Thanks for the advice guys! I too have seen conflicted opinions about just how viable it is to open a hard drive up and get it working again. Naturally I understand companies need to be in business but I'd hope they'd also be trying to give out good advice too. Suppose you just never know. I was thinking of the idea of making the portable clean room like in the video below. Sadly the version this guy made didn't work, but I respect the effort.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ1aAKaHaMc&list=UL
I've also thought that if I do exchange the head, I could flip the hard drive upside down and let it spin up for a few minutes. The debris would fall downward due to gravity and then I'd put the top back on quickly. How useful this might be, I'm not sure. It certainly would work in the macroscopic world.
Megamox
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ1aAKaHaMc&list=UL
I've also thought that if I do exchange the head, I could flip the hard drive upside down and let it spin up for a few minutes. The debris would fall downward due to gravity and then I'd put the top back on quickly. How useful this might be, I'm not sure. It certainly would work in the macroscopic world.
Megamox