TEAC 55S. Time for a new drive?

[Mogul]

I have been running a SCSI TEAC 55S for a few years now. Within the last week I've begun having problems with burns. Other PCs, even the burn drive, can see the directory and file names, but some files refuse to open. Also, when you hold the burned CD to the light, the burned portion is not as notable as it once was.
I suspect my laser diode is going. Any way to repair? I love this burner, hate to part with it if repairable.
Do they sell parts so I can do it myself?
Thanks!
Mogul

[Dartman]

If your brave you can take it apart and clean the laser lense very gently with something very soft and it might help. My Friends old 2x Ricoh was doing the same thing and when I got it apart the lense was cloudy looking from dirt and age. I cleaned it with some very soft cotten and alcohol and it worked as good as new again. We figured it was all ready pretty much dead so I couldn't really do any more damage to it but it worked out well. He'd all ready replaced it with a 8x Plex so he sold it for 100 and I guess it work OK for th new owner too.
If the laser really is dying you can't really damage it much more.
I hated going IDE too but with new boards with tons of IDE ports and DMA they work just as good as our old standbys and are mega fast now.

[CDRecorder]

Before opening the drive, try another brand of discs. Bad discs could cause this problem.

Dartman was correct; going to IDE drives won't be a problem. Current IDE ports are more than capable of handling the speed needed by today's latest burners.

[Mogul]

I considered the dirt angle, if onlt briefly. I just hadn't taken seriously the thought of tearing the unit apart without some sort of guide on how to do it. But, I have another burning (IDE, and yes they are fast) so no loss if something goes south.
Thanks for the feedback.
Mogul

If your brave you can take it apart and clean the laser lense very gently with something very soft and it might help. My Friends old 2x Ricoh was doing the same thing and when I got it apart the lense was cloudy looking from dirt and age. I cleaned it with some very soft cotten and alcohol and it worked as good as new again. We figured it was all ready pretty much dead so I couldn't really do any more damage to it but it worked out well. He'd all ready replaced it with a 8x Plex so he sold it for 100 and I guess it work OK for th new owner too.
If the laser really is dying you can't really damage it much more.
I hated going IDE too but with new boards with tons of IDE ports and DMA they work just as good as our old standbys and are mega fast now.

[Dartman]

Usually if your slightly mechanicly inclined you can look at the layout after you get the case open and see if you can just get at the laser or if you have to tear it down further. A lot of times you will have to undo and remove some circuit boards and a few cables to get at it, most of the time it's all keyed so you can put it all back together OK. If you have to remove any gears just note how they are arranged and put them back the same way.
Hopefully all you'll need to do is just open the case and the laser will be right where you can reach it. I think the Ricoh was easy to get at. My dvd drive I popped open when it died I had to take out a circuit board and remove 2 cables to get at it, but it was easy to tell how it went back together. It was dead however and it worked the same after I was done.