CD-ROM maintenance

[Capricorn]

This is most likely a silly question. However, as someone who feels that if anything moves it should be lubricated, is there any maintenance that can be done to the moving parts of a CD-ROM drive?

[AlienDyne]

You could use some grease. Spread it gently and don't forget to clean the laser lens by blowing it out.

[Antimatter]

I usually clean the dust out with an air duster, clean moving parts and lube with Mobil 1 racing 4T(any light oil or graphite grease is good). Lastly I clean the lens with lens cleaning fluid.

[Stu]

I would definately advise against putting anything wet in the CD drive and leave well alone. Modern CD drives spin disks round very fast, and if you grease the mechanism, my view is that whatever lubricant you use may fly off and end up all over the insides of the drive, causing PROBLEMS!!!!!

Hope this helps.

PS. I've never tried gresing a CD drive, but logically, this is what could happen.

[AlienDyne]

That's right, but putting some grease on the gears I thing it wouldn't cause any problem. As long as you do it carefully.

[Antimatter]

I wouldn't advise lubing anything apart from the lens actuator sliders and gears. After all they have been known to jam.

Nothing else important is really accessible(motor bearings), and doesn't go wrong often anyway.