What is this diskette drive?

Question

I am preparing a BBC Model B micro computer for sale which has been in storage and needs cleaning. There is a 3½" diskette drive with it, which was unfortunately stored with the slot uppermost and there is a lot of dust inside the drive itself.

When I opened the case I was suprised to see that the mounting looks like a bodge. It appears to be hacked from a storage box for 5¼" floppies.

Is there any way this could be an "original" drive? IOW is there any point trying to clean it up, or should I just bin it?

This website says

In addition to the floppy disk drives distributed by Acorn Computers, a number of companies offered disk drive upgrades for the BBC Micro, including Akhter, Cumana, Opus, Torch and Watford Electronics. These companies did not manufacture the drives, but used a range of hardware from manufacturers such as Chinon, NEC and Teac.

So can I presume this Akhter drive is a (badly made) aftermarket peripheral, not an original component supplied by Acorn?

What's the meaning of 'original' in that context? BBC peripherals have not only be made by many different sources, they are often standard devices, like here, as well — Raffzahn, Sep 20 '22 at 12:03
So ' original' is supposed to mean sold as Acorn branded? Looks like not, may I send you the address of a bin you may use? — Raffzahn, Sep 20 '22 at 12:14
@Raffzahn maybe a museum would like it as an example of how things were made back in the day :). I guess it has no resale value unless there is a market, like there is for faulty postage stamps, bank notes etc. — Weather Vane, Sep 20 '22 at 12:16
It's a home computer, right from the end of the punk age, everything is unique, but not because all mixed up from standard parts out of Taiwan, but made with love in the garage :)) If you want to learn the value, sell it on eBay. — Raffzahn, Sep 20 '22 at 12:20
@Raffzahn the location on the plate really is a garage (now) as seen on Google Street View. — Weather Vane, Sep 20 '22 at 12:21
Lovely. What more embodies the 80s home computer than a weird drive made in a garage? As mentioned, I can send you an address of a bin to mail it to :))) Also, looking close this really seems like after market. Someone used a 5.25 drive bay (from that company) and mounted a 3.5 drive. — Raffzahn, Sep 20 '22 at 12:25
@Raffzahn thank you, I'll just sell it along with computer, as it to seems to represent a bit of computer history. — Weather Vane, Sep 20 '22 at 12:27
Re, "can I presume this Akhter drive is a (badly made) aftermarket peripheral...?" Looks like Akhter sold something in the cream-colored plastic box. Don't know what it was, but that doesn't matter. It's gone now. Somebody else re-used the box, and hacked up the blue plastic to fit an Epson diskette drive into it. Don't ask about the value of the Akhter box. Ask about the value of the Epson drive. — Solomon Slow, Sep 20 '22 at 12:50
It could also be a badly made "home upgrade" to an Akhter diskdrive. SS40TK (Single side, 40 tracks), DS40TK (double side, 40 tracks) and SS80TK (single side, 80 tracks) are clearly 5.25 inch parameters. DD80TK (Double side, 80 Tracks) could be a 3.5 inch drive or a 5.25 inch drive. So it could have been sold as a 5.25 inch drive. On the other hand, the date codes I can find on the electronics in the drive says 1984, so it could be leggit. — UncleBod, Sep 20 '22 at 12:55
@SolomonSlow and UncleBod thanks. The equipment didn't belong to me, so I don't know what the source of the drive was. Perhaps the previous owner hacked the drive themself. I notice the ribbon data cable has non-matching connectors, and the power cable isn't the right mate for the board, but "fits". I'll just decribe as much as I can for the sale pitch. — Weather Vane, Sep 20 '22 at 13:25
Please also double check the health of the power supply before you power it up. Old computers have been known to break down because of overvoltage on clapped out power supplies. I know of at least one BBC Micro that no longer works because of this. — Omar and Lorraine, Sep 20 '22 at 15:44
@OmarL thanks I don't intend connecting the disk drive as it is dusty inside and I have no suitable video monitor. But I have powered up just the computer. It briefly makes a low then a high tone and the 'caps lock' LED lights. But the and keys don't change the LEDs. Typing does not sound the 'bell' and nor does PRINT CHR$(7). There is the smell of something off, possibly dust in the power supply, and the computer doesn't seem to be doing much. — Weather Vane, Sep 20 '22 at 16:16
Yep well be careful, if the PSU is old & crusty you may have wrecked the computer — Omar and Lorraine, Sep 20 '22 at 16:19
“…not an original component supplied by Acorn” — Were any disk drives supplied by Acorn? I never saw any. (And FWIW, our 5¼" disk drive was Akhter — which worked fine for many years — in a case similar to the question. I could well believe someone cannibalised that case for a home-made 3½" bodge job.) — gidds, Sep 20 '22 at 23:45

score 20 · Accepted Answer · edited Sep 21 '22 at 08:02

20

Akhter was a home computer dealer, based in Harlow. The company still exists at a new address, now called Akhter Group plc (but probably not still selling BBC Micros!).

They were the largest sellers of the BBC Micro in the area at the time, and I bought my first BBC B from them.

They also rebadged various peripherals and expansions for the Beeb. The quality of these devices varied. The actual manufacturer varied over time.

So, your drive isn't necessarily badly made but it is not originally made for the BBC Micro.

I saw various Akhter-badged drives used on BBCs in those days, with no major problems of which I am aware. I never owned one.

edited Sep 21 '22 at 08:02

Toby Speight

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answered Sep 20 '22 at 15:49

Chenmunka

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Thanks for answering. I don't know who supplied the computer. It looks increasingly certain that it wasn't a poorly made disk drive, but altered by someone later. Akhter's postal address shown is for two adjacent industrial units, so they must have been rather more than a risky "back room" operation. – Weather Vane Sep 20 '22 at 16:08
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There is still a company named Akhter Computers based in Harlow that claims to be founded 1979, so it seems then survived. – UncleBod Sep 20 '22 at 18:10
Additionally @WeatherVane, back-room outfits didn't normally go to the trouble of having a Telex number, which certainly supports your thinking. – Toby Speight Sep 21 '22 at 07:17
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@TobySpeight I see that records submitted to Companies House show Akhter Instruments Limited moved their premises and evolved into Akhter Group PLC. – Weather Vane Sep 21 '22 at 07:35

score 8 · Answer 2 · answered Sep 22 '22 at 12:43

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This is the front of the Akhter 5.25" drive unit: and the rear:

As you can see the dates and serial numbers aren't that different.

July 1986 is quite early for a 3.5" drive to be attached to the BBC Micro - the Master Compact was the first official machine and only launched in September of that year. So my money would be that what you have is a 'homebrew' conversion of an existing enclosure, maybe some years later. Somebody removed the 5.25" mechanism, fitted a new 3.5" mechanism, and made a new adapter plate out of whatever material was to hand. It's not dissimilar to the 5.25->3.5" adapters used in PC drive bays today.

answered Sep 22 '22 at 12:43

user1908704

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Actually, I found a ref to the Plus 3 interface for the Electron from March 1985 and a review from December 1985. So perhaps not a full picture to say 3.5" drives weren't around in that period, although the Master Compact was the first to have them as standard. – user1908704 Sep 22 '22 at 16:08
That's not the only style of Ahkter drive — we had one in the same case, but instead of a rotating latch, it had a pull-down bar just like these drives. (To eject, you pressed the area below the bar; the disk then sprang out.) IIRC, the 40/80-track switch was on the back too. – gidds Sep 23 '22 at 00:06
@gidds I'd expect they changed the internal mechanism based on availability - it's notable the pictured example has a space for a 40/80 switch on the back, but it's empty and the switch is on the front of the mechanism instead. As I recall the older drives were more like yours (originally full height), and the rotating 'door' style came a bit later. – user1908704 Oct 01 '22 at 22:41

What is this diskette drive?

2 Answers2