By this point in time, I'm sure you've already heard this a bajillion times, so here are the pertinent details:

0) I know, backup, backup, backup. That's the problem. This WAS the backup.
1) Goddamn Tornado series.
2) Platters/spindle seem fine. No abnormal noises.
3) Tried the freezer trick, since it was making clicking noises at first, like a stuck spindle. Problem now attributed to the external enclosure's board being the culprit. Deduced by hooking it up to my trusty USB-to-SATA/IDE adapter, where it would spin up and sound healthy.
4) Goddamn Tornado.
5) Was able to read files for a little bit at first, but again, only about 32 cylinders' worth at a time, then spin-up loop.
6) Reads to 32 cylinders, then stops, and re-spins-up.
7) No, I don't have another PCB to act as a donor board.
Tried the eraser/Brasso trick on the board's contacts. No dice.
9) Failing a donor PCB, who to contact for data recovery? OnTrack still good?
10) Did I mention, Goddamn Tornado?
11) No camera on-hand to take photo of the foam/PCB right this moment. Photo is forthcoming, but the foam is pretty "dirty"? "burnt"? PCB is scorchmark-free, thank prime.

Any help, from reprogramming the board, to a donor PCB would be appreciated.

PCB "can" be 5 out of 100, the problem is 95% internal as "6) Reads to 32 cylinders, then stops, and re-spins-up."
I would think about something else, diagnose with dedicated equipment would be certain and fail-proof but I don't think you want to spend thousands of $ on this.
In California (or near) there are quite many qualified members of this forum who can help you and (cross fingers) if things are on the good side recovery cost will be in the lower end, but before all a proper diagnose is needed.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!! FREEZER TRICK!!

_________________
PC Image Data Recovery
http://www.pcimage.co.uk

New!! HDD-PCB.COM for all your PCB and donor HDD requirements!

*cringes* I take it that someone has had a bad experience, with someone leaving the drive in the freezer until it was crusted with ice?

Place a metallic object in the freezer overnight and observe it carefully the next morning. Do a bit of research on the internals of a hard drive's workings and voila, you have your answer

_________________
Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily.
Data Recovery Cape Town

Yeah, that sounds about right. --;

15 minutes tops, I swear! I promise that I know what I'm doing! (Most of the time!)

Well let me tell you some guy brought me a drive in a panic and told me he had to come right now. After he arrived the drive was nicely wrapped up and he took it out of a cooler. I unwrapped it only to find that I had a mess with this one from being frozen. I finally got all data off this HDD but guess what it only took me 56 days to do it in. The reading and cloning was so slow and the freezer did not help at all on this one. Heads were fine but there was so much platter damage that is what took the time to clone it. I would not make a freezer my top choice in fixing a HDD or trying to get access to my data. If you want to cool off your HDD there is fans that you can use to keep it cool when working on it.

Where are you in CA let me know. I am visiting and here in CA in SD area and thatdellguy is in LA. From sound of this does not seem like you will need a pcb board reprogrammed you need a special tool so that the the HDD can be tested and the real problem determined. The real problem has to be fixed before you can get off data and a special tool to read the SA and the HDD to test it has to be used to do this one with.

BTW not sure how long I will be here should be leaving in the next week or two to go home to the islands depends on my Dad right now but things are looking good

_________________
Iorana Haraharaini