Problem with Saturn laser not moving

[Sunnyvale]

Any liquid cleaner is a GREAT way to attract more dust and dirt. Don't do it. If anything it should be cleaned properly and then regreased with ceramic grease. It really doesn't sound like a stuck gear being the problem.

No, I think it's a weak motor, not a stuck gear. Which is why I suggested the contact cleaner. If you of a better way to add life to a weak motor, I'm all ears. Don't think WD-40. This is what contact cleaner is designed for; removing debris from electrical moving parts or contacts.

And actually, the laser moves from the outside to the inside to read the disc at boot. It'll move to the outer edge to verify the security "barcode" at one point and then back to reading the data to boot up the game.

I have to open the Saturn and manually spin the gears so that the laser moves to the outside part of where the disk would be.

I think you got confused as to what his issues are. If the laser assembly doesn't move sometimes, and he can spin the gears by hand...

Motor or bad connection. Only possibilities I can think of.