C_LYONS@UNHH.BITNET (10/11/90)
Dear Apple2'ers,
I have an Apple ][+ with no upgrades except the integer basic language card
and a printer. The one disk drive I have won't stop running, ie I put in a
disk and it just won't stop running (the red light stays on). I have tried a
variety of disks including the system master, all with the same result.
The computer has seen limited use over the last couple years and just last
week was sent with my brother to his home. Could the car trip have done
something to the drive? I don't think it should have been that sensitive, but
perhaps the cardboard insert wasn't used in the drive when it was shipped via
personal car. (I don't know, as I wasn't persent at the time.) Could all the
disks have been wiped clean by some force? What are the possibilities and how
do I go about checking them?
The placement of the drive card and the drive cable have been checked and
rechecked. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance!
Charles A. LyonsART100@psuvm.psu.edu (Andy Tefft) (10/11/90)
I have had this problem on two different drives and each time it was the same problem. Open up the drive and look at the board on the top. You'll see probably only one socketed chip, (I don't remember which of my drives had more than one) but you probably need to replace the 74125. Touch something metal to discharge any static electricity and carefully pull that ic out. Its orientation should be clearly labeled on the circuit board. Carefully remove this IC (you can pry it out with a small screwdriver but make sure you do it from both ends evenly) and take it (the IC) to your local radio shack or any store which carries IC's. You should be able to get one for under $1 (if they come in packages of 2, don't worry, you might need the other at a later date). I don't know exactly why these things fail (probably static electricity) but it's an easy replacement. And if that replacement doesn't help, at least you've only spent a couple bucks.
MQUINN@UTCVM.BITNET (10/12/90)
On Wed, 10 Oct 90 23:55:00 EST <C_LYONS%UNHH.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU> said: >and a printer. The one disk drive I have won't stop running, ie I put in a >disk and it just won't stop running (the red light stays on). I have tried a >variety of disks including the system master, all with the same result. I assume, you mean when you boot up? Does the drive make the 'boot up' noise? or does it just start spinning, making no other noises? If the later is the case, there's something wrong with the stepper motor... it's probably stripped or just plain broken. It might be cheaper just to get a new (or used) drive than to get that repaired. If it DOES make the 'boot up' sounds, then there might be something wrong with the read/write head. Try using a disk cleaner. If that doesn't work, the read/write head might not be making contact with the surface of the disk. If that is the problem, you may just need to replace the spring on the read/write head (or get someone to do it for you). > The computer has seen limited use over the last couple years and just last >week was sent with my brother to his home. Could the car trip have done >something to the drive? I don't think it should have been that sensitive, but >perhaps the cardboard insert wasn't used in the drive when it was shipped via >personal car. (I don't know, as I wasn't persent at the time.) Could all the If the drive DOES make the boot up noises, then that might be what's wrong. >disks have been wiped clean by some force? What are the possibilities and how >do I go about checking them? It's unlikely, but possible. Did you keep all the disks near or on the monitor for a LONG time? Sometimes, the magnet in a monitor can damage disks. To check to see if it's you're disks, try putting them in a friends computer. If you don't have access to another computer, take the drive and disks to a dealer and ask him if you can test your disks on one of the drives they have, then ask if you can plug your drive up and test it. The person there might be able to help out if the drive is bad which is more than likely, the case. > The placement of the drive card and the drive cable have been checked and >rechecked. Any help would be greatly appreciated! One last thing you could try (before going to the dealer) is to press all the socketed chips on the controller card and, if you want, take the drive apart and do the same for the chips inside of it. Also, check the connections of the cables INSIDE the drive. > Thanks in advance! > > Charles A. Lyons ____________________________________________________________________ | | | | This is your brain... | BITNET-- mquinn@utcvm | | This is your brain on drugs... | pro-line: | | This is your brain on whole wheat.| mquinn@pro-gsplus.cts.com | |____________________________________|_______________________________|