Ricoh CD-RW - Grease those rails!

[Kato]

If you have a problem Ricoh writer, don't throw it out. I read about the lack of lubrication on the rail of the writers and gave it a try on my out of warrenty MP7040A that was producing bunch of coasters. It's like buying a new writer. I just burned 10 CD-Rs and RWs, data and audio, w/o buffering on HD and no errors. The lubrication process only takes about 30 mins. Use a very thin coat of electronic oil/grease on the rail.

 

[Zoinks]

My 7040 just stopped working. This sounds like its worth a try.

What exactly is electronic oil/grease? Can I get it at Radio Shack?
What is the rail? The moving thing that the lens is on? How did you get to it? Did you open up the drive or just try to lube it through the door?

Thanks! Great advice!

 

[4824guy]

Here is some info that was posted here about that topic recently.



"Some Ricoh drives had a problem with lubrication of the worm drive for the laser carriage. My MP7040 worked fine for about eight months, then gave me buffer underrun errors, usually toward the end of the burn. I lubed it and have not gotten any errors since. If you are brave, you can try it. There are four screws on the bottom. One is covered by a tamper sticker, but if your drive is out of warranty, don't worry about it. (You can put some naptha or lighter fluid on it and peel it up part way to reach the screw if you prefer.)
> >Remove the bottom, then remove the front panel (it unsnaps) and remove
> >the upper case. There is a flat plate held by two small screws near the
> >center of the drive. Remove it. Slide the tray out and look along the
> >side of the laser carriage and you will see what looks like a long
> >screw. It is hidden under a bracket, but you can reach it with a Q-tip.
> >
> >Lubricate it with something like Teflon Lube Gel, available at Radio
> >Shack (Tandy). You don't need very much. Put the drive back together,
> >then play back a "full" audio CD and run it between the first and last
> >tracks to distribute the lube. This may solve your problem."

 

[CalebTG]

Interesting! worth a try -- got a MP7040A that bit the dust, it was getting buffer underruns at the end of burns, then just game me power calaberation erros.

and the drive DID work fine at 6x before the errors

 

[Zoinks]

Bought some lube from Radio Shack. Works fine now. Too bad I bought a new Plextor.

By the way, thanks a lot Kato.

 

[Kato]

My Ricoh works with the 7060 hack now. Burns fine at 6x on those cheap PNYs and Office Depot 80 min. CD-Rs with both data and audio. It works now with Nero, WinOnCD, EzCDC, and CloneCD.

 

[Homebrew]

This problem has been going on with Memorex 1622's (2x2x6) for awhile now. Applied the rail fix over a year ago and again just last week. Drive is about 3 years old and still going strong.

While your at it, clean the lens (I used alcohol and cotton but there are probably safer materials to use) especially if there is a smoker in the house.

 

[mastertech01]

Great tips, thanks for the information, Ill be sure to copy this thread for future repairs..