Quote:
Originally Posted by kx250rider
I also used to put roundie color sets out for the trash man, and help him heave them into the crusher. I'd put a gentlemens' bet on how many seconds until the KABOOM would be heard inside the truck. Those were the days...
Charles
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In most cities for several decades, Safe Disposal of CRT's has been required by Municipal Ordinance (or State Law) with fines of up to $500 and/or jail time of up to 6 months for violations. Under such laws, putting a TV set or other CRT device out for trash pickup without first releasing the vacuum is at least a Misdemeanor, and can also expose violators to significant Civil Liability should any personal injury or property damage result from a tube implosion or glass shards ejected from the trash pickup vehicle onto the roadway.
When I worked for the local TV shop mentioned earlier, it was standard procedure to save any Good used tubes (there was a storage room upstairs having a wall of cushioned shelves for their storage) and we were required to neck all duds before putting them to the curb. As it was explained to me, the force of the implosion had been known to result in the driver's losing control of the truck in the event that a tube should implode while the truck was in motion, potentially resulting in a serious accident. Glass shards ejected from the rear or top of the truck could also have shredded tires on passing vehicles, potentially causing drivers to lose control of their cars as a result of tire blowouts. Even in an area where Safe Disposal was not formally required by law, the possibility of a costly lawsuit for such negligence served as an effective deterrent for most professional TV Service facilities.
Some time before my first job at a TV shop, I accompanied some older cousins (ages from about 15 to 21) on a "target practice" trip into a clearing in a wooded area on my grandparents' property that was used as a dumping ground for junk and a target range. I was about 10 years old at the time. Several junked B/W sets, 60s models as I remember, of various sizes and several empty beer bottles were arranged as targets and shot with rifles and shotguns. The object was to hit the rims of the tubes to weaken the glass, thus causing implosions. Target range was 50 yards. As the youngest person out there, I was allowed to fire ONE shot from a 30.06 with a scope. Being a REALLY crummy marksman, it hit the mask instead of the tube rim. About five sets were shot that day, resulting in LOUD implosions with all except one.