PC Engine CD-ROM2 struggling to read discs

[Bostich]

My PC Engine CD-ROM2 is having difficulty reading discs.  For games, it takes a very long time to load, but usually it will eventually load.  However, the CD audio sometimes drops out during a level and doesn't come back until the level has to be reloaded (the sound effects continue as normal after the CD audio drops out).  I tried out a couple of audio CDs just for comparison and found that it has problems playing the early tracks on the disc (maybe the first 15 minutes or so).  On the tracks where it has problems, it will rapidly skip through the tracks, sort of like fast forward, but much faster.  It produces some staticky sounds during that time.  Once it gets to the middle tracks of the CD it plays just fine.

I have replaced the cluster gear (it was broken), cleaned the old lubricant off, and applied white lithium grease to the worm gear and laser sled rail.  At this point, I am not sure if I need to replace the capacitors, tweak the potentiometers, or replace the laser (I found a place that sells replacements).  I'm guessing that the laser is probably okay since it is able to read certain regions of the disc without any issues.  It almost seems like the speed is off at the beginning of the disc, but I am not experienced at repairing CD-ROM drives so I'm not really sure.  Has anyone had this problem before, or a similar problem?

[Bostich]

I ended up deciding to just pay someone to fix it.  Everything is working fine now.