PS2 TOOL DVD drive failure

Care to explain? Is there a way to adjust the belt tension?

 

No but usually cleaning the belt fixes it

 

Fair enough, I will give it a shot. He mentioned "repositioning the motor" so I was wondering whether there was an adjustment screw/mechanism or something...

 

Put a tighter belt on. They stretch with age. That's why you replace them.

 

I usually replace them when they develop shape memory. If it is tends to remain pear shaped when removed it is bad otherwise it is usually ok.
Too tight of a belt can stop some motors especially in vertical position. Also that is a problem, I had to replace a tool drive because it couldn’t eject in vertical position, worked great in my scph 10000 but not in the tool.

 

Got it, what did you replace it with?

 

I took the belt out and it isn't pear shaped. I reinstalled everything by trying to move the motor as far away as possible to put some tension on the belt. Without the drive cover (and the magnet) it works fine in all orientations, but the moment I reinstall the cover, it doesn't eject anymore, it seems the mechanism is not strong enough to pull the pickup assembly from the magnet... I guess when the replacement motor and belt get here, I will see if that cures it... if not I will keep looking for a phat V1-V4 PS2 drive.

 

I don't know if the expansion-bay motors can fit. Sometime ago, somebody was trying to locate a replacement motor for his SCPH-10000, but found that the B-chassis SCPH-30001 motor is larger...

 

Well, the TOOL drive seems to be different from all the ones in the PS2 DVD repair videos on Youtube.
Among the differences, the pickup lowering mechanism has two plastic knobs that slide in the white laterally sliding bracket, instead of the "usual" one. The white sliding bracket has two tracks used to raise/lower the pickup assembly, but in all videos I could find on Youtube the pickup assembly "chassis" has only one knob. Two knobs means more friction as the knobs move into the tracks...
I guess replacing the drive with a retail one is not going to be the exact same mechanism, unless this is a specific version of the retail drive (which I haven't seen).

 

Ok, I managed to find ONE video that shows a drive similar to this. The drive looks like the one installed in the SCPH-15000.

The drive cover has a flat black disc covering the magnet guide spindle, like in the picture here:

But it is not completely identical, as the drive in the repair video here

has only one knob in the pickup lifting mechanism.

The mystery deepens...

 

Ok, perhaps it is less of a mystery for some of you, but it seems the drive comes either from a SCPH-10000 or SCPH-15000 or SCPH-18000, still trying to determine whether it is actually identical to either of those...

 

Sounds like my post.

 

One from another drive, I usually have boxes full of them

 

Place the belt in boiling water for 5 minutes, dry and reinstall. It usually stiffens the belt and provides a temporary solution. It will help u rule out other factors. It's not usually a weak motor or stuck tray but a loose belt.

 

I thought you said you replaced the whole drive?

 

Got it, I will give it a shot.

 

Only good as a temporary test, really. Unless you work for Radio Rentals... they pulled that crap all the time!

That's more a case of the rubber going hard. It'll break down and crack after that, so best to replace. Ask anyone in the UK... something going pear-shaped isn't good

 

Agreed. I only suggested it so the OP could rule out more complex problems like broken gears/motors. If it is the belt then it will need a replacement. This shop sells replacement parts for retail Ps2 http://store.richspsxparts.com/dvddrtrgebe.html
The gears might not be suitable but the belt should work.

 

I tried to purchase a replacement belt from that shop, but they refunded my PayPal order without explanation... any other reasonable source?

 

in the case of that tool yes because it wasn’t the belt it was worn plastic on the tray and guide rails and my customer gave me a donor. I almost never see bad belts in these drives, it’s usually dust causes the belt to slip

BTW it would be nice to have a photo of the drive we are talking about. I’ve had problems with many scph 10000 drives with odd problems but almost no one here has a t15k so we have to infer from the old t10k.