Compression Fittings

jinxpad

jinxpad

jinxpad

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hi guys,

Finally got all the base components for my watercooling rig:



My next step is the tubing and fittings. Now to be honest I was thinking of getting bitspower fittings mainly for the aesthetics, but at £8+ a pop I really couldn't justify getting them at least, unless they are worth it.

I do want to stick to compression fittings, mainly for the aesthetics, but I was just wondering if there was any particular performance issues/enhancements in getting standard compression fittings over say the branded bitspower fittings.

Would I be just fine getting the standard £2.50 fittings in terms of performance/reliability or are the branded enzo/bitspower/xspc fittings really worth the extra cost.

I spotted the XSPC fittings:
XSPC Coin Fit G1/4 to 3/8 ID 5/8 OD Compression Fitting

@ £2.50 each but I'm just wondering if there was a catch to seeing a branded set of compression fittings for so cheap.

Any advice guys?

Thanks in advance!
 
You can get compression fittings for £2.50 that do the job and don't work out much more expensive than normal barbs.
Bitspower fittings are no better than any others they just look better :)

Try Primochill or if you can track them down (they are EOL so should be very cheap) some Feser fittings.

edit: i have never had much luck with XSPC components i have never used there fittings but couldn't recommend using them on the basis on there other kit i have used.
 
bitspower are the best around.

I have never, EVER leak tested with my bitspower fittings for the simple reason that there is absolutely no need to. The quality is second to none. £8 per pop is more than worth it for:

1) the quality look and feel
2) protection of MUCH more than a few quid's worth of hardware

;)

they are pricey mate, but I guarantee you won't be disappointed.
 
There are threads on here about new bitspower fittings leaking, rotary ones in particular.

I don't tend to bother leak testing my cheap-as-possible compression fittings either though, so I sympathise with your approach.

@OP, I'd buy the cheapest compression fittings you can find which aren't made out of plastic, and have nuts built in (i.e. not finger tight only). The former is just good sense, the latter is preference. You can grip the tubing very tightly indeed if there are spanners involved, just don't apply the same torque to a plastic block directly as it'll break.

Barbs are probably easier.
 
bitspower compressions are ok
any rotary fitting is a weakpoint and would need leaktesting including bits fittings

but for straigh forward comp fittings, they are superb
 
I've managed to find some Feser fittings for 3.50 and I've heard they are good quality, also they have a nice matte black finish :)

Any word on Feser fittings from you guys?
 
I used mainly feser fittings in my rebuild, I bought a batch from here for 24p each from their bizzare clear out section. They seem to have finally run out though, still a very odd range of stuff in there though.
 
The main advantage of the feser/koolance/bitspower/enzotech barbs or compression fittings are the increased ID
Around 10mm ID for a 1/2 fitting, which maximise your flow rate.

The 'value' fitting are usually 8.5-9mm ID.

Personally I like the koolance compression fittings the best - as they have barb tails as well as the comprssion nut.
But they use normal steel nuts (body is nickel plated brass) so they can rust if you leave them wet :(

I didn't know feser did black fittings?

If genuine, nothing wrong with feser's compressions
 
Dammit, they don't seem to have enough of the fittings I'm going to be needing. However I am thinking of working in some 45 degree fittings to avoid any kinking, I'm only cooling my GPU and CPU.

Can someone suggest a good loop layout at the moment I have:

Res > Pump > Rad > CPU > GPU > Res

Appreciate the help guys :)
 
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