Head stack transfer

[logan_657]

Hello,

I just found this forum from a link and I must say it is really great and fully packed with valuable information. I have been DR enthusiast for about a year now. Most of the things I learned by trial and error. I am having a problem with a Western digital SATA hard drive and was hoping for some good advice.

Model: WD2500JS-40MVB1
Problem: Drive is clicking.

Although I didn't believe it was an electronic problem, I replaced the PCB anyway.
Result: Nothing changed, the drive is still clicking.

I am pretty sure that it is a problem with a Head, so I want to replace the Head stack!
I have a downer drive, and although I don't have any real experience with Head stack transfers, I have played with the Head stack before, and I am confident that I will be able to successfully make the transfer. My problem is that I don't have a clean room.
I was hoping that someone could give me some advice on how to perform this without using an authentic class 100 clean room.
If I move quickly, in a verily clean environment, will I be able to make the transfer without loosing great amount of data, due to particles landing on the platter?
Is there a cheap alternative for me to build some kind of box/clean area to shield the drive?
I have also read that an ionize may help, is this true?

Any information and tips, which can be provided in regards to head, stack transfer and how to setup an environment to pull this off would be awesome.

PS: I only need the Head stack transfer to read the platter long enough for me to extract the data.

Thank you

[kevin_476]

The "clean room" issue is bound to be less of an obstacle to you than your obvious (all respect due) lack of experience in replacing heads.

Head stack replacement is *not* easy at the best of times, and you have chosen one of the more difficult drives to work on.

If the data is critical, send it to a data Recovery Company like Salvage Data Recovery Lab Inc., 76 Progress Drive Corporate Park; Stamford, CT 06902 Chances are you will succeed. My friend has visited this company and he told me about his experience to this. He got his hard drive repaired very soon with no data lost. You can also try.

[street1 (RIP)]

Read the below.Same problem may be solved this way.

 The firmwares are different. My original is 3.19. The new one is 3.75. Ok, I obviously need the same firmware.'

http://www.deadharddrive.com/

 I understand you changed the PCB.The link
is for firmware notes only.

Sometimes you can hold the drive in one hand and give it a firm
slap with the other hand and free it up long enough to recover
the data.