[Jeffhs]

Anthony,

What difference does it make whether a new TV with a flat or curved CRT is used to replace an old, worn-out chassis in a console, 3-way or otherwise? Unless one is a real fanatic as to wanting to keep the set authentic-looking if the former chassis was, for example, 1950s vintage, I don't think it should make much of a difference at all, as long as the new set fits the opening in the cabinet the old chassis was in. I had two great-uncles who replaced the old color chassis in their RCA 3-way consoles with new color table models (one was a 1970s-vintage Zenith; I can't remember the make of the other one, but they both had curved CRTs). The replacements both worked great, and fit the openings left by the old chassis almost perfectly with just a bit of woodwork to make a frame around the excess space. In fact, one of my cousins still has the console with the Zenith replacement TV; last I heard, it was working well.

Besides, what's wrong with keeping up with the times? Flat is where it's at, as an advertisement for flat-screen TVs and computer monitors in my local newspaper put it some time ago. I will admit, purists may balk at the idea of putting an ultra-modern color chassis with a flat CRT in an old cabinet, but this is a great way to go if you like the looks of an old (if large) TV cabinet but the TV, stereo, etc. is shot. Junk the old tube-powered guts, put new SS equipment in its place, and you have what amounts to a new set, for a fraction of what you would pay for a new console (if you can find them these days; most folks today, however, make their own, using a commercially-manufactured entertainment-center cabinet. I converted a utility cart (solid oak) to a TV/VCR cabinet some years ago, and couldn't be more proud of the results than if I had a big console. (My TV, BTW, has a curved CRT, but if I ever get a new one, it may well have a flat screen tube.)