RIDDCJ@KIRK.ASTON.AC.UK (05/14/89)
On Mon, 24 Apr 89 00:09:18 PST, Dustin Baughman wrote: >I have a VERY noisy internal drive in my 1040st which is about 2 >1/2 years old now. Is there any way to quiet it? Will putting a >light oil on the "bars" that the head slides on help? Is this bad >for the drive? The drive also seems to be "sluggish". Any >suggestions? Hmmm, don't know about oiling the drives, but I definitely have the same problem as you. My 1040 is now about 2yrs old, and makes a *real* racket when it uses its floppy. I got so concerned, I got the thing checked out by an Atari registered engineer locally, but she claimed it was fairly normal. Come on, can a 'normal' drive sound like its trying to grind your disks? Maybe there is a batch of machines out there, has anyone had the same problems? Should Atari replace our drives? Stick on those ear mufflers and compute! Chris ______________________________________________________________________________ / \ | JANET: riddcj@uk.ac.aston.kirk | | ARPA: riddcj%kirk.aston.ac.uk@cunyvm.cuny.edu | | UUCP: ...psuvax1!cunyvm.bitnet!kirk.aston.ac.uk!riddcj | | BITNET: riddcj@kirk.aston.ac.uk@ukacrl | \______________________________________________________________________________/ / "The voice from the Outer Worlds..." \ \______________________________________________________________________________/ / fprintf(stderr, "Standard disclaimer...\n"); \ \______________________________________________________________________________/
greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) (05/17/89)
In article <8905160147.AA16219@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> RIDDCJ@KIRK.ASTON.AC.UK writes: >On Mon, 24 Apr 89 00:09:18 PST, Dustin Baughman wrote: >>I have a VERY noisy internal drive in my 1040st which is about 2 >>1/2 years old now. Is there any way to quiet it? Will putting a >>light oil on the "bars" that the head slides on help? Is this bad >>for the drive? The drive also seems to be "sluggish". Any >>suggestions? > >Hmmm, don't know about oiling the drives, but I definitely have the same >problem as you. My 1040 is now about 2yrs old, and makes a *real* racket when >it uses its floppy. I got so concerned, I got the thing checked out by an >Atari registered engineer locally, but she claimed it was fairly normal. Come >on, can a 'normal' drive sound like its trying to grind your disks? Maybe there >is a batch of machines out there, has anyone had the same problems? Should >Atari replace our drives? My 1040 is the same age, and the internal drive is also much noisier than my external 314 drive. Part of this is because of the way they work; the stepper motor that positions the head moves it in discreet pulses and is responsible for the buzzing we hear when the head seeks. The internal drive is hard-mounted to the plastic case, there are no vibration-damping spacers (at least in mine). So, the plastic case acts like a resonator and amplifies the vibrations of the stepper. If there is room (and I haven't tried it so I don't know), putting rubber washers between the drive and its mounting should greatly lessen the noise. Other than the annoyance factor, there isn't anything wrong with the drive itself. Longish .signature follows. Skip now. Greg Wageman DOMAIN: greg@sj.ate.slb.com Schlumberger Technologies UUCP: ...!uunet!sjsca4!greg 1601 Technology Drive BIX: gwage San Jose, CA 95110-1397 CIS: 74016,352 (408) 437-5198 GEnie: G.WAGEMAN ------------------ "Live Free; Die Anyway." ------------------ Opinions expressed herein are solely the responsibility of the author.
clf3678@ultb.UUCP (C.L. Freemesser) (05/17/89)
In article <8905160147.AA16219@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> RIDDCJ@KIRK.ASTON.AC.UK writes: >On Mon, 24 Apr 89 00:09:18 PST, Dustin Baughman wrote: >>I have a VERY noisy internal drive in my 1040st which is about 2 >>1/2 years old now. Is there any way to quiet it? Will putting a >>light oil on the "bars" that the head slides on help? Is this bad >>for the drive? The drive also seems to be "sluggish". Any >>suggestions? > Drives can be quieted down a bit by lubricating the rail(s) that the head glides back and forth on. However, finding a good lubricant is difficult. You do NOT want a petroleum based lubricant because this could soften the plastic of the head and cause problems. You will have to look for an industrial lubricant that is not petroleum based, perhaps something made from silicon or molybdenum. Different companies have them, so I would look at 3M first. Anyways, you open up the computer, remove the shielding from the drive, and you will see the steel rail(s) that the head glides on. Using a Q-tip, apply a moderate amount of the lubricant to the rail IN THE PLACES WHERE THE HEAD TOUCHES IT. Putting it elsewheres is just a waste. Depending on how good of a lubricant you have, your drive should be quieter. I really can't recommend a good lubricant. I've tried the Lube Gel available from Radio Shack, but have gotten only marginal improvement. Industrial stuff is much better. Chris Freemesser, Rochester Institute of Technology | What I like : BITNET: %clf3678@RITVAX | 1) My Atari ST USENET: Just reply and hope it gets through | 2) My '77 Mercury "Another brilliant mind ruined by higher education" | 3) Coke Classic
kirkenda@psueea.uucp (Steve Kirkendall) (05/19/89)
On Mon, 24 Apr 89 00:09:18 PST, Dustin Baughman wrote: >I have a VERY noisy internal drive in my 1040st which is about 2 >1/2 years old now. Is there any way to quiet it? Will putting a >light oil on the "bars" that the head slides on help? Is this bad >for the drive? The drive also seems to be "sluggish". Any >suggestions? One thing you might try: increase the step rate of the drive. Somebody posted a small program to tweak step rates a few weeks ago. Atari drives usually step at 3ms, but I suggest you try 2ms. I haven't tried this on 3.5" drives, but I know it can help with 5.25" drives. I have an old Radio Shack Color Computer which normally steps drives at 30ms (Ah, the good old days!) but is much quieter stepping at 6ms. It's interesting that Mr. Baughman's drive "seems to be sluggish." Does TOS try to adjust its step rate at boot time, or does it always assume 3ms? -- Steve Kirkendall ...uunet!tektronix!psu-cs!kirkenda