drive rejecting discs

[gorgyrip]

When I insert a wii game, the console ejects it.
I opened the drive and the issue is that the spindle won't go down. I have to press the middle pole of the drive to make it work.
Gamecube discs work fine.
The metallic top part of the drive is working, because it was tested in another drive.

Here's a video with the same problem. For him it just started working.


Any tips?

 

[JuanMena]

Yes, you could either get another drive or just bend the middle piece that makes pressure on the disc to fix your problem.

It will also reduce noise.

EDIT: If I'm not mistaken the disc drive uses phillips screws, so it should be pretty straight forward, with the exception of the Tri-Wing screws holding the Wii's case.

 

[gorgyrip]

I've just tried that and it doesn't work.

 

[SylverReZ]

Softmod your console, you don't need to use the disc drive once you've loaded plenty of games on an external HDD or USB flash storage.

 

[gorgyrip]

Softmod your console, you don't need to use the disc drive once you've loaded plenty of games on an external HDD or USB flash storage.

That's not the point.

 

[SylverReZ]

That's not the point.

Disc drives will wear out overtime, plus buying a refurbished drive costs a heck of a lot of money.

 

[morning_glory]

Try going crazy with WD-40
Just clean & dry up the drips/puddles before fully closing it up, & enjoy the smell of WD-40 for a while.

 

[gorgyrip]

After a lot of parts swapping, i found the culprit.
On the right side of the drive, there are four gears under a white plastic mechanism. It's the biggest one, the one closest to the belt.
I'll compare it later with a working one under the microscope. Under the naked eye it seem fine.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

After a lot of parts swapping, i found the culprit.
On the right side of the drive, there are four gears under a white plastic mechanism. It's the biggest one, the one closest to the belt.
I'll compare it later with a working one under the microscope. Under the naked eye it seem fine.

If you find out what is the problem on the part please tell (and possibly upload a picture).

That video went nowhere. "It suddenly works again and I don't know why?!" Unsatisfactory for the viewer.
And then YouTube recommended me watching people polishing(?) discs with banana peels.

Slot-in drives are pretty complex from mechanical side, especially the Wii with the ability to center 8cm discs. Almost (not quite) as looking into a VHS recorder.

 

[gorgyrip]

If you find out what is the problem on the part please tell (and possibly upload a picture).

That video went nowhere. "It suddenly works again and I don't know why?!" Unsatisfactory for the viewer.
And then YouTube recommended me watching people polishing(?) discs with banana peels.

Slot-in drives are pretty complex from mechanical side, especially the Wii with the ability to center 8cm discs. Almost (not quite) as looking into a VHS recorder.

I don't know where to get a replacement gear.

 

[Sonic3320]

I opened the drive and the issue is that the spindle won't go down.

I had the same issue with discs being rejected multiple times.

I slightly bent this piece to force the spindle to be slightly closer to the disk and it seems that it worked. I thought it was the rubber belt since many DVD drives get faulty when the belt is worn out but mine was good. I think that the top spindle magnet was having trouble getting closer to the bottom motor, with the entire outer shell of the console being metal.

 

[gorgyrip]

I had the same issue with discs being rejected multiple times.

View attachment 382490
I slightly bent this piece to force the spindle to be slightly closer to the disk and it seems that it worked. I thought it was the rubber belt since many DVD drives get faulty when the belt is worn out but mine was good. I think that the top spindle magnet was having trouble getting closer to the bottom motor, with the entire outer shell of the console being metal.

I,ve tried that but it didn't work for me

 

[JuanMena]

I don't know where to get a replacement gear.

Oh, looks like wear and tear... you should be able to find spare plastic gears in old DVDs

I still have bunch (literally bunch) of unused DVDs that might use later for spare parts.

Fortunately, I've rarely used my disc drive zince 2008 because again, softmod prevents wearing down physical parts, but that's just me.

You sure is that one gear?

 

[gorgyrip]

Oh, looks like wear and tear... you should be able to find spare plastic gears in old DVDs

I still have bunch (literally bunch) of unused DVDs that might use later for spare parts.

Fortunately, I've rarely used my disc drive zince 2008 because again, softmod prevents wearing down physical parts, but that's just me.

You sure is that one gear?

I had many pc cdroms, but i've throwed them a long time ago.
Yes, in my case it was that gear. I used one from a drive with the motherboard really corroded. But I plan to fix that, too, in the future.
This lot of consoles was beat up. I think the drive was opened by force to recover a forgotten disc...

 

[morning_glory]

Try a very gentle manicure on the rough bits. Also, reposition the gear to different (or several) starting points/positions, & add a little sticky lubricant (goo).
Could also be more than one gear worn/damaged.