STARAY JBOD Enclosure Fan Replacement

I recently bought an odd lot of "Semi Broken Hard Disk Enclosures" for HKD125 (USD16.00).  

The lot included a STARAY J4-4S-SB2 4 x 2.5" JBOD External USB / eSATA Hard Disk Case:

STARAY JBOD Enclosure Listing Image

Product Details

·         Manufacturer:  STARAY

·         Dimensions: 750x300x300

·         Weight: ‎               1.87 Kilograms

·         Released:            14 July 2012

·         External aluminum enclosure 4 x 2.5 SATA connectable by eSATA or USB 2.0

·         All drives have quick release mechanism, so no screwdriver is needed

·         USB 2.0 and eSATA interface, JBOD function provided by USB

·         Port multiplier function: one eSATA cable supports 4x SATA HDDs

·         Supported OS: Windows XP and above, MAC OS 10 and above, Linux Kernel 2.6 and above

·         Cooled by 40 mm fan

Issues & Troubles

Here is what the seller had to say about "issues and troubles" with respect to the STARAY:

STARAY J4-4S-SB2 4 x 2.5" JBOD External USB / eSATA Hard Disk Case - If left turned on for a long time, there is no problem - If left turned off for a long time, the fan gets stuck and needs help to start. - The fan needs to be replaced.  I couldn't find the same model with the same plug.

 

Cosmetic Condition

Cosmetically speaking, the unit arrived in great condition.  

It was a substantial feeling black anodized aluminum unit with very few scratches. 

Triage

On initial cleaning and inspection, no unusual incidents occurred.  The fan was able to freewheel when compressed air was pushed through it, giving the characteristic rising pitch whine that all fans give.  

Cleaning the unit resulted in some of the letters coming off, so a little additional effort was put in to remove them all.  What was left behind was a much cooler-looking "black shadow" letter effect:

External Examination

An external examination revealed little, except for the fact that the fan seemed to be missing a blade!

Disassembly

Taking the STARAY J4-4S-SB2 apart was pretty simple.  

Four Phillips head screws secure the top of the unit:

And with those removed, the top can be removed, revealing the internals:

The Little Fan That Couldn't

Removing the fan was a simple matter of unscrewing two large screws and unplugging the unit from the circuit board.  Also, a little zip tie needed to be cut:

With the fan removed, it was very obvious that it needed to be replaced.  Not only was the fan not turning smoothly, it really was missing a blade!

Finding a Replacement Fan

Examining the sticker on the rear of the fan, I discovered it was a SUNON HA40101V4-0000-C99:

I easily found a replacement unit online, the only thing that I needed to be careful about was some model details, because that particular fan is used in dozens of different applications and sports a couple of dozen configurations.  For this application, the configuration was

·         Number of Wires:           3

·         Mounting Hole Size:      3MM

·         Connector Type:             C2

The C2 Connector

This is what a C2 connector looks like:

Conclusion

Getting the STARAY J4-4S-SB2 back into working order was really easy.  The unit arrived in great shape.  It was easily diagnosed and easily serviced.  Replacement parts were easy to procure.