External HDD Banged Up!

[thedicemaster]

linux tends to fare better with broken filesystems than windows.
you could try formatting it through a linux live CD/DVD or hiren's bootCD(great toolbox, especially the restored edition)

if possible, it might be an idea to take the drive out of its casing(it's usually an internal hard drive with a protective case+usb adapter wrapped around it) hooking it up directly to a PC using S-ATA cables, and using gateway scan(boot from hiren's bootCD, dos programs, hard disk tools, next 2 or 3 times, and then gwscan/gateway scan)
this will test the surface of the discs to make sure there's nothing broken.