Hard disk burnishing head

Abstract

The burnishing head for hard disk processing includes a solid body having generally rectangular surfaces, including an upper surface, a burnishing pad surface, a front surface, a rear surface and two side surfaces. A plurality of burnishing pads are disposed upon the burnishing pad surface. The pads are shaped such that each pad has a burnishing edge that is generally parallel to said front surface and therefore orthogonal to the direction of media travel. The burnishing pads are preferably configured such that one frontward leading pad is centrally disposed proximate the front surface of the head, followed by two middle pads that are disposed in a spaced apart relationship. A single centrally disposed rear middle pad is formed behind the two middle pads, and two rear pads are disposed in a spaced apart relationship at the rear surface of the head. In the preferred embodiment the pads are generally triangular in shape and the outer surface of the leading and rearward pads is tapered. The method for manufacturing the burnishing head, includes the steps of making a series of parallel cuts in a surface of a solid body of material. The burnishing pads result from material that remains following the cuts.