Apple IIc+ Disk Drive Noise

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Apple IIc+ Disk Drive Noise

So after some years, I dragged out the IIc+ I bought awhile ago and brought it in.  I got it working briefly, then all of a sudden the internal disk drive started making a high pitched whining noise and won't read disks.  I have a Unidisk 3.5 drive, so I grabbed it and plugged it in.  It worked once, then started making the same high pitched whining noise and now won't read disks.  I'm assuming the problem is coming from the IIc+ itself, and not the disk drives.  Anyone else ever had this issue or heard of it?  Thanks!

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Hard to say for sure, but

Hard to say for sure, but these drives all have issues with the eject motor. The mechanism gets jammed with old grease and then one of the gears breaks. This is what usually causes the high-pitched whine that you are hearing. While it might seem coincidental that both drives would do this, it's not all that uncommon considering their age. If you post a video we could tell for sure, or you can google "sony 3.5 disk eject gear" and see for yourself. There are replacement gears available if that turns out to be your problem and you are handy at repair.

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jeffmazur wrote:Hard to say
jeffmazur wrote:

Hard to say for sure, but these drives all have issues with the eject motor. The mechanism gets jammed with old grease and then one of the gears breaks. This is what usually causes the high-pitched whine that you are hearing. While it might seem coincidental that both drives would do this, it's not all that uncommon considering their age. If you post a video we could tell for sure, or you can g

 

 

I am handy at repair.  If I take the drives apart, and clean the old grease that should give them a bit of extra life?  Any particular lube or grease to use?  I'm assuming white lithium?

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 rathern0tsay wrote:I'm

 

rathern0tsay wrote:
I'm assuming white lithium?

 Yes that will work. Have you verified that the eject mechanism is creating the sound? If so, you'll easily see which gear needs to be replaced.

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I had a similar noise from

I had a similar noise from the internal drve in my 2c+. I ended up taking the drive apart, removing the old dried up grease, regreasing it, and then opening up trhe eject motor and replacing the gear. There's one particular gear that appears to be a problem, and mine had completely disintegrated. After that swap and reassembly, it works perfectly.

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