Replacing platters on WD3200BEVT

Forum Storage : Hard Drives Replacing platters on WD3200BEVT

Hi guys. I have a WD3200BEVT hard drive and I have the problem "spindle stuck". So a friend of mine told me to buy the same model of hard drive and change platters to get the data. Data is so important to me, and warranty is still valid. So I want to get the data, then send the computer to warranty service. I found the same model of that disk. Its platters have some bad sectors but spindle is working. And I got it today. But the problems are;
-I'm not sure if it's really gonna work.
-I'm not very experienced about hard drives and I don't wanna fail.
-I don't have much money to take it to data recovery services.

And I don't know which size of hex key I shall use. Can you guys help me with that?

Reply to ahmetyv

There is 0 chance of you swapping out platters in your house and having it work or be stable to hold data.

The best you can do is take it apart to see what the inside of a dead drive looks like.

Plus soon as you open it, all warranty goes out the window so you won't be able to even get a new drive.

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Reply to hang-the-9

Oh, c'mon I just need to know how to take the platters safely. And hex key number...

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to ahmetyv

ahmetyv wrote :

Oh, c'mon I just need to know how to take the platters safely. And hex key number...

The whole point is that you can't do it safely. Not without a clean room and a lot of other equipment to align the disks.

You see anything like this http://www.masterfile.com/stock-ph [...] -Singapore at your house?

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/art [...] -Drive/177

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Reply to hang-the-9

A friend of mine did it. So I think I can do it, too. [BTW yes, he recovered the data and threw the disk away]

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to ahmetyv

Not a good idea, but it's your disk and data to try with. Size of the equipment you need will vary from vendor to vendor, pop it open and see what you need. Or do a web search for your model and see if someone has put together a list of tools needed.

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Reply to hang-the-9

ahmetyv wrote :

A friend of mine did it. So I think I can do it, too. [BTW yes, he recovered the data and threw the disk away]

I suggest you hire him to do yours. I guess the HDD makers are wasting a lot of money on their facilities.

Reply to ram1009

Don't you think I'm kinda hopeless and trying to try my best?

Reply to ahmetyv

hang-the-9 & ram1009 are correct. You will most likely fail.
Watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CA [...] re=related

If after watching the video you still want to try it then watch this 3 part video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgg [...] er&list=UL

Good luck!

Message edited by Dereck47 on 02-03-2012 at 07:34:40 PM

Reply to Dereck47

Guys, you gotta see this: http://www.aoaforums.com/frontpage [...] rgery.html

Message quoted 2 times

Reply to ahmetyv

ahmetyv wrote :

Guys, you gotta see this: http://www.aoaforums.com/frontpage [...] rgery.html

I'm usually the person suggesting DIY and I admire your balls but I think you're going to destroy any hope of ever recovering your data. If the drive can be made to spin the data can be recovered externally assuming you didn't crash the heads and thereby damage the platter(s). Have you tried viewing the content by plugging it into a running computer as a second drive? Often the boot sector is the only part of the drive corrupted and if thats the case you can easily recover your data using another computer. Before I cracked the HDA I would at least find an identical running drive and swap the boards.

Reply to ram1009

ahmetyv wrote :

Guys, you gotta see this: http://www.aoaforums.com/frontpage [...] rgery.html

As I said before, feel free to try this, it's your drive and data. Juggling live grenades while in a tank filled with sharks also has a chance of working out if you're very lucky. You can drop all the grenades before the timers are up, the sharks will eat them and blow up, you're safe.

You're really trying to find a place that will say this is a great idea to try, so may as well go for it.

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Reply to hang-the-9

ahmetyv,

The fact that you're asking for a hex key number suggests that you haven't yet opened your drive. If not, then whatever you do, DON'T attempt to transfer the platters. Instead of a stuck spindle, you could have a much simpler stiction fault (heads stuck to platters).

Reply to fzabkar