O2 CD tray, worth fixing?

[telackey]

My R5k O2's CD tray just started misbehaving. The tray itself moves freely (I can pull it out or push it back in manually with little effort) and when I restart the machine, it makes a pretty terrible noise for a few seconds. In the startup sequence it reports the drive is "not ready".

I suspect this is the common problem where the little white plastic gear has fallen off its spindle. I am kicking myself for having opened the tray at all...

If the problem is what I think it is, it doesn't sound too hard to fix, but it means taking off the skin. At the moment, I am more scared of breaking the skins in the process than I am bothered by the CD (I can't recall the last time I used it).

Is this worth fixing, or should I just leave it be?

 

[ReVolt]

The plastic gear falls off because it's cracked (my o2). Evidently the nylon shrinks over time, then the stress eventually cracks it. If you put it back on the crack becomes evident. A cracked gear that hasn't fallen off results in a noisy tray (my other o2). I tried super gluing the crack then reaming the shrunken center hole slightly larger but the superglue didn't want to bond and the crack re-opened. If it worked I was going to use locktite or epoxy to help hold it on the shaft. If you don't need the CD-ROM maybe just leave it alone.

My R5k O2's CD tray just started misbehaving. The tray itself moves freely (I can pull it out or push it back in manually with little effort) and when I restart the machine, it makes a pretty terrible noise for a few seconds. In the startup sequence it reports the drive is "not ready".

I suspect this is the common problem where the little white plastic gear has fallen off its spindle. I am kicking myself for having opened the tray at all...

If the problem is what I think it is, it doesn't sound too hard to fix, but it means taking off the skin. At the moment, I am more scared of breaking the skins in the process than I am bothered by the CD (I can't recall the last time I used it).

Is this worth fixing, or should I just leave it be?

 

[WMSGI]

I was having the same issue, with the white plastic cog, I super glued the cog but it did not hold long enough.

I ended up buying a replacement drive with same model number on Ebay for $10. The only thing I am trying to figure out is how the eject button functions as there is a space between it and the CD's eject button. Was there a spring or piece that goes in-between both?

 

[ReVolt]

I thought about doing that but figured they would all have cracked or fragile gears.

There are two plastic pieces in front of the CD-ROM. One is a black internal (I'll call it a bracket to distinguish it) and the other is the colored bezel that clips on the front of the tray and ejects with it. The bezel's button has a little pointed nub that sticks through a hole in the black bracket. The black bracket then has a linkage/extension that transfers the button press to the drive's button. The linkage is part of the bracket, except it's missing on one of mine (surely it crumbled like these love to do).

 

[ghost180sx]

Wasn't there an STL file to reprint the drive's gear?

 

[WMSGI]

It would be great if anyone can repost the link. thx

 

[tng1]

had the same issue with the O2 CD ROM drive gear and eventually found an ebay seller who had the dimensions close enough to replace it (5.6mm by 4mm by 1.98mm) i had been searching for ( 6mm by 4mm, 2mm), for some reason this size was difficult to find it was tight on the spindle as is 1.98mm i filed a tiny amount from the centre of the gear and it fit perfectly, hope it helps

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166818139726?var=466479577586

 

[ReVolt]

Thanks for posting this. I ordered some because I have two o2 drives needing it now and a third that will eventually.

My motor shaft measures 0.08" and I happened to have a 0.0785" reamer. Somehow this resulted in a slip fit that would spin on the shaft. It probably would be fine if complemented with epoxy or Loctite. I reamed it by hand so it probably wasn't straight and resulted in an oversized hole or my shaft measurement was wrong. I'll re-measure when I do the next one.

Anyhow, I prefer a mechanical press-fit so I reamed one maybe 90-95% through and was barely able to press fit the remaining small section with my finger. Before pressing it on I put a tiny dab of super glue to assist the slip fit section.

It seems solid and operates smooth. This is something I've been dwelling over how to fix. My 3d printers aren't good enough quality to produce such small features accurately. I though about trying resin casting but I've never done it before. These brass gears are a permanent, simple, and inexpensive solution!

I even found the screws from when I disassembled it almost a year ago!