[Coco] resurrecting 5" disks

[Fred D. Provoncha]

coco-request at maltedmedia.com wrote:
> In the process of trying to make images of my Colour Computer disks, I have 
> found quite a few which howl when put into a disk drive. Even some disks 
> which have been carefully stored, seem to have accumulated a deposit on the 
> surface of the magnetic media.
>
> I know there are others who are trying to do this; what method has been used 
> to clean up and read those disks, and what success rate has been achieved?
>
> I have carefully wiped the disk surface with a moist soft cloth, and allowed 
> the disk to dry before trying to read it again, with some degree of success.
>
> How have other people fared?
>
> --
> Regards, Bob Devries, Dalby, Queensland, Australia
A few years ago I found a website that described a method of cleaning 
the surface of an old floppy disk to remove any built-up deposits. It 
said to carefully open up the sleeve along one side and carefully remove 
the disk inside. Then, you wet the disk in a bowl of lukewarm water with 
a drop of dishwashing liquid in it, and very gently rub a clean finger 
across the surface to remove some of the deposits. Then you remove the 
disk from the bowl and let it air dry. Make sure it is thoroughly dry 
before carefully re-inserting the disk back in the sleeve. I used small 
pieces of electrical tape to close up the sleeve. I did this with 
several old disks and they worked just fine afterwards, whereas before 
they were unreadable.

The website I found this info on still exists. Here's the link:

http://www.dcast.vbox.co.uk/diskerrs.html

I hope it helps!

Fred Provoncha
Stansbury Park, UT



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