3 Jul
2003
3 Jul
'03
1:07 p.m.
<snip>
Err... This worries me. How can he not know if the head connections are
open-circuit (they are not hard to test!). Why can't the cable be
replaced (I've resoldered connections inside drive head assemblies many
times). It's a lot easier to replace the cable (if that's the problem)
than to replace the head, since if you do the latter you'll need the
right alignment disk to set it up.
<snip>
I remember on my first 1541 that the drive head and cable were moulded
together (cheap b*st**ds) -- replacement was the only solution there.
I sent my drive to a factory authorized tech who wanted >$150 to repair
the drive, and new drives were about $200 and dropping. I took a wild
guess at the cable broken from the multiple head travels, and ordered one
($30~) from Grapevine in NY. I replaced the head, did a quick alignment
and it is still working to this day, 25 years later. I bought a second
drive and it now has the same problem, and I don't have another head to
replace that one, until I find a junk 1541 with a good head.
They should have been built with a film ribbon like the printers use on
print heads rather than small gauge stranded wire. Another blatant effort
by Commode-door to make things cheaper.
Gary Hildebrand
St. Joseph, MO