Drive damage

LunarMist

LunarMist

I can't believe I'm a Fixture
Joined
Feb 1, 2003
Messages
17,497
Location
USA
A component came off of the PCB on a very old hard drive and it is kaput. I'm not sure if the drive has data. How do I most easily destroy it? (I'm not the like the late Cougtek with weapons of destruction.) Thanks.
 
I'd say a decently powerful drill with a hard enough bit could easily poke holes through the drive with enough care and patience. Alternatively, disassemble the drive (most use T8 screws IIRC) and pull the platters -- if they're glass cores, you can shatter them, if not, I imagine bolt cutters would get through them. Not exactly weapons of destruction.
 
LunarMist said:
A component came off of the PCB on a very old hard drive and it is kaput. I'm not sure if the drive has data. How do I most easily destroy it? (I'm not the like the late Cougtek with weapons of destruction.) Thanks.
Click to expand...
He passed away? Or you're simply using "late" to mean it's been a while since he's been around?
 
Somehow I thought he was dead, but maybe that was another guy?
 
Looks like his last post was in 2017. I hadn't heard anything about him passing. I can see his last post was probably in frustration with another person that has since left. @CougTek are you still around?
 
I like to chuck mechanical drives off my 3rd floor balcony into the parking lot. They have to make the trip one way or other and usually some/most of the PCB doesn't survive the fall intact anyway.

I can email Coug if you guys want.
 
I don't think throwing projectiles is a good idea. At the very least won't it damage your surface?
I'm not sure about the guy named after the chipset, but thought the Cougtek was the Canandian body builder.
 
I live in an apartment. I'm not that worried what happens to the blacktop. 😉

Coug shares his real name with a well known Quebecois musician but I think I see him on LinkedIn, something I'm not going to actually look at. As I recall, he joined some sort of IT firm after trying to get by on tech work and day trading for a while. Might be that he's just moved up enough in the world. I sent him an email. Maybe he'll even get back to me.
 
That'll be nice if he gets back to you, thanks for reaching out to him.
 
I didn't know I shared my name with a musician. I was there first as he looks way younger than me.

Regarding the original post by Mooner, a gentler way to destroy the drive than what I usually do would be to microwave it.
 
Good to see you over here again Coug.

I would've bet you'd go in for something a bit more medieval. Something hammer-y.
 
Well, I wrote "a gentler way than what I usually do". Of course I destroy my drive using a 12lbs sledgehammer. Mooner wanted a less drastic mean.
 
sedrosken said:
I'd say a decently powerful drill with a hard enough bit could easily poke holes through the drive with enough care and patience. Alternatively, disassemble the drive (most use T8 screws IIRC) and pull the platters -- if they're glass cores, you can shatter them, if not, I imagine bolt cutters would get through them. Not exactly weapons of destruction.
Click to expand...

I do actually use the drill method to destroy data on drives from machines we take from customers for disposal. Drives are cheap and plentiful, no sense risking a lawsuit for saving them.
 
I deconstructed the drive using the T8 drivers. The thickness of the palleters was surprising. The MAXTOR was like this one.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top