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I have a 500GB hard drive (model - HM500JJ) and I need to take the top cover off as I need to fix it but I can't seem to find the right screw driver for it. I've bought a Torx T8 screw driver and it seemed to have the right structure but it was too big to fit in and I've looked everywhere for a way to open it but just can't find the right screwdriver online.

Picture of the HDD

Hennes
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Vlad
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  • Isn't the answer to this question to get something smaller than a T8? Or you could dremel a slot in the head that will let you use a flathead. Do you have a clean room environment, which is likely needed if you want to be able to use the platters after you open it? There isn't really anything user serviceable in there, and given that you don't have tools, I assume you don't already have expertise? – Paul Nov 17 '14 at 00:27
  • @Paul my HDD is broken and I think that the little thing that spins is stuck and I may need to move it, it's not a big deal if I completely mess it up, I do have some somewhat unrecoverable files on there but I can't spend several hundred bucks on professional services. Do you know what the screwdriver is called that is meant to disassemble this hard drive? Something smaller than Torx T8? – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 00:30
  • Torx comes in lots of sizes - could you get a set? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torx – Paul Nov 17 '14 at 00:35
  • @Paul there are hundreds of sizes, is there really no manual on a specific screwdriver for these hard drives? – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 00:38
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    You could use a micrometer or calipers to measure it, or ask Samsung. I don't think there is a requirement for Samsung to use a specific sized screw. – Paul Nov 17 '14 at 00:44
  • I just ordered a set of Torx screw drivers T3-T10, I'll post back the one that fit once I get them, thanks Paul. – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 00:50
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    Unless you open it in a high-level clean room, you might as well just toss it and save yourself the effort. The tiniest speck of dust can cause a head crash. I'm not referring to floating lint that you can see, but particulates that are basically invisible to the naked eye. – fixer1234 Nov 17 '14 at 02:28
  • @fixer1234 I've looked on YouTube where people fix the same (hopefully) problem I'm having and not using a high level clean room (and succeeding). Also, as far as I know the hard drives can self clean those particles. – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 03:33
  • Drives don't self clean; people may just get lucky. If it is currently a brick and you need to recover your files, and you can't afford a data recovery service, you don't have much to lose. But even if you can get it working again, I wouldn't rely on it. Ignoring the crash risks you introduce, the fact that it has already failed (the reason why you needed to open it up), means the drive is on borrowed time. – fixer1234 Nov 17 '14 at 04:18
  • I understand, but I believe that the thing that spins it is stuck and I have to put it in its place. Once I get all the files from it (I have a lot of heavy VSTs for Fl Studio and its just a pain in the ass to reinstall and re-download 200GB of files), I'm most likely gonna buy a new one and use it as an external drive. – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 04:37

2 Answers2

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Picture of female Line screw head from Wikipedia overlayed in red on your screenshot:

enter image description here

Looks more like a female Line screw head to me, not that I know anything about screws. According to Wikipedia Japan likes to use them on IBM computers, and Nintendo consoles. Samsung is Korean, but point being some tech companies do use Line screw heads. I'm not sure what size you'd need, but there are only 5 sizes (ALR2, ALR3, ALR4, ALR5, ALR6), and you can get 5pc sets.

Pierre.Vriens
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Hypno Toad
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  • "_ I'm not sure what size you'd need_" means this is not an answer - please post this as a comment and not as answer (avoid down-votes) – Prasanna Nov 17 '14 at 02:20
  • I just tried looking on Amazon with no luck, do you have any links to sets from Amazon or eBay? – Vlad Nov 17 '14 at 03:32
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My 1TB Samsung hard drive took a T6 Torx.

The screws on the 1 TB drive look to be the same size as the ones in your picture of the 500GB drive using the images on your drive sticker and the 1TB drive sticker for comparison.

I got a Kobalt 18-in-1 screwdriver set that had a T4, T5, T6, T7, T8, T9 and T15 along with some Phillips and straights for $6 at a local home center.

BTR
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