DVD Drive Is Stuck And Won't Close


Recommended Posts

I do not know how this happened but my best guess is that I some how opened the drive and forgot it was still opened. I moved my right leg slightly and bumped into one side of the opened drive and now it looks lopsided, like one side of it is not aligned properly (see pictures below and video). I tried pushing it back in with some force, but I didn't want to break it so I stopped. I also took it out of my computer to examine it and it is obvious the one side is not properly lined up. I don't know how to fix this, and would really love to know how I can if possible fix this. The drive is out of my system for the moment until I can find a potential fix for this issue. Any help would be appreciated.

 

IMAGES

4k9E5gg.jpg

lnl2yF3.jpg

 

 

VIDEO

 

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1327294-dvd-drive-is-stuck-and-wont-close/
Share on other sites

There's a gear inside that pulls the tray in and out. It looks and sounds like the tray has been knocked out of place from the gear. You should be able to fix it by opening the drive up and setting the tray back in place. There should be four screws on the bottom then the top cover will come off. The gear is usually near the front, and it should drive some teeth along the edge of the tray on the bottom. Hopefully the gear is just out of place and nothing is broken. Also make sure the rubber belt that goes from the motor to the gear is on properly.

cd-player-tray-drive-belt-and-gear-wheels.jpg

Edited by Rigby
  • Like 2

From your video, to me it looks as though the mechanism that pulls the tray in has failed.

 

Just to confirm that it is mechanical, if you start to physically push the tray in, it should recognise that and the motors should pull the tray in itself. If when you push it in, it doesn't do that and stops moving when you stop pushing it, then I think it's definitely a mechanical issue.

 

The last time I saw this, one of the bands had become dislodged. Simply re-attaching it worked. Depending on your experience, you could attempt to open the drive up and taking a look. You should see a dislodged band down the side. Reattach this and it should be good.

  • Like 1

Remove the drive and take it apart, it's actually really easy to take the top cover off and see what's going on inside. If the drive fell off the rail it's a pretty easy fix to put it back on.

  • Like 1
19 minutes ago, xendrome said:

$19.97 - http://a.co/hBo9ng8

 

Next question... not worth trying to fix it and scratching up your discs if there is a worse problem with i t.

That's the wrong drive; the Blu-ray model is $60. It's an easy fix anyway so I wouldn't waste money replacing it.

Rigby, I looked at the picture you posted. I was only able to remove the plate from the bottom of the drive, not the top. Anyway I looked inside, and then at the picture for reference and all I see is one white round gear, and another shaped gear that both have teeth on it. How am I suppose to fix the gears so the drive gets back on track. Is the drive suppose to have power to it so the gears can initiate?. I don't know how else to re-align it. I tried moving the gear with a screw driver but that really didn't do anything. And also this is the drive I have - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E7B08MS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

INSIDE DRIVE

Ih5GOBY.jpg

 

INSIDE DRIVE VIDEO

 

Basically all you need to do is

1: Stand the drive on it's end with the open tray pointing up then

2: Take a really big hammer ( I find 12lb sledge hammers work the best )  and hit it repeatedly until the drive try is closed this may take more than one blow to complete 

  • Like 1
3 hours ago, Athlonite said:

Basically all you need to do is

1: Stand the drive on it's end with the open tray pointing up then

2: Take a really big hammer ( I find 12lb sledge hammers work the best )  and hit it repeatedly until the drive try is closed this may take more than one blow to complete 

I hope you are joking...

9 hours ago, xendrome said:

$19.97 - http://a.co/hBo9ng8

 

Next question... not worth trying to fix it and scratching up your discs if there is a worse problem with i t.

This is the only post that makes sense - its $20... move along.

  • Like 2

Have you tried using more force? Application via the fleshy part of your hand (thumb) I understand there is a very real and very big risk of damaging, even breaking the tray, but without fully disassembling the drive, I don't see another option. Might force the runner back into place.

(If it were my drive, I'd give it a shot, worst case scenario, I have to buy a replacement.)

But if it is not an option, then please disregard this post.

8 hours ago, Sharpstick68 said:

Rigby, I looked at the picture you posted. I was only able to remove the plate from the bottom of the drive, not the top. Anyway I looked inside, and then at the picture for reference and all I see is one white round gear, and another shaped gear that both have teeth on it. How am I suppose to fix the gears so the drive gets back on track. Is the drive suppose to have power to it so the gears can initiate?. I don't know how else to re-align it. I tried moving the gear with a screw driver but that really didn't do anything. And also this is the drive I have - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E7B08MS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The top cover should come off also, allowing you to remove the tray and align it in the proper position with the gear. You may need to remove the front bezel first, should be some clips on the side holding it in place. The other gear in your picture I think is the one that lifts the disc spindle up and down, shouldn't be related to the tray problem. Really just need to get that top cover off for the next step; keep looking it over and working with it and you should be able to figure out how to remove it. I would not recommend trying to force the tray back in position since breaking any of the gears or teeth would ruin it. Do you know anyone who works on stuff you could take it to?

Edited by Rigby
On 4/6/2017 at 2:09 PM, Mindovermaster said:

I hope you are joking...

Nope I was completely serious .... once one thing starts going wrong it'll be a never ending slide into fully not working better to be rid of it now 

7 hours ago, Athlonite said:

Nope I was completely serious .... once one thing starts going wrong it'll be a never ending slide into fully not working better to be rid of it now 

The rest of the people are trying to help him, just not call it quits and get a new one.

On 4/8/2017 at 0:26 AM, Mindovermaster said:

The rest of the people are trying to help him, just not call it quits and get a new one.

He can fix it all he wants but it wont be long before it will need fixing again it'll be a rinse and repeat opperation untill finally it's totally buggered I don't see the need to fix such a cheap piece of hardware nowadays just junk it and get a new one simple as that 

4 minutes ago, Athlonite said:

He can fix it all he wants but it wont be long before it will need fixing again it'll be a rinse and repeat opperation untill finally it's totally buggered I don't see the need to fix such a cheap piece of hardware nowadays just junk it and get a new one simple as that 

He knocked the tray out of its track with his knee; that's all. The drive isn't failing, and there's no reason to assume anything else will go wrong when the tray is back in position. I suppose $60 may seem cheap to you but throwing away the drive for no reason is absurd.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • The Trump administration doesn't want you to use OpenAI's GPT-5.6 without its approval by David Uzondu Image via @realDonalTrump (X) As OpenAI prepares the release of its next model, GPT 5.6, the White House has instructed the company to limit the distribution of the software to a small group of government-approved partners instead of the general public, as it has done with previous releases. According to The Information, OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman sent an internal memo to staff on Thursday explaining that the federal government will approve access "customer by customer" during an initial preview phase. Altman noted in the communication that this restrictive rollout is "not [their] long-term model" for software deployment, and the company plans to work toward a "more sustainable" distribution method later. CNN said that both OpenAI and the Trump administration view the capabilities of GPT 5.6 on the same level as Anthropic's Mythos and that government officials intend to "collaborate with frontier AI labs to develop shared approaches for addressing the challenges of scaling this technology." The latest restriction comes just weeks after the US Commerce Department decided to restrict Fable, a version of Mythos with extra safety "guardrails" to prevent users from exploiting software vulnerabilities. Not long after the release, though, researchers at Amazon found a way to bypass these restrictions, prompting an aggressive response from federal authorities. The government ordered Anthropic to cut off access for non-US citizens located outside the US, non-US citizens living inside the US, and incredibly, even Anthropic's own foreign-born employees. Anthropic now appears to be building a workaround to resolve this compliance block with an update to its Privacy Policy that introduces a category called "Verification Data" to handle KYC and Digital IDs. This setup could mandate digital identity checks to filter users by nationality, requiring a government-issued ID and facial biometric data. Who knows? Maybe in the future, you would have to scan your US Passport or State ID to prove your citizenship before you are allowed to chat with Fable 5 (or any other model).
    • When Windows 7 was released I created an AutoHotkey script that uses Alt+` as a keyboard shortcut to move a window across monitors. I have been using that script for over 15 years and this is the first time I have come across another app that uses the same shortcut!
    • I called it last year that they wouldn't end support when they said there would. There are too many people still on Windows 10 waiting for something better to upgrade to and 11 ain't it! The recent promises of fixing Windows 11's many problems is nice, but unless they deliver on those promises in a big way then I expect customers will still want to stick with 10.
    • Full ACK. I went too far adressing your post specifically. And as you said, it up to us customers as participant of the market dynamic as it happens to decide whether we spend our money on a product or not. The responsibility is to the company. In case of this price hike one could assume that MS is expecting or even starting to see a new interest in XBox hardware so they want to avoid losses per unit sold. I find it fair enough that they granted a period in which everyone interested could grab a unit for the current price (Amazon.de has a reliable stock of XBox Series X digital, which I bought last December after having sold my day one Series X a year ago). It is not that they cash up their customers starting on Monday. Cheers and let's cling to our perfectly fine hardware as long as we deem it worthy in relation to purchasing something new!
  • Recent Achievements

    • Week One Done
      xvvxcvv earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      xvvxcvv earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Enthusiast
      Xonos went up a rank
      Enthusiast
    • Conversation Starter
      Admir earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • First Post
      The_Focal_Point earned a badge
      First Post
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      411
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      169
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      129
    4. 4
      neufuse
      69
    5. 5
      Xenon
      67
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!