[Coco] FD-50X Drive manuals

[Tim Fadden]

  Bill wrote:
> I have 3 separate drives (a FD-500 and (2) FD-502s). 
>
> I have 2 controllers (a FD-500 and a FD-502)
>
> I have 2 cables (a flat ribbon cable and a rolled shielded cable)
>
> I only have 1 computer (a 26-3127 Coco2).
>
> Regardless which controller I use, or which cable I use, the result is the
> same.
>
> Two of the three are FD-502. Between them, there is (1) FD-502 controller,
> one flat ribbon cable, and a round shielded cable. The drives act like this
> (regardless of which controller is used, 500 or 502, or which cable is
> used): When the DSKINI0 command is given, the drives "click" through each of
> the 35 tracks slowly, but instead of returning to the beginning and doing it
> again quickly to verify, they just spin a few seconds and display an ?IO
> ERROR
>   
Did you try more than one floppy disk?  this could be the floppy.  Could 
also be the sticky head rails problem.

> The third is a FD-500 w/controller, but no cable. I've been using the cable
> from the first 502 (a ribbon cable). The drive acts like this (again,
> regardless of which controller is used, 500 or 502): When the DSKINI0
> command is given, the drive "clicks" through 18 of the 35 tracks slowly, but
> then it stays in the same place for 4 more "clicks", and displays an ?IO
> ERROR.
>   
This looks more like sticky head rails.

Just for general  purposes, on all of the card edge connectors, dirves 
and controllers. Us a pencil erasor on the contacts and buff them up 
pretty!
Then do the clean/lube proceedure on the drives.  I be you will get them 
working.

The round cable is most likely the stock tandy cable.  The flat ribbon 
cable is most likely home made.  If you only have 1 drive on the system 
It should make no difference which cable you use as long as you put the 
drive on the end of the cable.  Tandy drives all come set as drive 1.  
The fiddle with the cable to make the drive select different.



> Unfortunately, I don't have any to test anything else.
>
>   
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: coco-bounces at maltedmedia.com [mailto:coco-
>> bounces at maltedmedia.com] On Behalf Of Joel Ewy
>> Sent: Saturday, March 07, 2009 10:12 PM
>> To: CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts
>> Subject: Re: [Coco] FD-50X Drive manuals
>>
>> If 3 different drives fail in exactly the same way, I might start to
>> suspect a different part of the system, like the cabling (the
>> connectors, the cables themselves, or the orientation in which they're
>> plugged in), the power supply, or the controller.  Do you have a good
>> way to test out those other pieces?
>>
>>     
>
>
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