Floppy Disk Drive Stuck?

On my CF-28, I am trying to switch out my floppy drive with a CD drive but the release lever on the bottom has apparently internally broken a gear, it just spins. What is the trick at this point to get it to release? I have had this unit for over a year and aside from this have had no problems at all!
Thanks in advance!
Dssemulator

 

I bought a used 28 that had the same problem. On mine the little white plastic gear broke that’s on the other side of the lever you turn to push out the drive. It’s easy to change…after you pull the main board out. I used my only extra gear to fix that one but I bet somebody has one lying around if you find yours broke. I did get the drive out with out too much problem as I recall but it was just a floppy so I’m sure I was not worried about damage to the drive. Like a lot of guys around here I have a stack of floppies collecting dust. Good Luck...

 

The floppy drive has an open space window at front, just look for something hard enough metal with bended end and the pull it hard. This is the only thing you can do when you are not comportable enough to split the case of the unit. It will help for sure.


ohlip

 

oooo.... Teo, this I gotta see!! Can't wait till you upload 'em pics!!

*if you can shove it in and yank it out, it's gotta be a toughbook!*

 

Give it a good 'Yank'... it'l come out

 

I didn't told him to use a sr....w bar! Lol


ohlip

 

Thanks for the suggestions!.....Being the type of guy I am I ended up "splitting the cases".....oooooopppppsss! Somehow I ended up breaking the on /off switch connection from the motherboard.....I attempted to solder two wires to the pads but may have left a bridge between the pads because now I am not getting anything, no lights, nothing....One of the first things to go in age is your eye sight, I have been peering through a magnifying glass doing this and thought I did a pretty good job but apparently it was not good enough. Any suggestions from those experienced at this. Please remember I have not had a whole lot of experience but am definitely willing to try.

Also, I do have a couple 600's I could possibly use for parts if needed.

 

outch.......Dssem...is the connector header off on the mbo. is that what you mean? Ok! if that will be the case it is possible that you damaged the thin circuit line on the mbo. that why you haven't get any power when you soldered it back. Try to look at it using a magnifying glass. Probably it broke/snap somewhere out on the header area. Let us know.

 

You did something other than what you were supposed to do if you broke something...

 

Yes, exactly the white connector (both sides) were attached to the two wires leading to the switch when I separated the covers. That is why I attempted to solder two new wires to the remaining pads on the board.

Will I need to completely remove the motherboard from the case and look at the underneath to trace the "thin circuit line"? If so, what other obstacles will I face in dismantling the board?.......

Thanks guys!

 

Also.....I was thinking, with this being a on/off switch if I did "bridge" the solder joint from one pad to the other wouldn't the laptop remain in a "on" position? Or could it just as easily remain in the "off" position?.......

I am going to look for a better magnifying glass today...lol

 

Toughbook,
If we all "did what were supposed to do" this forum wouldn't even exist.....lol
I would rather try these things and fail than send it out and have somebody fix it, I think most on here are the same, some are more experienced as others though.
Luckily this is one of 4 Toughbooks that I own and not the end of the world if I can't get it going but will do my best with the great advice I get from this awesome forum.
Thanks

 

If you bridged the contacts together it would not be always on. The power switch has to send a pulse to get the unit to power on. This is why the unit normally will not turn on until you hold and then release the power switch.

 

Makes sense.....I am going to redo the solder joint and see if that works.

 

Well, I resoldered the joint and still no power!.....I ended up pulling the motherboard from the case (a little tricky) to see the underside and everything looks good, no burned or melted spots.....
Is there a fuse or anything I can check? I have a electrical tester that can be used if somebody can assist in the proper settings and placement.
Thanks

 

Now.... After re-reading the whole thread I know exactly what you did... BEFORE you split the case there are two leads that MUST be unhooked. One is the speaker and the other is the off/on switch. you must have split the case with considerable force.... You pulled the connector off that the switch plugs into? If so you most likely pulled off all the solderable areas to which you could solder. If I were you I would look at a schematic and see where the switch eventually meets up to. Somewhere there will be a place to solder some leads to. Without a connector you would have to solder on some fairly lengthy leads... Either that or solder leads to the board, put it all back together and then solder them then. But then if you ever wanted to take it back apart you would have to cut or unsolder your leads.

You should download the schematic and go from there...

 

As I posted before trace the circuit line coz you only not damaged the connector base but beyond the that point. Halftapping where the point line was snap and into header base/ leg will be the best otion. If you bridge the two line like shortening the L1 and L2 of the switch line as of my understanding to what you want to do(correct me if i am wrong) is not adviceable coz everytime you shutdown the unit, it will turn it on again and again without end.

ohlip

 

Yes, this is exactly what happened, I didn't realize those two connections needed to be undone before separating the cases.
I did look to see where the CN7 Switch Cable Connector broke off of, this is where I soldered my two leads to. The other end I simply connected to the existing switch leads (red / white)....Still no juice.

 

I separated the motherboard from the remaining case, turned it over and used a magnifying glass (several different strengths actually) and could not find any breaks, burns anything abnormal, I did not have any intention of bridging anything merely stating in my earlier post that if I had by mistake I had asked if it still should have worked....I was corrected.

Any other suggestions in tracing the problem? If need be I will just get another 1 ghz motherboard but would really like to remedy this one....

One positive out of this, I did educate myself on how to "properly" split the cases, remove the motherboard and reinstall everything.

 

I hope you remembered to disconnect the touchpad ribbon before you pulled the motherboard. Also once you get it all back together try shorting across the power switch pads with a small flat blade screwdriver. with power applied of course and see if it turns on. If it turns on you may have broken a wire at the switch itself and your solder job may have been good all along.

 

Yes, I removed the keyboard and undid the ribbons from there. I was able to put it all back together with no more incidents. I will try your idea with the screwdriver across the contacts....Thanks for the suggestion.

 

What I mean is... Trace the route on the schematic. You may have to solder to a place on the other side of the board and snake the wire back. If you have torn off the conductive pads or traces... You mayhave to do this. Or you may be able to trace it back a little and scrape off a little of the green/yellow paint and solder there. You WILL need magnification and a small solder tip.

Tough-to-go.... EXCELLENT point....

 

OK, now I see what you are talking about, I am giving it a little break for today but should get a chance to look at it again tomorrow. I will keep you updated. Thanks for the help!