Floppy wont eject

[MacTopus29]

The floppy drive wont eject. Is it just that the grease builded up and it wont work?

 

[Phipli]

The floppy drive wont eject. Is it just that the grease builded up and it wont work?

Likely a gear in the eject motor, it is a common issue.

What does the drive bezel look like? What noise does it make?

 

[MacTopus29]

Likely a gear in the eject motor, it is a common issue.

What does the drive bezel look like? What noise does it make?

I haven’t opened the mac yet but it makes a whirring sound.

 

[Phipli]

I haven’t opened the mac yet but it makes a whirring sound.

The drive bezel is the plastic bit of the case where the slot is to put disks in. You don't need to open the case to see it. It is on the outside.

It either has two "lips" or the top and bottom are mostly straightish.

Sounds like your eject gear gave up though. People sell them on ebay.

 

[joshc]

Broken eject gear, most likely. What @Phipli is basically asking is, which drive/machine is this? There were lots of different floppy drives used over the years on Macs, with a few differences between them.

 

[Phipli]

Broken eject gear, most likely. What @Phipli is basically asking is, which drive/machine is this? There were lots of different floppy drives used over the years on Macs, with a few differences between them.

Yes, with the complication that different drive types were used in some machines so I can't just ask "which model computer".

 

[MacTopus29]

Im not really sure what my drive bezel looks like but heres a pic. Its a mac 128k Model# M0001

 

[Torbar]

Do you hear the eject motor spinning at all when you try to eject it?

 

[MacTopus29]

Do you hear the eject motor spinning at all when you try to eject it?

Yes, It makes a whirring sound

 

[bibilit]

128k = 400k drive

seized drive probably

 

[joshc]

Yep, those need a lot of cleaning and correct lubrication to work properly, can only be done by taking the drive out of the machine and removing the cover.

 

[techknight]

unless it was an upgraded 512K to 800K setup. in which case it has a regular eject mechanism and drive.

 

[olePigeon]

The grease on the 400K drives has likely crystalized and hardened. It will take some significant cleaning, but as others mentioned, it's very doable. Just tedious to loosen and remove all the old grease. After it's been lubricated, the drive should be just fine. They're built like tanks.

 

[MacTopus29]

The grease on the 400K drives has likely crystalized and hardened. It will take some significant cleaning, but as others mentioned, it's very doable. Just tedious to loosen and remove all the old grease. After it's been lubricated, the drive should be just fine. They're built like tanks.

Do you have any recommendations on what grease I should use? I have WD-40 in my basement. If I can use that that would be nice but what is the best type?

 

[LaPorta]

EM-30L

 

[olePigeon]

@MacTopus29 What @LaPorta said. He got that info straight from the horse's mouth: 3M. They supplied the original grease for Apple, and the EM-30L is the current replacement.