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400k internal drive - damaged head?
Posted by: petey293 on 2022-10-14 13:45:19
I think if I need to ask, I probably know the answer, but I want to make sure.

This 400k floppy drive had the following issues:
  • The drive was stuck in the down position
  • The felt pad was missing from the pressure arm
  • The head looks like this:
  • 1665779948530.png
From these clues, I'm guessing someone tried ripping a disk out of the drive after it got stuck.

I tried to get the best picture I could, but you should be able to see the chewed up marks on the bottom edge of the head. The rest of it looks nice and glossy. As it stands now, the drive has been unstuck, greased, and a Q-tip nub has been substituted for the pressure pad for now, but it still won't read disks. I also tried adjusting the head height closer to the disk with no luck.

I was about to pour some time into trying to resurrect this drive, but should I bother after seeing the head?

Thanks guys!
Posted by: bibilit on 2022-10-15 11:07:48
Have a try, nothing to lose…

yes, probably brute force used here.
Posted by: petey293 on 2022-10-15 12:15:02
Have a try, nothing to lose…

yes, probably brute force used here.
Thanks! Will do. I went ahead and picked up an external 400k drive that I plan on migrating to the 128k so I can get it up and running, then I can take my time and dink around with the bad one
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