooler frame out of?


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## Phxprovost (Jan 19, 2010)

I would say your best bet is just not making one as there is no use for it, but to stay on the safe side something none conductive like acrylic


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## BazookaJoe (Jan 19, 2010)

I would just hang some fans over the ram and leave it at that.

Heat will naturally want to leave the chips, all you really need is plenty of fresh air around them.


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## Chryonn (Jan 20, 2010)

hmmm, see building the frame to support the fans isn't the problem. i can probably fashion one out of acrylic or scrap metal...it's the method of attachment to the mobo or RAM itself that gets my head scratching


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## pantherx12 (Jan 20, 2010)

Phxprovost said:


> I would say your best bet is just not making one as there is no use for it, but to stay on the safe side something none conductive like acrylic



Its easy 

I made a cooler that was as effective as the Corsair 3 fan dominator ram cooler using one 60 mm fan








The screws are there purely for aesthetic reasons, the fan is actually held to the gripper I made ( no clips or screws) via rubber fan mounting things.


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## Reefer86 (Jan 20, 2010)

but he is asking how you made one panther, wanna fill us all in? what materials etc


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## pantherx12 (Jan 20, 2010)

Oh right.

Its a very simple design.

Aluminium sheet.

60mm hole

Rubber edging

Strategic bending.

The aluminium is mailable but strong enough to grip the ram.

You just open or close it depending no how much ram you have installed.


I've taken it on and of so many times and it doesn't appear to weaken or get an stress marks.

Certainly not in the time I've had it.

but for the price you can't go wrong!

Will share pics of the proto type since I have LOTS of photos of that .


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## Chryonn (Jan 20, 2010)

so the aluminium is gripping the RAM?


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## pantherx12 (Jan 20, 2010)

Chryonn said:


> so the aluminium is gripping the RAM?




Aye but I have rubber along every edge on the device so the rubber grips it.

It uses nothing other then the natural tension that the metal has.

Great thing is the thing is so light 



Here's the shots of the proto types


















Having the fan ontop was MUCH more effective.

Then later on I ended up with the thing you saw in the first picture I posted, something that doesn't look half bad.

Just like they say in pokemon "its super effective"

And a damn site easier then fitting any other ram cooler I've tried.


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## Fourstaff (Jan 20, 2010)

Do we need ram coolers? I thought I read somewhere that the new gen of ramsticks run cool enough without additional cooling


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## pantherx12 (Jan 20, 2010)

Fourstaff said:


> Do we need ram coolers? I thought I read somewhere that the new gen of ramsticks run cool enough without additional cooling




My ram gets toasty but I over-clock my ram to the same extent I over clock my cpus 

At any rate cooling anything will increase its longevity so its all good!


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## Bo$$ (Jan 20, 2010)

mine stay cool even if i pump 2.1v thru 1.8v rated ram  so i guess airflow is key, and you must not forget Fourstaff that DDR3 runs MUCH hotter than our humble DDR2


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## Chryonn (Jan 21, 2010)

Fourstaff said:


> Do we need ram coolers? I thought I read somewhere that the new gen of ramsticks run cool enough without additional cooling



my RAM isn't new ergo it will get toasty. besides, i'm going Liquid Cooling soon so i'll need some sort of air flow in there.

@pantherx12, thanks for the pics, they've given me an insight into the clamping mechanism


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## Chryonn (Jan 27, 2010)

UPDATE: well i've finally made the cooler. i didn't take pics as the digi camera was out of commission but basically i got some scrap metal from a sturdy drinks can (not a flimsy Coke can) by Dremelling out the ends and slicing it down the middle. Flattened it out to get a rough rectangle. Then drew on the fan holes and where to bend it to make the RAM clamps. again i used the Dremel to cut the final shape and the holes. Finally i pained it black, bolted on the fans and modded the cables. i'll post a pic of the final thing soon


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## LagunaX (Jan 27, 2010)

The perfect fan to mod is the crappy stock intel heatsink.

It is free, big enough to do the job, and can plug into the mobo.

It kind of has the easy look to mod already - why didn't I think of this b4?

I think I have 6 of them lying around...


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## Chryonn (Jan 27, 2010)

6?! i never got one from the vendor! luckily i had bought an after-market HSF.


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## pantherx12 (Jan 27, 2010)

Chryonn said:


> UPDATE: well i've finally made the cooler. i didn't take pics as the digi camera was out of commission but basically i got some scrap metal from a sturdy drinks can (not a flimsy Coke can) by Dremelling out the ends and slicing it down the middle. Flattened it out to get a rough rectangle. Then drew on the fan holes and where to bend it to make the RAM clamps. again i used the Dremel to cut the final shape and the holes. Finally i pained it black, bolted on the fans and modded the cables. i'll post a pic of the final thing soon





Nice can't wait to see it, remember the rubber edging to avoid blowing up everything !


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## Chryonn (Jan 27, 2010)

yeah, i've not forgotten that, i've wrapped some insulating tape around the "feet" but i've ordered some edging which i'll put on once it arrives.


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## pantherx12 (Jan 27, 2010)

Should do the trick : ]

Have you tested it out at all? sits on the ram okay etc?

Remember you want the grippy bits as close to the base of the ram as possible.

If you don't have caps right up next to the ram slots ( I do) its best to grip it to the plastic ram slots : ]

Hell even if you do have caps can cut away a small section of the device


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## overclocking101 (Jan 27, 2010)

most ram coolers connect to the push clips that hold the ram in or to the notches in the ram its self. just as a start


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## pantherx12 (Jan 27, 2010)

overclocking101 said:


> most ram coolers connect to the push clips that hold the ram in or to the notches in the ram its self. just as a start




Yeah and they suck! 

To fiddly, this thing you just put on and give it a squeeze


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## Chryonn (Jan 27, 2010)

yeah i've test fitted it before i sprayed and bolted the fans on. it's a good fit.  the metal i'm not sure of but could be either tin or mild steel (the stuff from drinks cans - it's not alu though). the metal has a slight springiness to it so when i bend the feet into place and attach it it spring closes around the RAM. and luckily i don't have any caps interfering with it. screenies soon, i promise.


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## Chryonn (Jan 28, 2010)

right, as promised:


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## pantherx12 (Jan 28, 2010)

Not bad at all : ]

Different mounting mechanism to mine but if it works it works eh


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## Chryonn (Jan 28, 2010)

thanks, not bad for something i had no idea about until several days ago. i didn't even want to cool my RAM, lol. i was going to go with Perspex but that builds up static, so i went with the metal can. if i can improve upon it, i'll do so, but right now it's functional.


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## pantherx12 (Jan 28, 2010)

I always say Aesthetics should come after everything else myself :]

Once you've got the practical out the way then you can tweek or try other designs and such like.

I need to rebuild mine as I managed to squash it beyond repair ( Cleaning my room)

So may give a dual fan one a bash : ]


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## Chryonn (Jan 28, 2010)

you're right, but in this case i had some spray paint and thought black goes with everything so i sprayed it.


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## Animalpak (Jan 28, 2010)

Just put a 50mm to maximum 80 mm fan like Asus did with the sabertooth motherboard.

Fix it inside the case up the motherboard tray, put the direction of the fan to the bottom, very easy to do and cools equal than any aftermarket ram cooler.


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## Chryonn (Jan 28, 2010)

that's a good idea, and very simple. however i can't see a way of attaching it. it would have to clamp onto something. my spring-mounted cooler works that way


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