Sony DCR-TRV140 Digital8 Handycam & LCD Repair Attempt
I didn't hold any hope in having an operable camcorder when all was said and done, but remarkably, all that was needed to bring it back up to speed (mechanically speaking, with regard to its tape mechanism [pardon the somewhat indirect pun]) was to reintroduce a rubber roller to the metal post on which it rotates. It had migrated off of its metal post and into the bottom-most area of the mechanism alongside the tape drum. When attempts to insert the tape were made preceding the repair, the mechanism would retract only partially before realizing something was preventing it from doing so, and consequently displaying an error code on the display. Luckily, the original owner didn't behave in a rambunctious manner and try forcing the mechanism, a practice I've seen all too often with used (and abused) tape-based camcorders.
After the fortunate outcome with the tape mechanism, it was met with some anguish when the LCD display's "misbehavior" was discovered. It has a nasty habit of gradually dimming to a point where nothing on the display is viewable. The only evidence of its being on is that provided by the backlight. Successful repair looked both simple and promising with a replacement screen sourced from a Sony CCD-TRV308. That was until the removal of the outer shell in which it resided revealed copious amounts of rust, oxidation, and corrosion on the contacts, screws, and integrated circuits that comprise the screen. Needless to say, it was D.O.A. thus rendering my repair attempt unsuccessful. The existing LCD screen's reliability is hit-or-miss; at least the camcorder has a viewfinder for those times that the LCD screen decides to rebel!