Safely shipping a Shugart 800 drive - question for the veteran members or those with a Shugart 800 drive

[Lorne]

I have to ship a couple Shugart 800 drives inside an Altos 8000 soon.
I know Shugart and other drive manufacturers suggested using a cardboard "disk" inserted, and then the drive closed, before moving or shipping the drive, to prevent damage to the head.
Quite a few years ago, and I think it came from Accurite Technologies in CA, I received a couple drives being returned, that didn't have the cardboard disk inserted.
Instead, they used a piece of foam - see photo below.
This seems to make more sense to me.
If (when) UPS, FedEx or USPS drop the box containing the Altos, using the cardboard insert, the heads are quite likely going to move off the cardboard insert, and bounce right back into it, which kind of defeats the purpose.
Even with the cardboard inserted, the heads can still move up, and then back down.

With the piece of foam, positioned where it's shown (or maybe even inside the disk latch door), I don't see that being able to happen.

You'll need to have or have had, a Shugart drive previously to answer this one but am I correct, or am I barking up the wrong tree?

 

[Lorne]

PS: I would have normally just PM'd Chuck(G) with this question but.......

 

[jlang]

When I shipped a drive back to Sugart for repair They advised me cut a piece of thin cardboard (like from a cereal box) to the size of a diskette
Cut a whole larger than the spindle (use a diskette as a pattern) and insert it and latch the door shut.
The objective is to keep the door from bouncing around and keep the heads from slapping against each other.
The heads can bounce with shock but slapping against the cardboard will cause no damage.

Basically you make a cardboard insert just like the one the drive came with.