Trying to fix Seagate - Syptoms & HDD deatils inside ...

[dunbargale]

Hello denizens of HDDGURU,

I need your advice on what to do with this seagate hdd. I've searched the forum for some ideas and i think may figure out what to do. I just need extra conformation or a slap in the face for thinking in the wrong direction.

Model : Seagate Barrcuda 7200.10 ST3500830AS
S/N: 9QG1K72S
P/N: 9BJ136-566
Firmware: 3.AFE
Date Code: 07436 Site Code: TK
Made in Thailand
PCB No: 100406540 E 7742UE0U

Symptoms:
- Repetitive soft clicking noise every 2-3 seconds when powered up.
- Not recoqnised by any BIOS
- Marked spot on the PCB get very hot to touch after 20-30 secs powered up.

My guess so far:
- Defective PCB, need replacement.

I've been combing ebay for such replacement but no avail. Contacted dariusale (found from some post) but he can't help me. Googled for replacement part and can't seem to find it.

My questions are:
Am i barking the right tree here? Is it the PCB?
Any suggetions where i can get the PCB replacement?

Any help much appreciated.

[rchadwick]

I bet it's a frozen spindle bearing. Can you feel it spin up?

[Odiferous]

High capacity Seagate drives are the worst drives available at the moment. I have dozens of them awaiting platter transplants due to bearing seizure.

I would also guess that you have bearing seizure.

[dunbargale]

To rchadwick & odiferous,

I can feel it vibrating when i fired it up, but i can't be 100% whether its spinning or not.

Your suggestions seem to right on the money. What happened, the sick hdd use to live inside a seagate freeagent pro extrenal hdd. I was copying files into it and i accidentally knocked it. It fell from its upright position to its side. Note: It didn't fell from an elevation, it just tipped. And it was a thickly carpeted surface. SO i assume theres negligible impact. Afterwards, the external hdd wouldn't work at all and made a soft repetitive clicking sound.

I thought it was a faulty power component in the extrenal case. I proceed to extract the hdd and plugged it directly to my comp. No luck. So yes, seized up bearings might account to this.

My next questions are: Would this cause the pcb to heat up after a 20-30 secs? And what can i do to fix this?

[jono-ats]

It's also possible that the G-Force sensor shut down the motor and left the heads parked on the drive (although it doesn't take much to ruin the bearings, either).

The IC that gets hot is the motor driver. It can't properly dissipate the load into the motor windings if the motor is not turning. This is normal and does not usually indicate a PCB fault.

Jon

[rchadwick]

Exactly. The hot chip makes it easier to diagnose bad bearings. Then again, probably the biggest clue the bearings were bad was that it's a Seagate....

[dunbargale]

Thank you for the replies, gurus. After searching for the forum, i'll probably gonna get some pro help. I feel confident about replacing a PCB, but opening a hdd or turning the spindle manually its out of my depth.

Thank you for your help.

[jono-ats]

To know one's limits is the beginning of wisdom . . . .

Jon

[trah1]

Hello all

I have the same problem and i opened the HDD and it seems that the motor is stuck or parked, (frozen spindle bearing) is there anything else to try? I have no problem to take the whole HDD appart.

thnx in advance

[wiseleo]

Hello all

I have the same problem and i opened the HDD and it seems that the motor is stuck or parked, (frozen spindle bearing) is there anything else to try? I have no problem to take the whole HDD appart.

thnx in advance

*sigh*...you opened it in unclean air, which potentially increased your cost to recover. Heads can be stuck to the surface and thus prevent the spinning of platters.

Not much else left to try. If the motor is seized, you probably will need a platter transplant and that will mean several hundreds of dollars in expenses just on parts and equipment. Attempting a transplant on a your important drive without practicing on MANY practice drives is basically suicide. The problem is that you may also need to diagnose your controller board and firmware after the drive is physically fixed. That's going to require specialty software and tools.

I will tell you what makes the job of working with heads a lot easier. http://www.wihatools.com/000twez/TWESD% ... %20pg2.htm - item 44510

I absolutely love this tool.

You may want to tell us everything that is written on that drive as well as all the symptoms you heard before opening it. Beeps? Clicks? Screeches?

You need to decide if the data is actually worth the effort and the expense of at least $1000 (I doubt you'll see lower quotes, and I doubt that you can get it done yourself for less). If the data previously existed on another PC, it may be possible and potentially much easier and less expensive to recover it from that PC.

[trah1]

Hello Wiseleo

thnx for replying, i have the right HW tools , SW i downloaded the SeaTools Enterprise.
I will buy an identical HDD and try to transplant the platters , costs about 140$.
Actually it is my Backup external drive, everything is on it
it beeps every 15 secs
I will inform u as soon i have this done.

trah

[Nationwide DR]

I take it the data not very important.

[trah1]

they are important

[Nationwide DR]

Why you doing it yourself? I think you lose all your data for good.

[trah1]

u mean i need to send it to a specialist? u knw someone in Switzerland?

[wiseleo]

*laugh*...

I am curious which hardware tools you have. No offense, but it didn't sound like you would have them.

Seatools Enterprise, which is a SCSI suite, is not what I'd call the right software in the context of data recovery, that makes your HW statement even more suspect.

SeaTools Enterprise Edition
Ideal for SCSI or Fibre Channel drives in servers and workstations. Tests multiple drives simultaneously and sequentially. This version does not test ATA or SATA.

If you had the right tools, you'd probably mention something entirely different. If you owned the HPE tool, which is absolutely required for multi-platter drives with seized motors, you'd be well aware of how to swap HDD components because it comes with a video demonstrating the use of the product.

I don't want you to cause further harm to your data.

You still haven't posted the detailed information about your drive. Some Seagate drives are even more of a pain due to non-standard platters.

The beeps do indeed mean that your motor is unable to start. Usually, that is either due to stuck heads or due to motor failure.

Based on this, I believe you will need professional help. Type "data recovery" in Switzerland's Google and I am sure there will be plenty of choices from which to choose. You will want a firm that knows how to fix motor seizures.

This is not a "Backup" drive. This is an auxiliary storage unit that must also be backed up.

It may be a lot easier and cheaper to recover the most critical data from the PC from which you moved the data originally. Given choice, that's what I would do if I were in your position.

[trah1]

thanks all for the advices. I'll seek a profi here in swiss & will keep u informed!
trah1

[kanyoro]

i think you should visit: http://www.datarecovery.co.ke for more guidance and i bet you will get an answer form East African Data Handlers.

Cheers and take care.

Gaddafi Hussein
Mombasa, Kilifi


Added by admin:
Let's welcome another professional spamming idiots: East African Data Handlers