how hard is it to change HDD platers

[capawesome9870]

if you do not want to hear the story of my stupidity you can skip to the end for the exact question i have. 

 

 

so the back story of my problems

 

this starts back in mid 2013

i had 2 drives a 250GB and a 1.5TB HDD

all important files were on both drives, with large files (Windows Updates, Game Install Backups, etc) were on the single 1.5TB. 

 

 

well i wanted to re-install windows (and format the 250GB).  i made sure all the files were on the 1.5TB drive and proceed to format and install windows on the 250GB.  after i am done installing windows i get sidetracked and do not copy back all the Important Data (my first mistake) to the 250GB.  well later that week i come back and try to copy back the data, only to find that the external 1.5TB was just flashing and not appearing on Windows. 

i take apart the enclosure plug the 1.5TB directly to the mobo, and the mobo give me a generic error for a HDD failure.  

 

well needing a lot of the important stuff i look up a data recovery place, and send off the drive. 

they call a few days after getting the package and say the Read/Write Heads broke [readers how common is this kind of failure?]

the Recovery and my dad agree on a price they fix the drive and place the data on to a WD Essential 2TB drive we sent over.  and for my second Mistake i asked them to send the 1.5TB drive back in the broken state i sent it to them in so i could get a new drive because it was still under warranty. 

we get the drives back i copy most of the things that are important back.

 

3rd mistake, for those keeping track, is that i am a dumb and lost part of the external enclosure for the 1.5TB drive i took apart, so i could not get it replaced. 

 

then as a fluke or just to teach me a lesson some months later in March-April 2014 the 2TB drive brakes and now it beeps or buzzes at me a few times. 

 

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as of now i do have all the data that i have backup as much as i can across 2-4 separate drives (depending on importance and size). 

there is still some data that i would like to get off of the 1.5TB and/or 2TB drives (most of the data is the same on them with the 2TB having some added files). 

 

 

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i looked on ebay for similar drives to what i have that are broke and a 1.5TB seagate is under $50, which i think i can that before the end of the year after i buy 2x2TB drives (for mirroring), but before i go and spend the money on drive to exchange platters with i have some thoughts and questions: 

 

thoughts

1. i can make a small clean room i have a good 3 stage air filtration unit (i just got this a few months ago which is what made me think of doing this hole project), a watermelon box (the large ones from walmart, it is the size of a pallet and 3ft tall) that i can cover with a fresh sheet of plastic.  

 

2. i do have some experience taking apart small things, but nothing like a HDD

 

3. i do have some old HDDs that i can take apart to get a little experience with them but they do not work and do not have anything on them which is why i am willing to take them apart. 

 

4. if it doesn't work or i brake something i will have the 2TB drive that when i get a better job i might be able to send off and get it professionally fixed.  so i might as well try. 

 

questions

1. how close to the model number/serial number do i have to get for different platters to work?

2. does the back PCB have platter specific data on it?

3. would it be easier to just transfer the read/write arms from a 'new' drive my current drive?

4. has any one here had experience taking apart HDDs, what are some recommendations. 

5. are HDDs filled with any special gas i do not know of any, but the new 6TB drives have Helium in them. 

[X1XNobleX1X]

I wouldn't bother, even the little things such as tightening the screws on the HDD right will cause problems. 

[Accidentx13]

You can mess around with the internals of a HDD but I higly recommend you dont. The screws are funny enough, taught to an tension you cant get with an standard torx screw driver or bit. Plus an clean room for the dust is another issue. There is a reason why it costs a bucket tonne for an HDD repair, they have the tools we dont, those bastards !!!

I have rebuilt HDD's before just to recover data, but the HDD's dont work afterwards, ever.

[The Crazed Child]

There is no way to do this without having access to a lab. No joke. That's what they do in data recovery centers and everyone that works there was to wear one of those HAZMAT suits.

[NeatSquidYT]

Just recover the data and buy something new, it's not worth it.

[capawesome9870]

I wouldn't bother, even the little things such as tightening the screws on the HDD right will cause problems. 

i'll just have to make sure that i tighten everything down properly

 

You can mess around with the internals of a HDD but I higly recommend you dont. The screws are funny enough, taught to an tension you cant get with an standard torx screw driver or bit. Plus an clean room for the dust is another issue. There is a reason why it costs a bucket tonne for an HDD repair, they have the tools we dont, those bastards !!!

I have rebuilt HDD's before just to recover data, but the HDD's dont work afterwards, ever.

i am planning on making a small clean room with the 3 stage air filter i have

i have a right angle screwdriver which will allow me to get it "taught" and Torqued down properly

 

do you have any other advise other than not to do it.  i have 2 broken drives that have the same data on it, and i might as well try. 

 

There is no way to do this without having access to a lab. No joke. That's what they do in data recovery centers and everyone that works there was to wear one of those HAZMAT suits.

i am planning on making a small clean room with the 3 stage air filter i have. 

also i seen a few videos Youtube and the people did not use a clean room, just a clean table and it worked. 

 

Just recover the data and buy something new, it's not worth it.

i did, then the drive broke again, so before i go and spend another $1000 i might as well try. 

[LarsReviews]

About repairing the hdd...

 

[Lioncat55]

If you have to ask you should not do it.

[asquirrel]

The biggest problem you will have repairing the platters is re-writing the servo track. What is that? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servowriter <--that's a tiny article about the machine used to write it, but needless to say, it isn't something you can build, and very unlikely you have access to a friend who has one. The servo track itself is information written on each platter that tells the hard drive arm where it is at any given time. Any time you move the platters, even if you think they are perfectly aligned, you have to re-write that data (because it's a snowflake's chance in hell you actually got it perfectly aligned, we're talking nanometer tolerances here). 

 

That servo data is the single biggest bottleneck to doing *anything* with the physical platters. Swapping the drive arm out, or replacing the voice coil that moves the arm, is relatively simple, because the platter stack can remain assembled. The second you disassemble any part of the platter stack...bad juju.

 

Oh, and if you somehow find a way to re-create the servo data, DO BE SURE to balance the disk spindle before final assembly. The thing spins at 5-7000 RPM. It must be near perfectly balanced or it will tear itself apart!

[IdeaStormer]

Unless you are trained or have the official WD Hard Drive disk platter swap procedure you will ruin those platters (corrupt, scratch, other). Its not just swap the platters out and you are done, you have to sync things up physically and not ruin any of the parts as you dis/reassemble it. Don't get me wrong I'm sure you can take it apart I just don't know if you'll do it so well to keep the data integrity, its a bit more fragile than you think.

 

First send it back if the data is that important (I don't think so since you never backed it up) to the disk recovery place, who knows they might give you a repeat customer discount?

 

Second, buy as many hard drives as will fit in your system or you can plug in externally and make as many copies of the data so the third time it happens you will have a backup.

 

Third, invest in a real backup software that will do it automatically because as you have proven you are not good at it.

[Dimwitted]

As you can see it's just not on. The tolerances are far too fine for home remedies.

 

Now for reals. Have you taken the WD out of the enclosure? Have you just smacked it one and tried again? Turned upside down? Vertically? Something that will allow it to work and at least read once. Be prepared that if it works get your stuff off it. And for Christ's sake back up!

[capawesome9870]

The biggest problem you will have repairing the platters is re-writing the servo track. What is that? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servowriter <--that's a tiny article about the machine used to write it, but needless to say, it isn't something you can build, and very unlikely you have access to a friend who has one. The servo track itself is information written on each platter that tells the hard drive arm where it is at any given time. Any time you move the platters, even if you think they are perfectly aligned, you have to re-write that data (because it's a snowflake's chance in hell you actually got it perfectly aligned, we're talking nanometer tolerances here). 

 

That servo data is the single biggest bottleneck to doing *anything* with the physical platters. Swapping the drive arm out, or replacing the voice coil that moves the arm, is relatively simple, because the platter stack can remain assembled. The second you disassemble any part of the platter stack...bad juju.

 

Oh, and if you somehow find a way to re-create the servo data, DO BE SURE to balance the disk spindle before final assembly. The thing spins at 5-7000 RPM. It must be near perfectly balanced or it will tear itself apart!

 

i did not think of there being multiple platters in the drive, the few videos i seen on youtube only had 1 platter, which is probably why they worked.  and i think that the 1.5TB has 2x 750GB platters, so if i move them to another drive, they will likely get out "sync" with each other which will just cause problems

 

the place i had the 1.5TB drive fixed at told me that the read/write heads broke.  would it be more feasible if i just swap out the arms that contain the R/W Heads.  

 

 

Unless you are trained or have the official WD Hard Drive disk platter swap procedure you will ruin those platters (corrupt, scratch, other). Its not just swap the platters out and you are done, you have to sync things up physically and not ruin any of the parts as you dis/reassemble it. Don't get me wrong I'm sure you can take it apart I just don't know if you'll do it so well to keep the data integrity, its a bit more fragile than you think.

 

First send it back if the data is that important (I don't think so since you never backed it up) to the disk recovery place, who knows they might give you a repeat customer discount?

 

Second, buy as many hard drives as will fit in your system or you can plug in externally and make as many copies of the data so the third time it happens you will have a backup.

 

Third, invest in a real backup software that will do it automatically because as you have proven you are not good at it.

 

1. i think they went out of business   i tried to call them when the second drive broke and the phone number did not work. 

 

2. i am planning on buying 2x2TB drives having them mirrored.  I will be buying them in the next month or 2. 

 

3. i do agree that i was soft, i went about 10 years with out any HDD braking on me, then fate punched me face.  now i have almost all the data i have on 2-3 drives

 

 

 

 

As you can see it's just not on. The tolerances are far too fine for home remedies.

 

Now for reals. Have you taken the WD out of the enclosure? Have you just smacked it one and tried again? Turned upside down? Vertically? Something that will allow it to work and at least read once. Be prepared that if it works get your stuff off it. And for Christ's sake back up!

 

i have gave the WD a good tapping, and it did not work. 

i have heard of putting them in a zip bag then putting it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes and trying it.  i might try that once i get my 2x2TB drives in a month or 2.  

[asquirrel]

i did not think of there being multiple platters in the drive, the few videos i seen on youtube only had 1 platter, which is probably why they worked.  and i think that the 1.5TB has 2x 750GB platters, so if i move them to another drive, they will likely get out "sync" with each other which will just cause problems

 

The place i had the 1.5TB drive fixed at told me that the read/write heads broke.  would it be more feasible if i just swap out the arms that contain the R/W Heads.  

If you can get the read head out without touching the disk platters then yes, it should work. The heads are attached to the seek arm, which has a voice coil on the back for positioning the header. You need the exact same arm, as the drive's firmware won't know how to drive a differently shaped or wound voice coil. Also, some of those arms are press-fit in to the drive chassis; press fitting doesn't make repair impossible, it just makes it really really annoying because you have to heat the metal up to get it to expand without getting the bearings (which are generally metal-in-plastic) so hot that the plastic deforms. You also can't use a propane torch because carbon buildup would ruin the platters. I'd normally say use induction heating, but using a giant magnetic field to heat metal right near magnetically sensitive platters...isn't the best idea. Hence, I say getting around a press-fit servo arm is 'annoying'.

[coen113]

Impossibru

[capawesome9870]

If you can get the read head out without touching the disk platters then yes, it should work. The heads are attached to the seek arm, which has a voice coil on the back for positioning the header. You need the exact same arm, as the drive's firmware won't know how to drive a differently shaped or wound voice coil. Also, some of those arms are press-fit in to the drive chassis; press fitting doesn't make repair impossible, it just makes it really really annoying because you have to heat the metal up to get it to expand without getting the bearings (which are generally metal-in-plastic) so hot that the plastic deforms. You also can't use a propane torch because carbon buildup would ruin the platters. I'd normally say use induction heating, but using a giant magnetic field to heat metal right near magnetically sensitive platters...isn't the best idea. Hence, I say getting around a press-fit servo arm is 'annoying'.

 

well i took apart a broken HDD today just because i had a little Free time. 

 

from taking it apart was easy enough, it is a single platter which i guess is good for someone who hasn't taken apart a HDD before. 

 

something i noticed was very interesting, it had an air filter in it.  which makes since. 

also it has a air brake in the drive that when the drive is off it locks the arm in place, when the drive is spinning enough to create an air foil around the platter the brake gets moved a little allowing the arm to move freely. 

 

when i moved the heads across the platter i did not notice any scratching on the platter itself. 

 

what i did notice which i think will be the biggest problem is that the heads on the arms once they come off of the platter are spring loaded a little and will actually come in contact with each other.  Also putting the Heads back on to the platter will be near impossible with out some way of separating the heads and allowing them to go on the top and bottom of the platter.  what i did to put this drive back together was use 2 pieces of paper and use them to wedge in between the heads and the top/bottom of the platter, making 2 ramps for the 2 heads to go where they needed. 

 

problem is i do not know if that messed up the heads at all, no way to test because that drive was broken anyways. 

also, after i did a little research, this (with the Heads) is even more of a problem because what i found out is that the 1.5TB Seagate drive i have has 4 platters (with an estimated 375GB per platter).  Even if the Paper idea works, i do not think i can do it with such a small area to work in on 4 platters.

 

 

so on ebay i found Head Repair swap tools that include a bunch of plastic 'forks' (for lack of a better descriptor) that are designed to separate the heads safely.  which will mean that i have to wait an extra few months to save up for the $70-100 tool set (because they do not want to just sell individual tools). 

 

i did find this video on youtube and i do not know if i want to try it on a 4 arm 8 head drive. 

 

 

 

although i do not think i will have to worry about molded arm housings, i was a little concerned about the voice coil being different, so i was able to find a Seagate with the correct firmware for $100 from a place that has them specifically for data recovery and part swapping. 

[capawesome9870]

in my search of videos on how to fix the first drive that broke (the 1.5TB from this thread)

i found a video that shows me how to fix the 2TB drive that i also said broke. 
what it does is buzzes when i turn it on, and from the video i would not have to buy anything to fix (unless something else when wrong, then then this video wouldn't work)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7m5cil6KezI

[capawesome9870]

well i have a little bad news about my WD 2TB drive that was messed up. 

 

the Heads were stuck to the platters (like in the video i linked above), i got them unstuck  and the bios detected the drive as a 2TB drive, but when in windows it did not show up. 

 

when i unstuck the heads it appears that the heads got messed up.  possible from sitting in a dresser for the last 6 months stuck to the platters; or when i unstuck the heads they were stuck very good and broke when i started to turn the platters a little. 

 

from what i can tell (the top of platter 1 [which there are 3 platters and 6 sides]) that the heads did not scratch the platters, but because the heads were messed up it could not mount the heads on to the platters.  the heads are off the disk on the outside edge with a ramp, because the ramp only holds on to the tips of the heads the messed up part (which is hanging down a little on a few heads) prevented the heads from mounting. 

 

 

 

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on the clean room, i did not use the giant box for the clean room, but instead made a clean tunnel with a trash bag with the bottom cut out and one side taped to the big 3 stage air filter and the air clean blowing toward me through the bag.  it worked great no dust on the drive platters.    once i save up the money to do the head swapping i will probably need a bigger bag for the tunnel as it was a little tight on arm room.