22 Jan
2009
22 Jan
'09
3:05 a.m.
Hey all --
I don't usually buy things like this, I prefer to collect parts I can
actually use on a regular basis, but I couldn't pass this up -- it's
just too cool.
It's an ancient hard disk platter, about 31" in diameter and maybe 1/8"
thick. It's made by 3M and has a label sporting a serial number and
inspection /waxing/etc dates from November of 1966. Any ideas what kind
of drive this would have belonged to? Any ideas on capacity?
I have a couple of photos at http://yahozna.dyndns.org/computers/platter.
I'd love to know what this went to. It looks nice on my wall, right
next to the IBM Microdrive...
Thanks!
Josh
22 Jan
22 Jan
3:42 a.m.
--- On Thu, 1/22/09, Josh Dersch <derschjo at mail.msu.edu> wrote:
It's an ancient hard disk platter, about 31"
in
diameter and maybe 1/8" thick. It's made by 3M and
has a label sporting a serial number and inspection
/waxing/etc dates from November of 1966. Any ideas what
kind of drive this would have belonged to? Any ideas on
capacity?
I've seen large platters like this on head-per-track disks
made by Burroughs. There's one on the Illiac IV at CHM.
I saw a similar drive at CMU that was allegedly the swapping
disk for a DEC KA-10. I vaguely remember being told that
the capacity was 512K words (36 bit on the KA-10). The
drive was designed for speed, not capacity.
--Bill
9:24 a.m.
On 22 Jan 2009 at 3:42, William Maddox wrote:
--- On Thu, 1/22/09, Josh Dersch <derschjo at
mail.msu.edu> wrote:
Could also be from one of the vertically-mounted Bryant disks. I
used to have one of those platters in my office; thought about making
a coffee table of it, but the hole in the middle was a problem.
IIRC, they didn't spin very fast--about 600 RPM. The heads were very
heavy.
There are photos and specs for Byrant units on the web.
Cheers,
Chuck
It's an ancient hard disk platter, about
31" in
diameter and maybe 1/8" thick. It's made by 3M and
has a label sporting a serial number and inspection
/waxing/etc dates from November of 1966. Any ideas what
kind of drive this would have belonged to? Any ideas on
capacity?
I've seen large platters like this on head-per-track disks
made by Burroughs. There's one on the Illiac IV at CHM.
I saw a similar drive at CMU that was allegedly the swapping
disk for a DEC KA-10. I vaguely remember being told that
the capacity was 512K words (36 bit on the KA-10). The
drive was designed for speed, not capacity. 
9:43 a.m.
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Could also be from one of the vertically-mounted
Bryant disks. I
used to have one of those platters in my office; thought about making
a coffee table of it, but the hole in the middle was a problem.
Hmm, suspend a flower pot underneath and plant flowers in it.
IIRC, they didn't spin very fast--about 600 RPM.
A 600rpm coffee table would be fast enough, I think.
There's a similar-sized platter at the computing history museum at Haverhill
in the UK, but I just checked my photos and it's a different hub mount to the
one that Josh has...
10:11 a.m.
On 22 Jan 2009 at 11:43, Jules Richardson wrote:
There's a similar-sized platter at the computing
history museum at Haverhill
in the UK, but I just checked my photos and it's a different hub mount to the
one that Josh has...
Is Josh's question a cross-list posting? I didn't get his original
on cctalk.
Cheers,
Chuck
11:42 a.m.
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Is Josh's question a cross-list posting? I
didn't get his original
on cctalk.
Nope, looks like it was sent to cctalk. It had a dyndns.org URL in it though
(Josh uploaded a couple of photos), so maybe some spam-trap along the way to
you disagreed with the URL and flagged the message as junk?
1:41 p.m.
On 22 Jan 2009 at 13:42, Jules Richardson wrote:
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Checked my spam logs and there's no trace of it. Ah, the wonders of
the internets...
Can someone off-list email me the image URLs? Thanks!
Chuck
Is Josh's question a cross-list posting? I
didn't get his original
on cctalk.
Nope, looks like it was sent to cctalk. It had a dyndns.org URL in it though
(Josh uploaded a couple of photos), so maybe some spam-trap along the way to
you disagreed with the URL and flagged the message as junk?
23 Jan
23 Jan
8:55 p.m.
Chuck Guzis wrote:
On 22 Jan 2009 at 3:42, William Maddox wrote:
Wow, that's quite a drive!
Found a brochure of sorts at
http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/text/Bryant/Bryant.Model2.1965….
(Gotta love the gal they have on the cover :)).
Unfortunately these drives have 39" platters according to the above, so
they're not what my platter came from... very cool, though :)
Josh
I've seen large platters like this on
head-per-track disks
made by Burroughs. There's one on the Illiac IV at CHM.
I saw a similar drive at CMU that was allegedly the swapping
disk for a DEC KA-10. I vaguely remember being told that
the capacity was 512K words (36 bit on the KA-10). The
drive was designed for speed, not capacity.
Could also be from one of the vertically-mounted Bryant disks. I
used to have one of those platters in my office; thought about making
a coffee table of it, but the hole in the middle was a problem.
IIRC, they didn't spin very fast--about 600 RPM. The heads were very
heavy.
There are photos and specs for Byrant units on the web.
Cheers,
Chuck
9:31 p.m.
There is a Bryant drive on display in the lobby of IT-Ceum (Swedish Computer History
Museum - http://www.itceum.se/english/index.php) in Link?ping. Sorry, no pictures.
Lee Courtney
--- On Fri, 1/23/09, Josh Dersch <derschjo at mail.msu.edu> wrote:
From: Josh Dersch <derschjo at mail.msu.edu>
Subject: Re: Help identifying a big ol' drive platter
To: "On-Topic Posts Only" <cctech at classiccmp.org>
Date: Friday, January 23, 2009, 8:55 PM
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Bryant disks. I used to have one
of those platters in my
office; thought about making a coffee table of it, but the
hole in the middle was a problem.
On 22 Jan 2009 at 3:42, William Maddox wrote:
> I've seen large platters like this on
head-per-track disks
> made by Burroughs. There's one on the
Illiac
IV at CHM.
> I saw a similar drive at CMU that was
allegedly
the swapping
> disk for a DEC KA-10. I vaguely remember
being
told that
> the capacity was 512K words (36 bit on the
KA-10).
The
drive was
designed for speed, not capacity.
Could also be from one of the vertically-mounted
IIRC, they didn't spin very fast--about 600 RPM.
The heads were very heavy.
There are photos and specs for Byrant units on
the
web.
Cheers,
Chuck
Wow, that's quite a drive!
Found a brochure of sorts at
http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/text/Bryant/Bryant.Model2.1965….
(Gotta love the gal they have on the cover :)).
Unfortunately these drives have 39" platters according
to the above, so they're not what my platter came
from... very cool, though :)
Josh
10:01 p.m.
On 23 Jan 2009 at 20:55, Josh Dersch wrote:
Wow, that's quite a drive!
Found a brochure of sorts at
http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/text/Bryant/Bryant.Model2.1965….
(Gotta love the gal they have on the cover :)).
Unfortunately these drives have 39" platters according to the above, so
they're not what my platter came from... very cool, though :)
It wasn't until a couple of hours ago that Jules sent me a link to
your photos and I knew right away that it wasn't it (my ISP
automatically bounces anything with a dyndns address in it). The
Bryant had a larger center hole and the disks were thicker.
CDC put them together with a controller and called them the 6603.
Zoned recording--the inner zone had fewer sectors than the outer.
Cheers,
Chuck
24 Jan
24 Jan
10:13 a.m.
On Friday 23 January 2009 11:55:10 pm Josh Dersch wrote:
Chuck Guzis wrote:
Wow, how sixties...! :-)
I especially like that pic of the unit with the cover off on page 5.
--
Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
ablest -- form of life in this section of space, a critter that can
be killed but can't be tamed. --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet Masters"
-
Information is more dangerous than cannon to a society ruled by lies. --James
M Dakin
On 22 Jan 2009 at 3:42, William Maddox wrote:
Wow, that's quite a drive!
Found a brochure of sorts at
http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/text/Bryant/Bryant.Model2.1965
.102646212.pdf. (Gotta love the gal they have on the cover :)). I've seen large platters like this on
head-per-track disks
made by Burroughs. There's one on the Illiac IV at CHM.
I saw a similar drive at CMU that was allegedly the swapping
disk for a DEC KA-10. I vaguely remember being told that
the capacity was 512K words (36 bit on the KA-10). The
drive was designed for speed, not capacity.
Could also be from one of the vertically-mounted Bryant disks. I
used to have one of those platters in my office; thought about making
a coffee table of it, but the hole in the middle was a problem.
IIRC, they didn't spin very fast--about 600 RPM. The heads were very
heavy.
There are photos and specs for Byrant units on the web.
Cheers,
Chuck
10:55 a.m.
On 24 Jan 2009 at 13:13, Roy J. Tellason wrote:
Wow, how sixties...! :-)
I especially like that pic of the unit with the cover off on page 5.
Bitsavers has the manual for the 6603 controller:
http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/cdc/6x00/60334000_6603DiskControl.pdf
(about 500K)
I was wrong on the speed (mental bit rot)--it's 900 RPM, not 600.
Still darned slow in comparison to 70's technology.
Every once in awhile these Bryants would spring a leak in the
hydraulics. I once witnessed an operator hit the pool of fluid on
the floor (pydraul?) at a dead run. It was pretty funny.
Cheers.
Chuck
22 Jan
22 Jan
6:15 p.m.
On Thu, 22 Jan 2009, Josh Dersch wrote:
It's an ancient hard disk platter, about 31"
in diameter and maybe 1/8"
thick. It's made by 3M and has a label sporting a serial number and
inspection /waxing/etc dates from November of 1966. Any ideas what kind
of drive this would have belonged to? Any ideas on capacity?
I have a couple of photos at http://yahozna.dyndns.org/computers/platter.
I'd love to know what this went to. It looks nice on my wall, right
next to the IBM Microdrive...
I have a somewhat similar one. Mine had been left behind when Merritt
College cleared out a 1620 and a 1401 at the end of the 1960s.
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