[PLUG] backup drive in a NexStar dock

Richard Owlett rowlett at cloud85.net
Sat Jun 24 10:15:39 UTC 2017


On 06/23/2017 09:33 PM, Keith Lofstrom wrote:
> On Thu, Jun 22, 2017 at 12:27:02PM -0700, Denis Heidtmann wrote:
>> By "drive adapter" I assume you mean the NexStar model NSY-D100 hard drive
>> dock.  What should I replace it with?  I chose a HD dock because I use the
>> drive only once per week, so it does not make sense to have it running all
>> the time with such low usage.  But these things are prone to issues.  I
>> took the thing apart, and I cannot say I am impressed with the
>> workmanship.  But I found nothing that I could pin the problems on.  If I
>> can find a way to check the power supply voltages (5V and 12V) I will do
>> that.
>
> Connectors should have a thick enough gold plating to be
> impervious to moisture.  Most have just enough gold to
> be shiny and impress the rubes.  Plugging and unplugging
> the drive wears them out pretty quickly.  The chemistry
> of connector failure is fascinating ... and frightening.
> [snip]

You might wish to try a solution from the middle of the last century.
In the 60's I was an instrument technician in the Chemistry Department 
at Cornell. My boss used a 50-50 mixture of watch oil and DE-OXID. I'm 
sure the atmosphere in your home/office is better than that in the 
student and/or research labs.









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