Puckdropper
You can plug the 5151 in directly. It was just a nice thing
Wed Aug 30, 2023 4:44pm

to have the PSU and monitor shut off at the same time.

I wonder if you're using the right lube? Mixing lube types can cause gumming. It's more prevalent in greases, but I'm sure some oils are the same way.

Maybe you need a "park.bat" where it copies the files to the CF card then runs "park" to move the heads to the edge of the disk?

  • The MFM drive in that thing is already a zombie - Erik_, Wed Aug 30 2023 10:38am
    Everything on it has been backed up because the read head likes to get stuck and has to be manually unstuck for it to start reading again. Lubing the actuator only lasts for a bit before it gums up again. I have everything on the CF card but I should back it up again as it's been a while. I guess I'll... more
    • You can plug the 5151 in directly. It was just a nice thing- Puckdropper, Wed Aug 30 2023 4:44pm
      • That's actually how I currently have it set up - Erik_, Thu Aug 31 2023 10:51pm
        I have two 5151 monitors. One for each XT. I'm definitely not using the right lube. It's just some generic stuff which is probably causing some gumming up like you said. I actually have a copy of the park program. (It was on the MFM drive since forever.) Parking the MFM would probably be a good idea.... more
        • Just like car oils, there's different grades - Puckdropper, Tue Sep 05 2023 4:50pm
          I have a few lubes I use for model trains, one's a sorta heavy one called Labelle 102 and the other is a thinner one, I think it's Labelle 107. You probably want the thinner one. However, if it's sticking because of the wrong lube it'd be good to clean off all the old lube before applying new. For... more
          • This is the lube I've been using - Erik_, Wed Sep 06 2023 1:13am
            It's called 'Tri-Flow Superior Lubricant'. I've used on my laptop fan as well that has a bearing going south. Worked really well. After two applications, it hasn't grinded since. It would be nice if I could remove the old oil from the 1980s + my additions before putting more on... I'm just not sure... more
            • Is it a pretty thick oil? - Puckdropper, Wed Sep 06 2023 12:57pm
              Sometimes you want something pretty thin, especially for getting in to things. (That's something that WD-40 is really good at. It's just not good at staying there and lubricating.)
              • Its actually very thin - Erik_, Wed Sep 06 2023 11:05pm
                Almost has the consistency of gasoline.. smells terrible too. The 'PTFE' in the label is basically teflon. I looked up the wikipedia page and it looks like PTFE is also used in bearings so I guess it's the right stuff? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polytetrafluoroethylene My guess is that it's probably... more
"Forces act when not restrained" - Puckdropper