[Guide] Go Custom With The Cooler Master Eisberg Prestige!

Radiator

Next logical step for me was fitting the radiator. I’m using all new parts here and EK state clearly that their radiators don’t require flushing when new so knowing this information I will mount the radiator and proceed with the build.

Mounting the EK-Coolstream RAD XTC 280 radiator was a really easy on the LD PC V7, the radiator grills are detachable so mounting can be done away from the case. The screws I used were 30mm Phobya allen headed screws and the fans were Thermalright X-Silent 140’s painted white with my airbrush.

Reservoir and fittings

Now we go around the system screwing in the fittings. Make sure every fitting has its supplied rubber o-ring in place before screwing in. Many years ago I screwed in a fitting without checking and the o-ring was missing, it caused a leak that wasn’t apparent until the system was turned on, definitely something to watch out for and if you are planning on client building this check is mandatory in my book.

The fittings should be screwed in finger tight and then a quarter turn on metal and thick delrin items like pump tops and radiators. You will notice on most fittings the top has a notch. This is for you to put in a coin or wide screwdriver to tighten the fitting a little further than you can with your fingers alone. When screwing fittings direct into plexi you dont need to go that tight, finger tight is enough on its own without further tightening. Too much pressure will crack plexi glass so a little common sense is essential.

The Reservoir is mounted very easily with the aid of two plastic collars. With EK and other manufacturers they have their own mounting systems. I wanted to use the Primochill CTR advanced bottom because it has two ports in a vertical position. This allows me an easy and effective drain port.

The top of the reservoir is a two port Primochill CTR basic top which gives me a good filling point and allows me a decent diagonal path for liquid to drain into the reservoir just like we drew out in the planning stage.

Tubing

Now that the radiator, reservoir, fittings and fill and drain ports are fitted we can start cutting the tube. I use really sharp scissors for this since I have experience but you could go and buy a dedicated tubing cutter if you wish. Some of my friends use a stanley blade so really is just personal preference, use what works for you.

The first step for me always is to do the longer pipes first and finish on the smaller ones. I want to use the bare minimum of tubing, I don’t want my rig to look like spaghetti after spending all this money and I’m sure your client wont like it either. As you can see in the top picture I’ve attached the first piece of tubing and the collar is removed. I have not cut anything at this point.

Now I measure up how much of a bend I want and when I find the angle and length I need I pinch the tube at the end of the length and at the base of the fitting. As you can see in the picture Im nearly at the correct angle, I want the fitting to be horizontal and the curve to be perfect so the tubing doesn’t foul the graphics cards and not so long it arches backwards.

Now that the measurement is spot on to the end of my thumbnail I’m ready to cut. You really do need something very sharp at this point for one clean cut, if you hack away it looks messy and the tube wont sit flush to the base of the fitting.

Now that you have measured the tube and it fits just fine slide the collars on and screw them onto the compression fitting, rinse and repeat until all the tubing is in place.

Liquid!

Assuming all your fittings and plugs are tight and that no bits of crud found its way into your parts you can go right ahead and start filling the loop. Im filling from the top of the reservoir so the tricky part for me is getting all the liquid up to the radiator. This means I will have to fill up the reservoir to the top then rock the case to get the liquid into the block and radiator. Every time I lay the case back down the reservoir needs filling up again, I do this a few times until I have filled it as much as possible. Might be a nice idea to lay a bunch of paper towels here and there just in case of any spillage while filling. Im using Mayhems pastel white for this build.

When confident there is plenty of liquid in the loop you can turn on the Eisberg. I have laid the system down flat for this to make any air escape into the reservoir. There is still air in the system as you can see in the picture. I will run it like this for a hour or two to make sure all the air has escaped into the reservoir before bringing it back to its vertical position.

Once you are happy that all the air is in the reservoir I bring it back upright, open the top plug and fill the reservoir up to the top. Now I have a sealed system and I’m ready to boot!