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Is it possible to get a replacement gear for my laptop's disc drive?

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First post, by Kahenraz

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I have a Sankyo disc drive for my Compaq laptop that doesn't work. After disassembling and inspecting it closely, I found that one of the gears had cracked. I can't be certain that this is the actual problem, but it can't be good. When the broken part hits the other gear, it "jumps" a tooth.

I also noticed that the yellow, translucent gear in the middle is weirdly soft. It still spins the adjacent gears, but I'm not sure if it's supposed to be like that.

Anyways, is it possible to source a replacement gear for this drive? It might be possible to 3D print a new one, but I don't own a SLA printer.

It's also reasonable to guess that the laser might be bad, but I can only tackle one thing at a time. The laser is a KSS-610A.

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Reply 1 of 4, by pentiumspeed

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Softer gear is made to quieten gear whir noise.

Easier to get another optical drive of same make and version.

Cheers,

Great Northern aka Canada.

Reply 2 of 4, by Kerr Avon

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I know this isn't what you asked, but have you considered replacing the optical drive with a second hard drive instead? You can convert your CD/DVDs to disc images, and store them on the second hard drive, which is more convenient than using the real discs, plus you'll now have much more hard drive space to use for other things. And an external DVD USB drive is very cheap, and can be used when you need to use physical discs on your laptop. That's what I do.

You can buy an internal hard drive caddy replacement for the optical drive from very cheaply from Amazon, be sure to match the laptop's make and model with the new caddy.

Reply 3 of 4, by Kahenraz

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After further investigation, I've found the issue to actually be with the motor. To replace it, I also need to replace the gears. But how do I remove and replace this little clip on the end of the gear to free it from the shaft?

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Reply 4 of 4, by Kahenraz

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I managed to pry off the clip with a pair of tweezers. I was planning to replace the motor, as it seemed to be seized inside, or possibly the motor oil had become too viscous. The motor would only spin (with great effort) when applied with a voltage between 2-3V, where it should spin freely at 1V and below.

After removing the soft gear, I found that the motor actually spun freely. The issue was that the grease used on the secondary gear had become thick and sticky. Even though I could move it with a tool, it was not slippery enough to be moved by the motor.

I removed the gear and dripped some oil down the motor shaft for good measure, before applying new lithium grease. I then replaced all other grease in various parts of the drive, as well as applying fresh lubricant to the linear rail. Low and behold, the drive works perfectly now! I even put the original (cracked) gear back in after being unable to source a replacement and it works just fine. I'm very happy to have salvaged this drive.

I made some videos of the motor before and after lubrication, to demonstrate the problem.

https://youtu.be/lGUjlheA4QM
https://youtu.be/3iRc70WfgC8

Here are some more photos as well.

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