I have a base knowledge and understanding of what to do, but I have never attempted to do it. The only tools I have available are my two hands and a pattern generator. I'm attempting to do this on an RCA CTC44A with a 25VABP22 tube. Again, I get what to do, but when I look at it, I just freeze. Can anyone sort of guide me into it? I'm more afraid of causing damage to the set (or myself) and although I do have the SAMS for it, not only was it a (horrible) scan that you can't really read, it does not break down into simple steps what to do (obviously) for the novice. Please help, and thanks in advance!

HI!

Take a look at some of the videos on youtube, especially this guy's stuff, he is
one of the best as far as learning old tv stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8eK2CyDmiY

Look up convergence adjustments on youtube for more.... This will get you a really
good start, and it don't matter much if this one is a zenith.... Just learning procedure....

.

Hi Sean,

First off, two points. One, you should be always aware of the fact that the inside of old TV sets are full of places you can get an electric shock, so be wary of this - I don't mean to say scared of it, just be conscious of it.

Second, it would be a really good idea to get the sams, they usually have detailed instructions for purity and convergence, and you really need this.

Some generic instructions are as follows (note: my experience is limited to three TVs, so far from an expert!):

1. Put a dot or a cross hatch pattern on the screen, and set the static convergence with the three magnets, so line up the red, green, and blue dots to create one dot in the centre.

2. Send a blank video signal to the set, and turn down the green and blue guns so that the whole screen is red. If it's entirely even, you can skip to adjusting dynamic convergence. Otherwise, if it's uneven, loosen the yoke and slide it all the way forward, then adjust the purity rings to get a red blob in the centre of the screen. At this point the screen will look like a tie-dye shirt. Once the red blob is centered, you move the yoke back to where it belongs and you should have a perfectly even red across the whole screen. Don't over tighten the yoke, snug is enough.

3. Set the grey scale. Put the set into service mode and adjust the screen controls one by one to get a just barely visible horizontal line across the screen... right at the threshold of visible.

4. Remove the set from service mode and set the static convergence again

5. Put on a cross hatch test pattern on the screen, and follow the dynamic convergence instructions. This is where sams will really come in handy, in fact I wouldn't even start this process without instructions. You will adjust the controls one by one to converge different areas of the screen, and every time you change one it will affect previous adjustments.

6. Repeat step 5 until satisfied. (the controls are interactive and this can be an annoying iterative process... very likely convergence won't be perfect so don't get obsessive)

7. Adjust vertical linearity and size. Adjust pincushion, And centering if applicable

8. Set the brightness limiter if applicable, to prevent picture from getting losing focus.

9. Adjust focus so scan lines are clearly visible.

10. Don't adjust anything unless you're sure what it is you're adjusting and you're sure what it should affect.

Note: when setting convergence, turn the color control all the way down so the set is trying to display a monochrome image.

The first time I had to adjust convergence I was petrified that I would ruin the TV beyond repair, but I ended up with a great result, and you will too.

i started out rebuilding tuners and setting purity,convergence,etc.i was just a teenager then.the older guys didnt want to do this so it was on me.good luck on this.dont get too wrapped up in perfection.a couple times and you will become an expert!follow maxhifi s instructions.set purity first!other than that,you will be fine.

Thank you all for the great advice and the video is helpful to follow along with. I'm officially digging into it.....now.

Here's convergence instructions for my ctc38

And here is purity

Awesome thanks maxhifi! I've been just going through it methodically and its not nearly as bad as I had anticipated. Thank you for the pics I do actually have the sams for the ctc44a but its a horrible low resolution scan in PDF format. Kinda wish I hadn't paid $ for it....

It also looks almost identical to what I can make out of the PDF so this is great!

It also looks almost identical to what I can make out of the PDF so this is great!

Just in case it wasnt mentioned. You need to go back & fourth
between static & dynamic as you go, its usually in the steps.
Also it will never be 100% perfect but the purity will be.
Its also usually easier to lay across the set & not use a mirror
unless you are short or its a huge combo.

PDF's suck. When possible get 1st gen paper Sams or paper OEM
manuals. If you post your needs here you may get it free or
" someone" will offer for sale at a reasonable cost.
Fiche also sucks, you spend more time navigating than repairing
& the quality is often bad. I could go on a rant about how
fiche & PDF helped kill the TV racket. We stuck with paper as
long as poss. & it cost tons more but payed off in time saved
& fustration avoided.

73 Zeno:smoke:

Well I think I got it pretty good. All the advice and reference was wonderful and you're right zeno....I was using the mirror from our bedroom dresser but it was easier to lean over it and watch what I was doing. I was able to decifer the instructions from the sams i got and it was almost identical to what maxhifi gave me (thank you again!). Followed the directIons to a T and got a very decent picture. I do have a bad pot that adjusts the R & G vert on the right side of the screen. It has a slight 3D effect to it, like you could put on glasses and it would pop out, but its not that noticeable. I should have taken "before and after" pics but oh well. Its so much better than it was. One day over the winter I may pursue a replacement pot and tackle that but for now I'll just sit back and enjoy the show. You guys rock! Thank you again

The pot are probably the same on other similar RCA's
of that vintage. Put up the specs & the drawing numbers, a
long #like 1236785-501 & you will soon find them.

73 Zeno:smoke: