Went to an old TV shop tonight...

[Carmine]

Originally Posted by David Roper

"Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!"

Close... It was more of a head shake while saying "we aren't set up to fix tube sets, nope, nope, maybe you can find somebody else".

I'll say this... I do think there would be more old sets around, just for novelty sake, if more people would offer restoration services. I think a craigslist "services" ad would be enouigh. I've met more than a few like me who'd just like to sub-out some of the work.

For example, I'm a certified mechanic and work around prototypes for an OEM all day long. I have several vintage cars which I've restored from body-in-white (sheet metal shell) all the way to displayed in a museum. However, this week my girlfriend's car blew a rubber brake line. Fairly simple fix, but I just spent $200 to have both front lines replaced. About $30 worth of parts.. Just not enough hours in the day for me to set it up, free the corroded fittings, bleed the lines, etc.

[wa2ise]

Originally Posted by marty59

I recall them from years ago and they were always advertizing antenna specials before cable came around.

I suppose some of these antenna specialists might have gotten jobs with the cable company. As they already know their way around coax cable, and familiar with TV reception problems. And maybe learn to work on the system's outside plant (cables strung along the telephone poles, and amplifiers and such).

[kx250rider]

Definitely sounds like bad customer relations attitude, and I wouldn't have acted that way at all, had I been the one working there. But honestly, I'd probably have politely declined to do the job unless I had known you for awhile, and could be confident that you're not a troublemaker, and you REALLY are OK with my doing it in spare time. My own experience in working 30 years in TV repair shops, is that the words "I'm not in a hurry" when talking about a special interest or vintage TV, are the kiss of death, and when I heard someone say that, I knew it could likely mean, "I'm not in a hurry to get it done, but I expect you to call me every 15 minutes for updates, and I will stop in and hang around all afternoon and 'help'..." Again, please excuse any prejudice on that thought, but it's my guess as to what they were thinking.

Charles

[Carmine]

Never was really able to make that point, I don't think anything I said really sunk in. This TV has been sitting around for years waiting for me to do something with it. If they had it for 6 months, it would hardly matter to me.

[Geist]

Hi All;
Carmine, If you get a chance to go back there, you could inform them, they need to change their sign, since they Won't/don't work on old sets.. Also, tell them that their Public Relations stink.. And they have lost another customer..
THANK YOU Marty

[bgadow]

Worth stopping back for a friendly chat, don't mention the TV, just your interest in older sets and their business. They'll warm up to you....and you never know what might be stashed away in a corner around that place. One place I walked into, the owners said "nah, we don't have any of that old stuff around here anymore". Next thing I knew, I was walking through their attic, looking at piles of 50s/60s sets, caddies full of tubes, 20s/30s radios, etc, etc. Made a great friend from that visit, too.

[consoleguy67]

I, too, have a 1967 Zenith tv that I needed gone through. I called a local shop, who told me to bring it in. I did, and told the guy I wasn't in a rush for it. He had it for 17 months before I got it back. Also, I did all the leg work for a vertical output transformer, tubes and a schematic. The set still is not 100%. I had to check the tubes when I got it back, and there was still some other things that were left half-assed. Lesson learned.

[Carmine]

Originally Posted by consoleguy67

I, too, have a 1967 Zenith tv that I needed gone through. I called a local shop, who told me to bring it in. I did, and told the guy I wasn't in a rush for it. He had it for 17 months before I got it back. Also, I did all the leg work for a vertical output transformer, tubes and a schematic. The set still is not 100%. I had to check the tubes when I got it back, and there was still some other things that were left half-assed. Lesson learned.

Yeah, this what I would expect to get. Very comparable to the "old car" repair racket... One of the executives where I work has a well-know passion for 1960 Imperials (I own a '61). He and I got to talking and he asked if I might look in on his '60 at a local shop which I would consider marginal for slapping brake pads onto daily-drivers.

Because I came directly from work fairly well dressed, and in a brand new car, I figure the guys in the shop assumed I was a paper-pushing flunky. They had told the owner he needed a "new" instrument cluster (gauges wouldn't work). These clusters don't exactly gow on trees... Expensive car when new +52 years old = rare and pricey.

They all gave me a lecture on how they'd been mechanics before I was born, blah, blah. I just smiled pleasantly and took the cluster home with me. Hooked it up on my bench through the voltage regulator (a step I knew they had ignored) then sent a camera phone video of all the gauges working to the car's owner.

This is about what I'd expect from a modern TV shop... A diagnosis of a bad CRT, take it home and find the horizontal output laying loose in the cabinet.

[CoogarXR]

I know when people come in where I work and say they aren't in a hurry, that usually means "You'll call me when it's done, I'll act elated, then never pick it up (or at least wait 3-6 months)".

Storing finished TVs is the most annoying thing to me. My boss won't let me charge for it. I think we should have a weekly or monthly fee at least, and after so long it becomes ours. Right now people can leave them indefinitely. I did scrap one after a year though. That's plenty long enough to wait. I never did hear from them.

[consoleguy67]

I picked up my set when I got the call that it was done. I didn't call for the first time until the 3 month mark. I understand that getting parts for a 46 year old set is difficult at best, but it's just good customer relations to update the customer at least once a month.

[ggregg]

the shop I used to work in, part time, had a 60 day policy. We called twice, then sent a registered letter. If no response, we parted out or sold the set. Really didn't have to enforce it very much. We also charged a minimum fee up front, usually $29 or $39 as basic repair fee. If parts and/or other charges exceeded this amount, they paid the balance due at pickup. This usually stopped most of the deadbeats. The fee was refunded if the equipment was not economically repairable, either for in store credit or an actual refund. They would work with the customer to find a solution. Sometimes customers would just leave the equipment or offer to sell it for peanuts. I bought a Dynaco ST-70 for $15 because the guy was too cheap to pay the $29 to have it looked at. There really wasn't anything wrong with it other than the usual needed recap at this age. One time a guy brought in a Fisher 500TX that his brother had left years ago. Wanted it checked out as the FM wasn't working. I told him the minimum $29 fee. He said just keep it. Later in the day I put it on the bench and pushed the muting switch in, viola, FM. It turned out to be one of the best receivers I've ever owned.

The shop is still in business but took on musical instruments years ago to offset the decline in audio and video. They used to have 12 employees, now have only three. Used to have 3 full time and 1 part time car installers, now they don't have any, subcontract it out. They used to have 4 repair techs, now just one, and he is planning on retiring this year. They will fix pretty much anything and have a good supply of tubes still in stock. They are well known in the area for doing very good work, unfortunately hardly anyone fixes anything anymore. Most of the repairs now are on musically related stuff like guitar amps. They still get some TV's but not much and very little audio other than the good stuff from days gone by that people are keeping in service or collecting.

[electroking]

Just compare this with the photography shop mentioned in this thread :

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/sho...38#post6479238

[crh4881]

Hi Carmen
Was this shop in Warren or StClair Shores?
You might want to try Ann Arbor electronics I have a Zenith ChromaColor2 19inch table top and a GE porta color the guy there was surprised to see two vintage sets like that but he fixed them up no problem.

[ghettalife]

In my little corner of the old Phila. suburbs, there were still two tv repair shops until relatively recently. One guy went mobile and sold his storefront. It got turned into--wait for it--a shoe repair shop! Needless to say that didn't last too long. The other shop is still in business doing typical flatscreens, but they also do vintage stereos as well.

[holmesuser01]

When I shut down my shop in around 2004, I hauled a full truck load of '90's BPC sets, mostly Zenith's, to the dump. Then, another load of VCR's and dead consoles the next weekend.

Have no fear, though. I didnt trash anything that was truly worth saving. Also kept a few CRT's, and modules that were known to be good. A few years back, I replaced a 27" tube in a Sony with one that I kept from the big toss. It is happily running right now as I type. The TV looks like it did when I bought it in 1991.