And why can't I find it anywhere? I know it wasn't very popular when it was out, but is there really a huge demand for it now? I remember 7 years so, I could walk into a retro game store and see a console for $45.
I gave up on trying to fix my old drives. Some of the optical pickups that I bought have failed either at installation or a few months after. My Saturns have the Fenrir installed, less of a headache.
If you go the Japanese Saturn route and you manage to get one with a good drive, the 4 in 1 carts are the best option to have. There's also modchips still sold as well.
For sure, the Fenrir ODE (optical drive emulator) is a great option if the CD drive is dying or dead. The drive in my Saturn still worked fine last time I checked, but I was lucky enough to pick up a Satiator which plugs into the rear expansion port and leave the CD drive intact. (I think the MPEG decoder for VideoCD was the only official peripheral made for that port.)
I have a US Saturn that I haven't played with in a while (still in storage), but I have a gray Japanese one that's modded with a Fenrir and a white Japanese one that I still need to install another Fenrir in when I'm able to 3d print a mount for.
I'm aiming for a Satiator next if my US disc drive dies.