@Lou N posted:Yes. Bergquist makes paste type heat sink grease but also makes film type. Some sheets are adhesive on both sides allowing the attachment of small heat sinks. Copper is a better choice of sink material.
Lou N
Lou, that is what I thought for years. About 3-4 years ago I bought some finned copper stock and similar aluminum finned stock and made some sinks for the triacs and bridge on a pair of DCDRs for which I was planning on driving four 545 motors with one DCDR in a pair of Lionel 18952 Alco PA-1s. I wanted to rob one of the DCDRs for use in a Williams Trainmaster with twin Pittman motors. The copper sinks are still working well however I am not sure there is a clear advantage, as copper will absorb heat faster aluminum will dissipate it faster. I cut the finned copper and aluminum into roughly equal shapes and installed them on two identical DCDRs and A-B running the four motored AA pair 15 minutes at as close to the same speed as I could on a circle of O-72. Running in conventional with the track voltage set on 14v. After the fifteen minute run I stopped and as fast as I could point my digital IR thermometer at the case of the triacs I read the temps first with the copper finned DCDR then with the aluminum version they were less than one degree apart. I figured that was the limits of my test setup. Then I ran across an article on the web where the writer was discussing this very topic and his conclusion was what I had decided from my experiment. I was trying to find that article tonight but before I did I ran across a related discussion about automobile radiators Aluminum vs Copper. https://www.researchgate.net/p..._aluminium_or_copper Read about 1/3 down the page and look for the name Ammar Eqbal, Indian Institute of Technology Patna where he says the best heatsinks are a composite with a copper base and aluminum fins. I am glad I did the test but to my way of thinking it was a draw. j
