I recently replaced a VCR that had given up the ghost. The unit I replaced it with, however, a combination VCR and DVD player, seems to have its own problems.
Specifically, I have found that the elapsed-time counter does not indicate the correct time, making it difficult to rewind/fast-forward to the start of a program I’ve set it up to record.
Besides, I had been used to hitting the fast-forward button to zip through commercial breaks when playing the tape back; if I do that now, the playback will have constant “whip” periods when the tape suddenly zips forward for a second. This is annoying and sense it can damage the tape.
I think it’s about time to have the unit serviced or at least inspected.
Perfectly good used VCRs are often available at Goodwill and Salvation Army for 5-10. Most of the time they were chucked when the owner got a DVD. Before you spend more money on servicing it might be worthwhile to check one of these units out. If they lack remotes you can get inexpensive 4 device universal remotes at Walmart for 8 or so.
Which would cost far more than your unit if it’s not fully covered by a warranty.
If you are handy and have the brains to unplug the unit when working on it, maybe you can get some ideas for fixing it from
http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/vcrfaq.htm
But note that combo units are “packed” inside and are usually hard to service. One thing is to do just a basic hand cleaning as given in the FAQ.
Thanks; I’ll check it out. 
The counter on most inexpensive consumer VCRs simply counts the number of rotations of the spindle. If yours gives a simple nonlinear numeric count (e.g. the first hour on a T-120 cassette is roughly from 0-1500 but the last hour is under 800 units on the counter) then it is definitely of this type. If your counter gives a count in hours minutes and seconds there are a few different methods that I won’t get into.
The spindle rotations are counted by an optical sensor (an IR led that shines through a notch in the spindle wheel assembly) or VERY occasionally (on old machines) with a magnetic sensor counting the passes of a tiny magnet embedded in the wheel. These sensors can get dirty , and can benefit from cleaning with a gentle solvent like isopropyl alcohol or even water on folded lens paper or lint-free bibulous paper or sponge pads used for cosmetics (check any good drug store) You can get away with a Q-tip, but they are hardly lint-free, and you might have to open it up again later if (e.g.) a stray cotton fiber starts wiggling in front of the IR sensor.
Replace the cover before testing. Room lights add flashlights can generate enough IR to lock the senson “on”. Nearby TVs, fans and lighting flicker can also cause optical sensors to get funky readings, with sometimes surprising effects – there are several optical sensors in the mechanical assembly of a VCR.
This can also cause the whip-speed effect you noted. The VCR generally achieves speed lock (sync’ing to the speed and variations of the tape) electronically, but first it must bring the tape up to approximately the correct speed to get a comprehensible signal. If the spindle rotation sensor is wacky, it may fail to record each rotation, and may therefore spin too fast trying to attain the programmed speeds (i.e. the target number of “clicks per second” on the spindle sensor)
YMMV. YVCRMV. I hope this helps