I used to do hardware support at IBM, so I know. True, I am a pain, but when you need it fixed.... I have my reasons, though, not just being mean-spirited.
There was not a whole lot I could do to fix the drive permanently. I could almost always get the warning light to go away, and there was even a whole bureaucratic procedure to follow when dealing with a bad 5/10GB 8mm, due to the sheer volume of 8mm calls we got. My suggestions do not apply to any other tape drive model, just the 5/10GB 8mm. The PE in Austin worked with us (the hardware call centers) about this whole thing, but I would get repeat calls and felt bad because I knew they customer was going to call me back sooner or later. Might as well give them a new drive, if of course they have a service contract. The drives usually survived the warranty period. If not, well I did what I could.
From memory: always use IBM tapes. Customer often complained about the cost. I could only say what I had been told to say, which is do not use anyone else's tapes, even Exabyte's oddly enough. Always clean the drives with an IBM cleaning tape. Keep them away from dust. If the drive heads are damaged, well no recourse but to replace.
I don't mean to sound like a jerk but sometimes you have to push it to get what you want, particularly with the IBM dispatchers. Sorry if I offended any IBM'ers, I'm just on the other side of the fence now and I know how to work the system. There are/were lots of fantastic people in the call center (Hasan, Tina, Blake, etc). But you never know who will pick up the phone, and that's a fact.
