Strange Screws

In article , RP wrote:


wrote:
I'm looking for a 5-point star shaped screwdriver. I bought a Seagate
80GB external hard drive. Its case uses these special screws. I shot a
picture of a screw he

http://www.gearhack.com/Forums/Tool/..._Screw.files.h
idden/5-point%20star.jpg

Does anyone know where I can find a screwdriver for these screws?
Thanks.

At any decent hardware or home supply store. It's called a Torx screw.
Typically an allen wrench will work just fine in the absence of a Torx
screw driver.

Bzzzt! Thanks for playing. That's _not_ a Torx screw. Torx screws are
six-pointed, not five-pointed as described and shown.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

In article , "Handi" wrote:
I'd dare to guess that if this fellow doesn't recognize a Torx screw
that he isn't aware that he should never open a hard drive.

I guess you can't recognize one either. :-) What he has is not a Torx screw.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

wrote:

I'm looking for a 5-point star shaped screwdriver. I bought a Seagate
80GB external hard drive. Its case uses these special screws. I shot a
picture of a screw he
http://www.gearhack.com/Forums/Tool/...int%20star.jpg

Does anyone know where I can find a screwdriver for these screws?
Thanks.


I'm not sure now if it was Radio Shack or Sears-- but I bought a $20
set that has about a dozen tips for jeweler's sized unusual screw
heads. There are a couple Torx Plus tips in there & I've taken apart
a bunch of hard drives with them. [I've been taking them apart to
play with the magnets--- not as strong as I expected in the newer
drives]

Curiosity got the best of me-- this isn't my set, but Sears has this
18pc set for $20;
Sears item #00941709000 Mfr. model #63518
[no torx plus but a T6, T7, T8, & T9 size Torx]

Ah -- Here it is- Radio Shack, $15
Model: 64-2973
Catalog #: 64-2973
Kronus 20-Piece Electronics Bit-Driver Set

1 x Ergonomic Anti-Static Handle
4 x Slotted Bits (2, 2.5, 3, and 4mm)
2 x Phillips Bits (#00, and #0)
5 x Torx Bits (T-6, T-7, T-8, T-9, and T-10)
3 x Hex Bits (1.5, 2, and 2.5mm)
2 x POZI Bits (#00, and #0)
3 x Hex Round Ball Bits (1.5, 2, 2,5mm)
1 x Plastic Carrying Case

Especially for such an inexpensive set is is pretty well built except
for the cheap plastic case.

Jim

Cough! I said class 1 not class 100!

Sure a drive will function for a while with the case off, but it will die
soonish (maybe a few days or weeks, but it will die).

If OTOH all you are doing is extracting the magnets from old drives - then
go right on ..

Dave
"Odie Ferrous" wrote in message
...
"David C. Partridge" wrote:

Hmmmm why do you want to open the case of the drive? If you open it
outside a class 1 clean room, the drive WILL die.

Or are you talking about the drive mounting screws?

Perhaps the drive already *is* dead.

Don't overestimate clean rooms - they contain 100 particles per cubic
meter as opposed to an "average" room containing 600 particles. A
"clean" "average" room will contain far less than the 600 particles.

For what it's worth, I've had a drive running non-stop for over a week
without its cover (platters exposed) and haven't had any hiccups. This
hype about "clean rooms" is a load of drivel.

There are those who will say "if you get one single particle of dust on
your platters, your drive will be irretrievably damaged."

Bollox. And bollox to FR, who will no doubt disagree.


Odie
--
Retrodata
www.retrodata.co.uk
Globally Local Data Recovery Experts

"Doug Miller" wrote in message
In article , "Handi" wrote:
I'd dare to guess that if this fellow doesn't recognize a Torx screw
that he isn't aware that he should never open a hard drive.

I guess you can't recognize one either. :-)

The same to you.

What he has is not a Torx screw.

Yes it is, as someone else showed from the Wiha page.

Don't overestimate clean rooms - they contain 100 particles per cubic
meter as opposed to an "average" room containing 600 particles. A
"clean" "average" room will contain far less than the 600 particles.


Well, having managed a real clean room , you are way off base. First of all,
the particle count is per cubic foot. Clean rooms are classified by
the sustained particle count averaged around the entire room.

The average count in a typical home/office/light industrial room is about
500,000 particles per cubic foot, and the particlas are quite large (several
microns or tens of microns).

The first level of clean room we define is a class 100,000. This isn't a real
hard level to achieve and can sometimes be done without real expensive HEPA
filters if the working conditions are clean enough. The Space Shuttle high bay
room is maintained at class 100,000 (my experience is with NASA).

The next level is a class 10,000, which certainly requires a high level of
filtering and monitering with special clothing for the occupants. Next comes a
class 1000 which is getting serious. You are into laminar flow air systems and
special training for the people.

Computer chips are assembled in class 100 or even class 10 (!) rooms, since a
single particle can ruin a product. At this level, even the way you move can
disturb the room's particle count. Everyone is trained to move slowly and be
aware of where the downwash from the airflow over your body goes.

By this level, the particle size is usually measured at a much smaller,
sub-micron level also. A single small tear in a HEPA filter can take the room
out of spec for quite some time, requiring a long, slow damp swabbing of all
surfaces.

Dennis

"Odie Ferrous" wrote in message
...
"David C. Partridge" wrote:

Hmmmm why do you want to open the case of the drive? If you open it
outside a class 1 clean room, the drive WILL die.

Or are you talking about the drive mounting screws?

Perhaps the drive already *is* dead.

Don't overestimate clean rooms - they contain 100 particles per cubic
meter as opposed to an "average" room containing 600 particles. A
"clean" "average" room will contain far less than the 600 particles.


you could contruct a clean box to stifle the clean room naybobs

somewhere, (i am looking for link in my encyclopedic favorites), on web
there was a design plan for clean room box involving a sturdy cardboard box
, spray contact cement, largish HEPA filter, shop vac, heavy ~ 5mil clear
plastic, duct tape then some spray either anti-static or water mist ? can't
remeber

well most could probably figure out how this stuff was used the only trick
was purging of contaminates when it was exposed when opening the box



For what it's worth, I've had a drive running non-stop for over a week
without its cover (platters exposed) and haven't had any hiccups. This
hype about "clean rooms" is a load of drivel.

There are those who will say "if you get one single particle of dust on
your platters, your drive will be irretrievably damaged."

Bollox. And bollox to FR, who will no doubt disagree.


Odie
--
Retrodata
www.retrodata.co.uk
Globally Local Data Recovery Experts

writes:

I'm looking for a 5-point star shaped screwdriver. I bought a Seagate
80GB external hard drive. Its case uses these special screws. I shot a
picture of a screw he
http://www.gearhack.com/Forums/Tool/...int%20star.jpg

Does anyone know where I can find a screwdriver for these screws?
Thanks.

In my opinion, someone should be arrested for using these things.

Do a google search for 'star screwdriver computer'.
You'll get lots of hits.

wrote:
I'm looking for a 5-point star shaped screwdriver. I bought a Seagate
80GB external hard drive. Its case uses these special screws. I shot a
picture of a screw he
http://www.gearhack.com/Forums/Tool/...int%20star.jpg

Does anyone know where I can find a screwdriver for these screws?
Thanks.

Chieh
--
Hacking Digital Cameras -
http://www.camerahacker.com/books/Ha...gital_Cameras/


Well, the other posters who called it a Torx were almost on the mark.
What you have there is a Torx Plus which is marketed as a tamper
resistant screw and this time Textron has put some actual controls upon
the distribution of the tools needed to work properly with them. Guess
they learned that everyone and their brother was selling the regular
six-pointed Torx tools thus depriving them of any security benefits.
Same thing with the Tamper Torx which was identical but which had a pin
in the center of the star but which, once the pin was snapped off or the
tool had a hole drilled in the tip, was easily removed.

If you want to buy Torx Plus tools you must, in theory anyway, be a
legitimate user as defined by Textron although if you know anyone who
works with them they should be pretty easily obtained at the cost of a
case of beer. ;-)

http://www.textronfasteningsystems.c...lus/index.html

--
John McGaw
[Knoxville, TN, USA]
http://johnmcgaw.com

Handi wrote:
I'd dare to guess that if this fellow doesn't recognize a Torx screw
that he isn't aware that he should never open a hard drive.

Torx screws are seldom used for no other purpose then to keep the prying
eyes of consumers from sensitive stuff. Thats why they're used in
elevators.

My son has actually opened a defective laptop hard drive before and
amazingly it still functioned, for only a short time. Now its a
paperweight.

Handi


Hi,
Many will make one good drive from two bad ones. Some fails in
electronics part some fails in mechanical part.
Tony