A couple of RL02 questions

[Mark J. Blair]

> On Jan 28, 2018, at 20:56, Marc Howard via cctalk <cctalk at classiccmp.org> wrote:
> 
> I've got two RL02 units.  One is a parts unit and has an access plate for
> the door solenoid.  I can open it.  The other has no access plate nor is
> there a cutout for one.  How do I open this cover with the power off?  This
> is a newer unit as it has head lock screws on the bottom of the drive.

All of my RL02 drives are the ones without the solenoid access covers. They're still easy to open without power. Loosen the four screws holding down the rear portion of the plastic top cover. Lift it up a bit where it and the door are hinged together, and then you should be able to unlatch the door. You should only need to lift it a quarter inch or so to let the door latch clear the interlock solenoid pin.

If I recall correctly, the screws on the bottom are to keep the spindle motor from bouncing around. The heads are locked in place by a little metal plate in the disk cartridge compartment, which blocks them from sliding out of the parked position. Loosen the single screw holding the plate in place, then rotate it 90 degrees to cover or uncover the ends of the heads.


> The second question has to do with rack mounting.  I want to mount this in
> a H960 cabinet but will obviously need to slide it out to replace packs.
> All the unit has is a thin rail on both sides that is riveted to the unit.
> It looks like chassis slides were there originally.  Does anyone have
> either the DEC part # for the slides or a contemporary part # for one that
> will work?

There are rails which bolt into the rack, and then the drive sits on top of the rails using those sheet metal brackets riveted onto the sides of the drive. I don't have any spares; I don't even have enough for all of my drives. I may be able to dig up the part numbers if somebody else doesn't pipe up first. They're listed in the maintenance prints. I am not aware of any generic modern rails which work at this time.

In my VAX-11/730, the RL02 is installed at the very top of the short rack (which doesn't have a top cover), so it is accessible without sliding it out of the rack. It still has the slides, but it's normally strapped in place by a shipping hook at the back of the rack. I've thought about making a top which rests on the side panels of the rack and removing the shipping hook, so I can set stuff (such as a terminal?) on top of the system and then slide out the drive to change packs.

Good luck!


-- 
Mark J. Blair, NF6X <nf6x at nf6x.net>
http://www.nf6x.net/