Quote:
Originally Posted by OS X
Hi,This is my first post hear so please go easy on me  This Weekend i was looking for a Used CRT Tv in the 20-27in size to replace my akai 42in projection tv because it is to big for my bed room but it still does work just fine  . i went to a local thrift store and they had 3 TV's in that size a Zenith,JVC,RCA all from 1993-2000. I liked the JVC the best but it had a very week picture tube so i was not going to buy it. Next on my List was to cheek out the Zenith that was pluged in but not turned on So i pressed the power button and i can hear the degauss coil and HV but before the picture came up the HV Went out and the TV would not turn back on and i tryed it with a know good outlet as well So i passed on that one as well  . Next one and the last one i looked at was the 27" RCA that i bought it had a very good Picture and had RCA And S-Video Port's i got it for $10 it was made in 1993 and the model # is F27351WN it seems to work fine and the color is very crisp and clear but i found something with it that might send it to the recycling plant It looks like from what i can see through the air vents is that The yoke or mayby the CRT Color guns tube with the circuit board on it? (Glass light up tube in the back of the TV/Tube) It looks like it has Big cracks in it and is very dirty i was very carefull with this tv so it must have been like this at the store. is it safe to use like this being it works great? i want NO implosion's or any thing like that to happen so if that is what will happen i guess i will have to get rid of the tv on the other hand mayby it is just dirt and i am seeing the filament in side the tube and thinking it is cracked but sadly i don't think that is what it is. How would i clean that off i have never cleaned the inside of a CRT Tv before but i know what NOT to touch so i will give it a try once i know what to use to clean it. i can take photos of the Tube that is mayby cracked if that would help? Any help is appreciated Thanks |
The RCA TVs had problems from the CTC18x series until the CTC203 (roughly ten years or thereabouts) due to an on-board tuner problem. The ground connections around the tuner would crack, allowing noise to enter what is called the "jungle IC" (the chip with about 90+ pins and most of the TV's circuits). The jungle IC would then fail, causing the TV to shut down. Repairing a set with a bad jungle IC is quite expensive, on the order of $100+ for the chip alone. Starting with the CTC203 series and continuing to the present models, the tuner was mounted separately from the main chassis, which apparently ended the problems attendant to the on-board tuner design.
However, once the grounds around the tuner are resoldered properly, the TV will continue to operate indefinitely. I have a CTC185 19" table model I bought new in 1999, which still works today (although it has been in storage since I bought a flat panel set last August). The only repair my CTC185 ever had was about six months after I purchased it, when the antenna/cable connector on the back of the TV broke off the tuner PC board. After that, the set worked very well and continued to give me excellent service for the next 12 years.
As to Zenith, yes, a lot of their sets from the 1990s were problematic and had short-lived CRTs. However, I have a Zenith "Sentry 2" 19" table model that was made in 1995. It still works well today with its original CRT and no repairs whatsoever, although that set has also been in storage the last 12 years.
Given all the problems 1990s Zeniths seem to have had (from reports and other documents I have read regarding the reliability of these TVs), however, I have to conclude that I must have gotten one of the rare "good" sets with a good CRT and no chassis problems. Since getting the RCA CTC185 in '99 I have not used the Zenith except to test it every few months. The Zenith set still works every bit as well as it did when it was new -- in fact, for a long time I was convinced it had a better picture than the RCA.