I picked up a Craigslist lot yesterday - one DVL-909, one CLD-D701, and about 200 discs. The person I purchased from inherited from his uncle but never used anything, tells me it has been just sitting there for at least 5 years. The guy was also a very heavy smoker, whole house filled with it.

Got the DVL home and setup, inserted a disc and got a kind of struggling noise and disc would just eject without playing. I took the top off and could notice that the disc would engage but not spin so I manually spun it at the same time the player was trying and eventually it spun up and started working (now no issue, spins up every time). I tried to play a movie (Sea of Love) and it started out ok but then started skipping, I pulled the disc out and visibly it looks perfect so I tried again, same part of the movie (very early on) same skipping. I tried the same disc in my other player (CLD-59) and it played without issue. Could this be the DVL lens just needs cleaning (like I said heavy smoker) or is there something else I should check?

Also is it possible the DVL scratched up a disc? I tried one that I had already (never examined) and it did the skipping thing but when I checked that disc is had lots of visible scratches (but again despite that it still played fine in my CLD-59)?

Any issues with CD audio discs?

Do not own any actual CD's to test. Seems to play DVD's ok though.

DVDs are played with a second pickup, using a red laser. LDs and CDs are read with an infrared laser. A lens clean can do wonders for playback. Is the skipping in any particular part of the side? What about when playing "Side B"?

Here is what I figured out, let it play and it skips once or twice than goes fine, rails need to be greased?

That is what I'm thinking. If the pickup is binding on the rail, the little bursts of power to the slider motor don't actually move it. When the lens starts to get to the end of it's travel, the player may kick out a larger burst on the slider motor and the pickup lurches forward, beyond what the lens can accommodate.

I wouldn't just grease the pole however. You will want to clean it of all the old grease (don't worry about the stuff inside the pickup), and then apply a very thin film of white machine grease (I use singer sewing machine lube) with a q-tip. Then have the slider motor slide back and forth a number of times (changing sides is perfect).