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Noob question:

Got a JVC HR-XVC27U combo DVD/VHS player (yes, I'm cheap) less than a year
ago, and recently I've been having lockups about an hour into several discs.
A few minutes on the web told me that it was probably a sticking laser
transport.

Faced with the options of either tossing it out or paying someone close to
the purchase price of the thing to even look at it, I opted for plan C: take
it apart myself, not having *any* experience with DVD drives, and see what I
could do. But hey, I'm a curious guy.

After manymany golf words, I got the DVD drive out of the chassis and the
laser transport removed from the drive. I swabbed the tracks and the screw
with some light teflon lube, manually turned the screw gears to ensure
proper lube coverage, re-assembled it all (god-damned ribbon connectors),
and it works just fine now.

I know I was lucky.

My questions to the gurus here are both how to access the service menu on
this thing, but also whether or not the menu includes an option for cycling
the laser transport through its full range.

If I could have just cycled the transport a couple of times, that alone
could have potentially solved the sticking problem without surgery.

Replies to email please (watch the nospam), but I'll look here too.

TIA,
Jim