The OFFICIAL Curbside TV Find Thread After Analog Completely Ceased...
 

Well, I started a thread as we will be prepared to see mountains of vintage analog TVs piling near trash. Post what you found...

I was at my local Best Buy today, and my jaws dropped after finding more than 120 customers crowding in at the HDTV section. The customer service desk had more than 50 unwanted analog TVs ready for recycling.

I am attending a ham radio/electronics flea market tomorrow morning (Saturday, June 13). I will see what goes on there with old TV sets.

Did those people seriously wait this long to get a DTV tuner? What morons. And then to throw out perfectly good TVs when any person with even a little bit of intelligence knows they'll still work, with cable, or a DTV tuner.

I can't wait to see what happens here in 2011. I'll go to future shop to look at all the morons lol

In fact, there's people who think Canada has switched to digital as well. Idiots.

I don't claim to be the smartest guy in the world but I can pay attention to the damn constant adverts. Compared to them, I'm a fuckin genious.

No, no, no...Let the Great Unwashed keep thinkin' their tellies are ALL kaput...Then WE can cabbage on some great deals...I might even be able to score an Indextron, or maybe another CT-101 or something equally as good...ALWAYS take full & unfair advantage at the expense of others...Especially when they're IDIOTS & basically deserve to be skinned in the 1st place...Mbwahahahahahaha...

They reported on the 6 PM news that within an hour of the analog shutdown, people were flooding Best Buy to purchase new DTV's and DTV converters. So, I'm sure there will be plenty of good analog TV's kicked to the curb because people don't want to mess with a box.

That is the way I look at it. :D I have a CRT TV. Works great with a converter box and rabbit ears. If that set goes, I will get another CRT used for cheap.

I had to rush down to the San Fernando Valley (north Los Angeles at 7:00 this morning, and I saw two big projection TVs lying along the road... They weren't there yesterday. I'm going to be out again later today, so I'll keep my eyes open. What astounded me, is that I went to Walmart last night to buy some rabbit ears, and the clerk (a guy about 18) asked ME when the TV was going to change!!!!! I politely answered "tonight", and I sure hope he was kidding. If an 18-year-old Los Angeles resident didn't truly know as of last night, Heaven help the over-80 crowd in Montana!

Charles

I rarely actually see things sitting on curbs in this area. At the flea market this morning, I only saw a couple of TVs at all, and one tuner in its box. At Fry's on the way home, there were pallets of Channel Master tuners (one of the good ones) for sale, and surprisingly not a crowd of people buying them.

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/z...min&maxAsk=max
Still some listed, there sure was a lot last listed month. Probably in the next month too



Carl

Every yard sale I went to today had at least one BPC TV set sitting on a table for about $10 or so...

Passed on a Zenith b&w 19" early sixties tube over speaker upright this morning. Feeling a little guilty as it just poured like a mofo here. Anybody wants it let me know and I'll go rescue it.

Did pick a Zenith (prol. LG :( ) PTV a few hours ago. Free. Maybe 52". One of the newer thinner ones. This might be a renaissance of the trash to heating oil market I had going a few years ago on the tail end of the CRT days.

There was a nice RCA XL-100 console at a yard sale for 5 bucks. Early varactor tuner with the selector knob.

Elsewhere on the web:

http://www.wtfda.org/images/stories/garagesale.jpg

Here's my curbside find...
 

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Hey! not bad!

All I found in the thrift stores of the northern Atlanta suburbs were a slew of (mostly) Chinese BPC sets, all working and all generally under $15.

There was one 1981 Sears set with the mechanical pushbutton tuning that had a strong CRT at least (no way to see a picture on it anymore.)

I have been digging TV's out of the trash for many months now, most of which work fine!!
I have only been picking up the ones that look nicest, IE Flat-tube etc and if it doesnt work out it goes!

I have only bought TWO Tvs in the last 20 years....One used Sony Triintron circia 1985 and most recently a 2007 Trinitron to replace old one. (Giving old one to neighbor)

I have TEN Tvs now!!! All work great!!

Gotta love dumpster diving!!:banana:

I stopped in the Salvation Army store Saturday-they were having a sale, all TV sets $5 each. Some were tempting-they have an early 80s RCA 13" color (knob tune) and same thing in a Zenith, plus GE & RCA 12" bw sets, a hefty 25" RCA table model from the mid-80s, more. But none of it really interests me. Note: most all of those sets were sitting there the last time I stopped in, over a month ago. I was the only one looking...I did grab something, though: an old RCA cartridge audio tape recorder (the kind that uses the giant cassette.) I'd been looking for one for years, and this one, basically working, was on sale for $1.50. That'll keep me coming back!

Neighbor tossed out a Sony Trinitron KV-1510. I figured what the hell and grabbed it. It comes on and I could see a faint image and hear Spanish spoken. That was in the basement with no converter box or antenna.

Picked up an RCA CTC-44 (NOT 40)!!
 

Last Friday night , as the DTV mandate took effect, I received a call from a friend, that his town was having it's "clean up day" on Saturday morning. He told me there were a number of modern tv sets, a few projos, and such--NONE of which I really cared about. BUT--there was ALSO a 17" or 19" RCA 1975 model color set--looks like a ctc--72, that I DID want--AND--he saw a " big RCA console tv with doors", that looked to HIM like a CTC-38 or 39. I figured it would be a CTC-40, and asked him if he could go back....and check for these "magic words" on the set--"Trans vista color" --which WOULD DEFINITELY indicate a ctc 40(I THOUGHT.) He looked again...and it DID say TVC, and had the "bar switch" on it. With that...I jumped in the van...and headed out, at about 11PM. A LONG traffic jam, with some road construction made me THINK--"man....maybe this is NOT worth it. I have a swap meet to go to on Saturday morning..maybe I should go home. But ..I did NOT go home...and got there, and we went over to get the set. First...I picked up the CTC-72--without ANY second thoughts. Then...we got to the "CTC 40". I took a QUICK look in the back, to make sure WAS a 40, and not a 38...and THEN I SAW IT!! THE HV QUAD!! This was NOT a ctc-40...but a MUCH more rare CTC--44, that is a LOT like the 40--BUT with SS hv, instead of a tube!! I could NOT believe it!! The last 44 I got, I had to drive for a LONG way..and here was one only about 20 miles from me--in a VERY nice cabinet!! Had I allowed a nice CTC-44, with doors, that was ALMOST in my back yard, to get crushed, and found out , I know I would have cried...,.but alas--I HAVE it now. The ctc-44 was only made for one year, 1971, and it was a HIGH END set. It was replaced by the CTC-46 and 54 for 1972, as RCA went to modular sets


It is still in my van, with the 72. I have not had time to look much at it...but it IS safe and sound now, after almost going to the crusher truck and then to the dump....saved by a few hours.

BTW--I have NOT been here much in recent times. Several deaths in my family, MAJOR job problems, (causing) money problems...etc...etc..

Sorry to hear that. I hope things get better for you. Congratulations on the find. :thmbsp:

That was a nice save and it probably won't take much to get it going. You're lucky that you were to get that set from the waste pile. Around here, no "trash picking" is allowed and they have people watching to make sure it does not happen. I just spent $20 on a newspaper wanted ad for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in an effort to get old TVs from the '50's, '60's, and early '70's. I can only hope that it does some good and I don't get a bunch of people wanting to sell me their '80's goldstars and '00's Broksonics. Anyway, keep us posted on the 44.

Yeah that ctc-44 sounds very cool. I would love to hear more about it. Great save.

000

Why would trash picking be illegal? Anything that could be saved from the trash and repaired and reused you think would be a desireable alternative. What ever happened to Yankee Frugality?

I need to clarify that the "trash picking" is only illegal at the county dumpsters and the city recycling drop off days. AFAIK, It's OK to pick up something from in front of someone's house. I've heard of a few people that got tickets for fishing something out of a dumpster. And, yes, they now have law enforcement officers hiding in the bushes to catch offenders. Sort of reminds me of Dukes of Hazzard cops that don't have anything better to do. It seems to me that there are a lot more pressing problems than someone pulling something out of the dumpster or throwing something in the dumpster that the authorities consider "non household garbage".

I still pick up things from the side of the road if I see them; however, I no longer ask the owner if it's OK. I did that once when I saw a late '60's Magnavox color console on the curb. The old bag that owned it suddenly decided it was worth MONEY when I told her I could use it for parts. I offered her $5, which she declined. My new rule is, "If it's on the curb, it's fair game".

If it's out for trash I can take it. Some homeowners are just plain stingy/greedy though...as radiotvnut points out...

I need to cairfy something too....

This WAS in front of someone's house. The "clean up" is one where residents put out pretty much ANYTHING, and Rumpke sends out some of its larger rear-loaders and extra help. Those bigger RL packers could probably crush a CAR, if one could get one into the hopper!! Some of them have 3 inch cylinders on the packer. I once saw one EASILY devour a COMMERCIAL stainless-steel freezer a few years ago...with NO problems at ALL!!

Around here,Clean-ups are like that. And a LOT of people "shop", during those clean-ups. One, recently in April in Wyoming, a small, rich area about 15 minutes from my job, Had a clean--up, and I picked up a 1961 TUBE console Zenith stereo, with P-P 6bq5 amps and reverb I think. , and a 63 or 64 Philco CONSOLE BW tv. I had to leave a CTC-46, as it was raining harder, I had no room for it and would have had to go back to unload my van, and come back, and it was an ugly cabinet anyway, with long, flimsy legs. 46's are NOT that rare around here anyway (EXCEPT for the table model ones..) I ALSO stripped the amp out of a 1960 or so RCA combo, BEFORE I went home to get my van, and the amp had SIX 6bq5 tubes. I sold it at the hamfest last month.

As for the cops...In Wyoming, I KNOW they MUST have known what was "going on" as there were a LOT of people--men, women, children and GROUPS of all of them--"shopping" at about midnight on that Friday. I KNOW the cops saw me , and did NOT care. In MT healthy, however it IS a TOTALLY different story....


Unfortunately.. Last Friday night in Monroe..there were a couple of OTHER things I had to leave. One, was a modern projo set,, a BIG Hitachi, that would NOT have likely fit in my van(but a COUPLE of other modern BSTV sets had alrerady been "shopped", according to my friend...so that one may have been saved too, before the crusher trucks came..), and a late "60's model GE console stereo. It was a SS one, BUT it had a nice little amp, with nice sinks on TO-3 outs and Porta--FI. I wanted to "strip it" and at least save the amp, but Greg was getting paranoid, as it was after 1AM already, and BOTH of us had to go to the swap meet in Miamisburg the next morning. So..regrettably...I let it get buried...But I DID save the 44 and the 72.

My brother the lawyer advises me that something set out for the trash is still the property of the owner/trasher along with their intentions for its disposal.

Most people are glad when someone picks up their discarded bulky waste. A year or so ago, I picked up a fairly new Sanyo TV with a broken RF connector. The owner returned home just as I was loading the TV and he expressed his appreciation for me taking it and said I'd have a good TV if I could fix the RF connector.

Then, you've got people (like that woman I mentioned above) that get greedy and can't stand for someone to actually get some good out of their garbage. Had I gone back to her house about midnight, that set would have probably still been there. It would have been funny if she'd called the police saying, "there's some guy out here stealing my trash".

000

Haven't seen anything in Bellevue WA since June 12th...

I won't be seeing that here. The majority of PWLC's customers are also cable system customers (tv and internet), which is still compatible with old school sets.

Its the same here in Waynesboro, VA and surroundiong area's. The area was too fringe to pick up a satisfactory analog signal, no less digital.

In Chesterfield, VA where i live part time..all i've seen was BPC set's at the curb. No 80's set's or earlier but have found several tube sets on Craigslist and at one thrift that i shop at regularly.
-Tony

Not seen anything this way as of yet, aside from the usual smattering of BPC sets and late 80s/early 90s consoles at yard sales.

Even up on Afton Mountain? I'd figure that would be an TV/FM DXer's DREAM...

I haven't found anything on the curb yet, but I did get a early 70's Sylvania console for free from one of the local flea markets. I'll hook it up to a converter box, or I may just get a splitter and run cable out to the shop, at least then I'll be able to use the tuner on channels 2-13.

I've got my eyes peeled too and nothing significant yet.

For some reason, it's all Projection sets being tossed here in Norfolk - I saw three in a 2 mile radius today. Old Hitachi, a Zenith, and from the back, a Sony. The copper scrappers beat me to most sets, and I don't have room for a projection set, so I've passed on every curbside set since August 2007.

Cheers,

That's weird, I've been seeing an abnormal number of those being dumped myself. Two people at work offered me one as well. I said no, thanks.

The last few "free pickup of old TVs" ad's that I placed in the paper yielded many calls from people wanting to give me older big screen TVs. I now state "no projection (big screen) TV's" in my wanted ads. I don't have the room or a way to haul them and I don't want to have to keep the things going from now on after I sell one.