Fooling with floppy drives

From: Richard Erlacher <edick_at_idcomm.com>
Date: Thu Apr 8 09:09:32 1999

Since new floppy drives cost about $25 including shipment, it's difficult to
justify repairing them. This is frustrating for people like you who have
drives for which replacements are not readily available for $20 or so.

Your experience with sloppy workmanship gives clear indication that $10 per
hour is not enough to pay a competent technician. The occasional look
inside should give you good indication of why one who can't spend more than
15 minutes' time fixing a $20 drive, can't get the job done. These devices
must be considered "throw-away" items by now. You've got to learn to
fix-em-yourself.

Dick

-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Ford <mikeford_at_netwiz.net>
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp_at_u.washington.edu>
Date: Thursday, April 08, 1999 2:29 AM
Subject: Fooling with floppy drives


>Coincident with all this chatter on floppy drives I have run into a streak
>of uncooperative drives. I happen to be using macs with 3.5" Sony
>mechanisms, but my question is somewhat general. What do you do with floppy
>drives that need repairs?
>
>Normally I just put them aside, but after this week I have close to a dozen
>in the defective box and ZERO (actually a negative number since I need even
>more) reliable units that aren't already installed in other systems.
>
>I have already performed the first aid procedures like cleaning the heads
>(using a wet cleaning floppy), and disassembly down to the bare mechanism
>and blowing out the bunnies with canned air. This pile is the hard core
>rejects, floppy doesn't spin, floppy doesn't eject, which I guess means a
>drive motor or support electronics is shot.
>
>For perspective, Apple still wants like $150 for a new floppy, mail order
>sources have the same for about $70, and reliable refurbs run the gamut
>from a low of about $20 up to $50 or more (used OK drives are $10 to $20.
>and my last pesky supplier was asking $5 for untested pulls). What I am
>finding disturbing is that more and more of the drives I see have OBVIOUSLY
>been swapped from another machine, or show other signs of being opened up
>by non techs (missing screws or other parts).
>
>What are your opinions, practices, or sources?
>
>Do any of you fix your floppies?
>
>Thanks.
>
>
Received on Thu Apr 08 1999 - 09:09:32 BST