Opening & Destroying Hard Drive open HDD internal parts

An old Hard Drive that had failed me. I decided to take it apart and ruin the platters before throwing out.

The screwdriver set can be found here:

[gregseckinger]

I was allowed to take one apart by the IT dept at work one day so it could be destroyed. I got to the platters and I kept the magnets. I'd like to take another apart so I can get more magnets.

[hammerchisel]

Grind the whole surface of the bare platter to remove the ferrite coating then cut the platters into quarters. Did mine with an angle grinder.

[mika]

Dude, these tiny screws are so tight I cant even open them

[TobiasGamerPrime]

I do this for new magnets. It’s a great source for a few small ones which are useful. Obvs only if the HDD goes bad. I currently have two. And I swear Google listens to me because I said to my wife I’m taking the magnets out of them and then 30 mins later a suggestion on how to open a hdd

[yeshialemu]

Nobody:
220k people: interested in destroying hardware

[OmegaHellHound]

I usually keep the hard drive in tact, take off the cover, and use the whole thing as a decoration

[happyspaceinvader]

Did you skip the bit where you removed the screws on the disc that holds the platters in place? I find that I get all but one screw out and the final one is stuck (and it's all too easy to strip the screw head).

[imwhou]

I took the hard drive assembly out of the laptop.
disassembled the assembly.
Took the two disks out and wrapped them in plastic wrap.
Put that package inside of a zip lock bag.
Put the bag on top of some bricks and then smashed the hell out of it with a hammer.

The disks broke into tens of thousands of pieces, and then I threw it all in the regular house trash.

[NoscuraM]

I may sound a bit weird but I got the Hard Drives platters and actually made them into a model brake disc that looks like it was from a car

[billcIintonvevo]

Where did u get the screwdriver that fits the drive screws

[TheDigitalPillars]

I dont have this screwdriver.. any idea on what to use on those small "star" screws?? Not recycling my old drives till i take the platter out and the magnets are great for the fridge as well! thanks!

[BIGDADDYKNOWSBEST]

Please tell me what can of screw driver I need to do this

[NeilSwann]

1:56 are these disks dangerous at all?

Long story short I opened the same hard drive but it shattered into a thousand pieces right in front of me

[brendananderson]

Thanks, almost fully took off my plate without realizing about exposing it to the air damaging it thing.

[dronesgaming]

My computer says defragment hard disk. I cut them into 8 equal pieces. Is that enough?

[tudorrenegade]

Are you sure toxic fumes don't come out when you scratch the disks ? Also, what size screwdriver do you need ? I just opened the case but the bolts holding the other pieces on are even smaller.

[HaggisFritter]

I usually sit them on a tree stump and take them out with a 30.06 Springfield.

[Brimmsune]

Is there no way to take out the spinny thing?

[drfix]

I up cycle it into steampunk mid-century lamps

[lbsiuk]

When I was 10 or 9, after school, I invited a friend over and we hit a hard drive until the cover came off, then we smashed the platters, wet the bits of them and then buried it in the garden (I think). I took it out of the dirt and went on smashing it until it was dark outside. I think we either put the remains of the drive in the bin (yes I live in England) or took it to the local dump or recycling centre and literally threw it into the electronics section. No one will ever get the data back. The only things I kept of it was the cover which has dents from the hammer and the circuit board. All I know about it is that it was made by Maxtor and was connected with IDE and is powered by Molex. I'll have to look at the metal piece to see the capacity, but I remember that the cover didn't display the capacity so I guess I am going to have to search the name on Google and see what the capacity is. The reason I had to destroy the drive was because my grandmother was getting rid of her computer and wanted me to get rid of her personal details and it was for fun. The drive was the desktop 3.5'' size. That is my story, what is yours? Reply to me and if I make a video about destroying hard drives, then I will feature your comment.