T61p ultrabay query...

I have a T61p... I'd like to connect my hitachi 200gb 7200rpm travelstar to the ultrabay, but several listings haven't mentioned anything about 7200rpm support, so just wanted to ask you guys...

IF it would work, would the hard drive be secure in such an enclosure? without the rubber bumbers that the primary drive is mounted on ? check out the pictures in this link - http://cgi.ebay.com/SATA-2nd-HDD-Ca...ultDomain_0?hash=item27b01e5aae#ht_3696wt_939

If not, would it be safer to buy the bumpers and then mount the hard drive??

Thanks!

 

It'll work fine with a 7200RPM drive and without the bumpers.

 

Thanks for the info zaz... what about safety? i mean is it ok for the circuitry under the hard drive to touch the metal surface on the ultrabay adapter? cos they are really sensitive to static shock n all... i was just a little concerned about that, so if you could indulge my paranoia a bit, i would really appreciate it! i'd like to know if theres anyway to secure it better - through screws or by purchasing extra rubber bumpers - would it still fit in the ultrabay then? Thanks!

 

the ultrabay adapter is designed to be used with a factory HDD tray and without the rubber dampers.   the HDD tray is key in securing the drive in the adapter.

 

Thanks Erik, is this the tray you are talking about? but like you said without the rubber bumpers... http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-Thinkpad-T6...ps=63&clkid=8721420217307720438#ht_1006wt_939

 

A piece locks down from the front and secures the drive from moving. I have the 160GB 7K200 in my UltraBay and I have had literally no issues.

 

If you look carefully at the pic in the listing, you'll see a small pack of screws. The screws are for the drive. You put the screws on the sides of the drive, put the drive in the adapter, slide the drive towards the back of the adapter (onto the connector), and flip down the latch at the front of the adapter to secure the drive into the adapter.

You literally can't use the rubber bumpers on the drive (I've actually tried). There's little plastic nubs on the inside of the adapter where the drive resides that prevent the rubber bumpers from being used.

As for the drive speed, the 7200rpm drive will have no problem working in an ultrabay adapter. There's no danger of the electronics shorting out on the bottom of the drive too. If you look at the bottom of the drive, the electronics are recessed slightly. Worst case (and it's very unlikely to happen), the tops of the chips may touch the adapter and help conduct heat away from the drive.

If you want to make 10000000000000% sure that there's no chance of the drive shorting out inside the adapter, get an iPhone screen protector and adhere it to the inside of the adapter.

 

yes, that's the one.   to add to what DigiDoc said, the interior of this tray insulates the drive's circuitboard from touching ground so there's no need to take any extra steps when using the tray.   the four screws on the side of the drive will lock into matching tangs on the ultrabay adapter, essentially freezing the drive in place.

the only thing you have to do is tuck the pull tab inside the system when inserting the adapter/drive assembly.   you'll see what i mean when you put everything together.