[cctalk] Re: RD54 Maxtor XT-2190 w/one long meep

Just make sure when you torque the drive as mentioned that you rotate it in as close to the same axis of rotation as the platter(s) spin as possible, as any other direction of torque could cause the head(s) to impact the platter(s) with more energy than desirable, especially if the head(s) are positioned over data areas. Sometimes the actuator will not fully park when the drive is last powered off, especially if things are already gummy. That can leave the heads over area of the disk where data or servo information is recorded, potentially causing damage that may not be repairable (without opening the sealed area), and likely ruining part or all of the data on the drive (if you care about what's on it) even if the positioner is "unstuck" by the torque. I have successfully (at least temporarily) resurrected some old Maxtor XT-1140 (ST-506) drives using this "twist" technique. My experience shows that the technique only works a few times and then it quits working. Thus, if you do get the drive running and care about the data that is on it, before powering it up, get it connected up to a system that you can use to reliably archive the content, because once you power it back down, it may get stuck worse than it was before. I have not tried "cooking" the drive as also mentioned. -----Original Message----- From: Tom Hunter via cctalk [mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org] Sent: Friday, February 23, 2024 6:25 PM To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts &lt;cctalk(a)classiccmp.org&gt; Cc: Tom Hunter &lt;ccth6600(a)gmail.com&gt; Subject: [cctalk] Re: RD54 Maxtor XT-2190 w/one long meep It may be that the voice coil positioner is stuck due to some hardened grease. If that is the case, you could try holding the drive in your hand and flick your wrist hard several times to try to dislodge a possibly stuck voice coil. Alternatively you could flick the drive against something soft like your thigh or a rubber mat. Finally you could try to gently heat the drive to about 60 degrees C and then immediately before cooling connect it up to exercise the now hopefully loosened voice coil mechanism. On Sat, Feb 24, 2024 at 8:15 AM Jacob Ritorto via cctalk < cctalk(a)classiccmp.org&gt; wrote: