<p>I’m using GlobalWin CS1202512L 120mm ceramic bearing fans in an Antec P180B case (I was aiming for silence here). I’m using a Scythe Infinity heatsink (so heavy, especially with crappy LGA775 stock pushpins), with Arctic Silver 5. The Infinity has been OK for me; it’s so heavy, and it’s mounting system is so cumbersome, that I don’t think I’m getting a good contact with my processor. </p>
<p>I’ve lapped heatsinks before, and you only need to go up till 800 grit sandpaper. Anything past that is just for aesthetics; a mirror surface finish won’t help you past 800 grit, and some surface roughness is actually needed for the thermal compound to “adhere” to the microscopic grooves between the two surfaces.</p>