Rebuilt Thomson TGM600 dvd drive but its not working

[Nier]

I bought a refurbished deck with a laser already assembled from ebay and also recapped the logic board 'correctly' with a cap kit from console5. I also replaced the dvd drive belt. I swapped out the deck assembly for the new one. I connected all of the ribbon cables and soldered the red and blue wires back. So dvd drive ejects very nicely and the cd that tested didn't get scratched or didn't stay stuck.

The dvd drive emits a loud vibrating noise and I get the pop-up that says that the disc that I inserted is not an Xbox disc. Its a cd music disc that I inserted to test the dvd drive. 

What I suspect that I did wrong is that I applied too much lithium grease to the rails because the laser doesn't stay put in a single place anymore but it moves back and forth when I tilt the dvd drive. I also didn't pay attention to the laser position before I disassembled the dvd drive. I also don't know the correct level of the disc tray. The disc tray elevates up and down while the laser is reading a game.

Its my first time repairing an Xbox dvd drive and I'm out of troubleshooting ideas.

Edit: I just remembered that usually refurbished lasers have two pads bridged to protect the laser from being damaged by static. Well the two points were not bridged and there was a lot of burned flux residue too.

[SirRedwood]

The laser assembly should be held in place by the gearing regardless of how much grease has been applied; it shouldn't slip back and forth freely. The vibration could very well be from misaligned gears trying to position the laser assembly in the correct location. Perhaps there's a clutch release mechanism that hasn't been reset? Check for wear on the gears to verify.

I just refreshed my Thompsons, and the drive tray lowered as soon as the tray opened 1/2", but upon closing the tray it lifted back into the original position. It should stay in that position while the tray is closed.

Hopefully that helps, I haven't run across that problem before.

[Nier]

On 8/19/2023 at 12:12 AM, SirRedwood said:

The laser assembly should be held in place by the gearing regardless of how much grease has been applied; it shouldn't slip back and forth freely. The vibration could very well be from misaligned gears trying to position the laser assembly in the correct location. Perhaps there's a clutch release mechanism that hasn't been reset? Check for wear on the gears to verify.

I just refreshed my Thompsons, and the drive tray lowered as soon as the tray opened 1/2", but upon closing the tray it lifted back into the original position. It should stay in that position while the tray is closed.

Hopefully that helps, I haven't run across that problem before.

The ebay seller sent me a replacement and said that the issue was probably an imbalance. I also mentioned that the anti-static solder bridge was removed from laser when it arrived. Not sure what is the cause but then again these are refurbished units.

[Bowlsnapper]

3 hours ago, Nier said:

The ebay seller sent me a replacement and said that the issue was probably an imbalance. I also mentioned that the anti-static solder bridge was removed from laser when it arrived. Not sure what is the cause but then again these are refurbished units.

I'm glad the seller is making an effort to make things right. I've had bad experiences on eBay before.

[Nier]

7 hours ago, Bowlsnapper said:

I'm glad the seller is making an effort to make things right. I've had bad experiences on eBay before.

Yeah he totally took me by surprise too. I had sent him a message and he had a "I will be out of the office until this date and will respond back" auto-response setup. So I decided to wait and a few days later he replied back. He agreed to send me another unit which was totally awesome.

However, as you said, it could of gone the other way. I would of filed a dispute with ebay for an item not as described and asked for a refund. Just take good pictures and don't offend or use profanity with the seller (even though he/she much deserves it). lmao!  ebay staff will come through.

[Bowlsnapper]

27 minutes ago, Nier said:

Yeah he totally took me by surprise too. I had sent him a message and he had a "I will be out of the office until this date and will respond back" auto-response setup. So I decided to wait and a few days later he replied back. He agreed to send me another unit which was totally awesome.

However, as you said, it could of gone the other way. I would of filed a dispute with ebay for an item not as described and asked for a refund. Just take good pictures and don't offend or use profanity with the seller (even though he/she much deserves it). lmao!  ebay staff will come through.

Dude, I recently argued with a seller who, to their credit, gave me a refund without telling me when I informed them the remote control was not working. However, it was before I gave feedback. I left neutral feedback saying I had to fix the remote to get it working because a wire leading to the circuit board had been severed from the battery terminal due to corrosion. It was in the item listing that the remote was in good working condition which means they obviously didn't test it. All I told him was please test your items before you list them as being in good working condition in the title of the listing. They actually argued with me about that saying that it was working when they listed it and it must have happened in shipping... 10 years of corrosion must have happened in shipping. Obviously they lied. It's like, fine I'm going to give you your positive feedback that you gave me a chance to change because you gave me an immediate refund but you guys need to check your products. If they're not tested then say so. Don't lie and just automatically assume that a remote works.

Man, that pissed me off. Lol.

[Nier]

28 minutes ago, Bowlsnapper said:

Dude, I recently argued with a seller who, to their credit, gave me a refund without telling me when I informed them the remote control was not working. However, it was before I gave feedback. I left neutral feedback saying I had to fix the remote to get it working because a wire leading to the circuit board had been severed from the battery terminal due to corrosion. It was in the item listing that the remote was in good working condition which means they obviously didn't test it. All I told him was please test your items before you list them as being in good working condition in the title of the listing. They actually argued with me about that saying that it was working when they listed it and it must have happened in shipping... 10 years of corrosion must have happened in shipping. Obviously they lied. It's like, fine I'm going to give you your positive feedback that you gave me a chance to change because you gave me an immediate refund but you guys need to check your products. If they're not tested then say so. Don't lie and just automatically assume that a remote works.

Man, that pissed me off. Lol.

Oh I totally feel you! I had something similar happen to me as well. I ordered a used Xbox S controller from an ebay seller to refurbish. I opened the controller and see a medium sized roach dead inside. Plus the innards of the controller (including the board) had the roach stench. I put latex gloves on and just poured IPA all over controller parts and start scrubbing away with a toothbrush. The stench was still present. Its so effin gross man. I left negative feedback and the seller messages asking why I left the feedback. I replied that there was a dead roach and the roach fecal matter is extremely difficult to get rid of. 

If I was a seller I would of replied by apologizing and just saying that you're absolutely correct. Issue a refund and let you keep the faulty device. So easy to do. Customer walks way bitter-sweet but at least the feedback will not get dinged.

[big F]

I had someone file a dispute because I would not send the item after they paid for it.   This is despite it saying in the description in large font no delivery due to size.

eBay obviously read it and refused to refund the guy until they spoke to me.

After I spoke to them they removed his negative feedback refunded his money and I sold the item to another buyer for the same money and helped them set up a courier collection because they asked nicely, a few day later.