Connecting 5 1/4 floppies to a modern computer

[fcgamer | 4,739]

So I bought these floppy disks years ago, they're the large ones, 5 1/4 inch. Three of them have the words "Sega software" printed on them, and two others have the same text, though there's been a label stuck over top.

I'm just wondering if there are now any 5 1/4 Floppy drives on the market for modern computer set ups, which could be plugged in via USB.

Due to the guy I bought them from, I've always believed these to contain material relating to one of his Sega games, possibly even one of the unfinished ones he has been doing. Alas I forgot I even had these until now, when I noticed the air conditioner leaking over the shelf in my game room.

I dried everything the best I could by sitting it out on the balcony this afternoon, if anyone can recommend somewhere to get a floppy drive then I'll buy one and try to figure out what's actually on these.

thanks.

 

[DefaultGen | 5,425]

Check out Greaseweazle and Fluxengine (either work with Greaseweazle hardware). Cryoflux has fallen out of favor. You need to get a good drive still. No one makes new ones and prices these days for a dusty old floppy drive are ridiculous.

Edited April 28, 2023 by DefaultGen

[RH | 4,945]

I’m sure there’s got to also be a service out there that will rip disks to .BIN or .ISO files.  Certainly.

[Armageddon Potato | 124]

I'm in the same boat. I have a bunch of old 3.5 and 5 1/4 floppies that I don't think are backed up online yet.

[RH | 4,945]

8 minutes ago, Armageddon Potato said:

I'm in the same boat. I have a bunch of old 3.5 and 5 1/4 floppies that I don't think are backed up online yet.

They still make 3.5" Floppy Drives with USB connections.  Granted, this is cheap China trash, but there's a chance it might work.  I know I've seen drives made within the last 10 years that were plug-and-play and by a reputable enough company that they shouldn't blow up your PC and, more importantly, actually work.  However, I'm not sure if those still work.  Regardless, creating a VM running Windows XP or something like that should work with the USB device, I think.

It might be a bit finnicky, but if you really, really want to do it, I bet you could.  I'm also quite surprised that even after a bit of looking, I can't find an old 5 1/4 USB drive.  I know we've not used 5 1/4s for a long time, but the need for legacy back-up media extends for a while, and I could see there actually being enough demand from businesses as late as 2005 wanting accessible 5 1/4 for historical data access.

[SilverspoonGaming | 333]

Following closely...

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,017]

If you go to atariage they have a classic computer forum that had helped me with flopper drives in the past. 

[Tyree_Cooper | 760]

I had the same question years ago, and I really need to get going someday.

I have not found a single company/project selling 5.25 drives with USB connection (like 3.5 drives), but once you manage to find a drive, I know of two options:

KyroFlux

Device Side Data

 

Regarding 3.5 drives, I prefer to look for older USB models of known brands instead of new no-brand models from China. Sony models are still easy to find and cheap, and the ones I had were all working fine. No drivers needed for Windows XP and higher. Make sure you find a dumping program for a proper backup; don't just copy/paste the floppy content manually.

[Sydpinkfloyd | 12]

Following this as well. I have two boxes of 5 1/4 from my childhood that I’d be interested in backing up (assuming they still work). 
 

Every few years I check for a USB option however they never seem to appear.