Xref: utzoo sci.electronics:1691 comp.misc:1538 Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!rutgers!mcnc!unccvax!dya From: dya@unccvax.UUCP (Edison Carter) Newsgroups: sci.electronics,comp.misc Subject: Re: Cleaning a Hard Disk ?? Message-ID: <856@unccvax.UUCP> Date: 9 Dec 87 19:16:02 GMT References: <1987Dec8.161307.12488@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu> Organization: Univ. of NC at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC Lines: 36 In article <1987Dec8.161307.12488@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu>, lharris@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu (Leonard Harris) writes: > > Hi. > I have a ATASI hard disk drive (120 meg i think) that someone opened > because they thought it was dead. (that is a long story - insurance paid > on any platters and the heads move freely. The only thing is how do i get it > dust free again. We have an employee here at DataSpan, Inc, who got really bored one day and did the following: A Vertex Technology 70 mb hard drive had evidently jammed on something (it is a voice coil actuated drive). After removing it from our product, and charging it off to warranty, etc. he removed the cover and evidently got the drive mechanically OK again. Subsequently, he sawed off the bottom of the lid and glued a piece of Plexiglass to it with RTV compound, reassembled the drive, and it evidently has formatted and plays until this very day. The room he assembled it in is one where considerable assembly, test, and repair of electronic equipment goes on. I'd just put it under a laminar hood, see if you can knock all the accumulated dust out of it, and reassemble the drive. Evidently, these drives are tough. His experiment to reassemble the drive with a broken head failed, though. There isn't a whole helluva lot you can do with it besides reassembly and test. Now, this drive had metallic (not oxide) media, but this probably wouldn't matter. David Anthony DataSpan, Inc