I Love Trash!

[andy]

That looks like a nice event. I wish they had something like that here. There is an electronics recycling day, but scavenging is strictly prohibited. This was back in PA. I'm not sure what they have in CA yet.

[yagosaga]

Originally Posted by andy

That looks like a nice event. I wish they had something like that here. There is an electronics recycling day, but scavenging is strictly prohibited.

This is usually all over the country the case. But here in Braunschweig, the holder makes an exception. But the public authorities try to prohibit it.
Much more than the goodies I got there, it is an event for my son. He is 12 years old, and he reassembles computers from pieces. He learned there how to bargain, how to test the things. He wants to have a 100 watts hi-fi system. We have taken some loudspeakers out of the junk containers, some wire and went to the power point and test it. And the hi-fi system worked. After some bargain, he got it for $10. These experiences are much more valuable than the hi-fi system for itself. The discovery, that one needs not to go into a shop to get something, but can get it in a much cheaper and more exciting way, this is important.

Eckhard

[Whirled One]

Originally Posted by yagosaga

Hello!

It's the first friday in May, and we had the electronic-recycling day again. It is a warm and sunny day, and here is the recent report. I had been there with my son who had just school's out. The whole community was there and it was a fantastic mood

Interesting photos! It's rather odd to see so much equipment like that in one place that has been systematically disassembled and sorted for recycling.

We've had a few more bulk-trash-collection days in my area, but, alas no more TV's worth picking up. There are still several more bulk-trash days to go though. Did find some interesting non-electronic related stuff on the curb, including a reflector telescope (it's fairly chintzy though), and a not-so-old Kirby Generation 3 vacuum cleaner with a number of attachments. (You guys are right-- Kirbys do seem to be rather nice machines at that...) I quickly discovered why the Kirby was thrown out, though--it needs a new impeller. The impeller is plastic, and from the looks of things, it must have split through, then started tearing around in an arc near the motor shaft, eventually causing part of it to bend and somehow *fold over* on top of itself before the motor finally jammed. The folded-over broken impeller was wedged *very* solidly inside the housing-- I'm rather impressed that the motor was powerful enough to keep running to the point where it got so solidly wedged up. After removing the remains of the impeller, the motor runs fine, so looks like a new impeller blade is all it needs. From looking on the web, it seems to be an inexpensive and common replacement part.

[Adam]

I saw a sony trinitron video monitor on the curb this morning, a big one in a metal cabinet, I didn't have time to stop and check it out, and I really don't want it myself, but if anybody does (and can stop by soon to pick it up), it was right near my apartment, so I can pick it up on my way home and hold it for a while, or I could just direct you to its current location, if it's still there.

[simplynuts]

I go out some nights on bulk refuse and pickup some good stuff. My wife actually encourages me. I built part of my HT setup through finds, found a $449 snowblower this week (Got it working and farily new), second fastest computer in the house (2.6 pent4 dvd burner, 1 gig ram 160 gig hard drive all in one video card, highend soundblaster) was a street find. It is amazing what people toss. I figure I am keeping it out of landfills. I give some stufff to the low paid staff at work. Doing my bit.

[holmesuser01]

The 27EXR25 now is WORKING! It was the IC that Charles mentioned in his post... I had at one time, about 20 of these IC's in a bag that I bought from MCM Electronics. Sony wanted about $36 EACH for them... This was a big failure issue with these sets. I also replaced any caps on the G board that had heat damage, and installed a small fan on the IC heat sink. I have never had a repeat repair on a set like this... I bought an EXR25 in 1991 or so, and have never had any troubles with it, other than the IC in 1996. These sets both beat the heck out of the 27TS32 Sony that is in my bedroom. It has had troubles since the warranty ran out. It is currently having width problems. Its intermittent, but I notice it!

[JCFitz]

Originally Posted by holmesuser01

These sets both beat the heck out of the 27TS32 Sony that is in my bedroom. It has had troubles since the warranty ran out. It is currently having width problems. Its intermittent, but I notice it!

If I were you I'd resolder the driver transformer and also the Horzontal output transister,flyback and yoke section,and vertical section on the circuit board.The later Sonys are notorious for bad solder connections and loss of drive to the horizontal output will take it out as well as the regulator transistors and fusible resistor.If you have intermittent loss of width there's a good chance there's a bad solder joint somewhere in the horizontal section.

[holmesuser01]

If there is a Kirby distributor in your area, the impeller kit is only about $13. Its a very easy repair once you find all the screws... My parts guy is more than happy to coach me when I go to tear down a newer Kirby... They dont have a metal impeller anymore. My mother is really good at sucking up loose change in her Kirby Heritage vac. I've replaced the impeller on hers several times since I bought it on eBone about 5 years ago. Best of luck!

[Whirled One]

Originally Posted by holmesuser01

If there is a Kirby distributor in your area, the impeller kit is only about $13. Its a very easy repair once you find all the screws... My parts guy is more than happy to coach me when I go to tear down a newer Kirby... They dont have a metal impeller anymore. My mother is really good at sucking up loose change in her Kirby Heritage vac. I've replaced the impeller on hers several times since I bought it on eBone about 5 years ago. Best of luck!

Thanks! Funny thing, I actually found another Kirby G3 on the curb a few days later. It wasn't in as nice condition, but it did have an okay (but somewhat beat-up) impeller. I went to a local shop and bought a new impeller anyway (as you say, they're not very expensive), but at least now I've also got some extra spare parts. Now my Kirby-from-the-curb-y works great!

I didn't have too much trouble figuring out how to take it apart and replace the impeller, but it's definitely not as simple as it could be. Taking it apart involves a number of unnecesarily interlocking parts that conceal screws or other fasteners for the other parts. Also, the impeller bolt/belt pulley has a reverse thread, though that wasn't actually too suprising. My guess is that the Kirby people wanted to make disassembling the thing juuust tricky and unobvious enough that Joe Homeowner will give up trying to figure it out and take it to the local Kirby Authorized Service Center, but still make it fairly easy for the official Kirby repairman.

Back on the topic of TV sets though-- what Japanese company made Sears-brand TVs in the late 70's? Was it Sanyo? On that same trash day, I noticed a Japanese-looking Sears-brand solid-state color portable, but the styling/control layout didn't look familiar. I didn't pick it up, but I'm kinda curious who actually made the set. It had a click-stop UHF tuner with two "odometer"-style drums to indicate the selected UHF channel; wasn't Matsushita/Panasonic fond of those for a while?

[Jack Lord]

But today, we have the electronic-recycling day, which is better than Sperrmüll. The next will be next friday

Viel Spass.

[zenith2134]

Yes Sanyo made most of the SS Sears units, but who knows abut that particular unit. All I gather is that alot of Japanese color manufacturers had those flip-over channel indicators; for example Sony did on a 1976 KV1612 (with XE3 chassis and HSTAT, all solid state). It has the click-stop UHF with flip-over indicator, also backlit- perhaps the sears was too?
I keep passing up alot of good stuff here because I have certain doubts also. Certainly never had to worry about laws and such prohibiting me, thank goodness. Oh, and my greatest find was an RCA 630-type set that only needed the horizontal tube with the plate cap replaced!! Have a good day see you on the forums.

[holmesuser01]

When I worked at Sears, they had:

Warwick
Wells-Gardner
Sanyo
Toshiba

I almost NEVER had problems with the Toshiba sets. The console Sanyos were good at blowing audio output transistors, and caps in the power supplies.

All the above companies supplied portables to Sears. I have several W-G, and Toshiba sets from the mid-to late '70's that are working... somewhat...


Oh yeah, on the KIRBY, I forgot to mention the reverse-thread on the shaft. Sorry about that, Chief!

[JCFitz]

Originally Posted by holmesuser01

When I worked at Sears, they had:

Warwick
Wells-Gardner
Sanyo
Toshiba

I almost NEVER had problems with the Toshiba sets. The console Sanyos were good at blowing audio output transistors, and caps in the power supplies.

All the above companies supplied portables to Sears. I have several W-G, and Toshiba sets from the mid-to late '70's that are working... somewhat...


Oh yeah, on the KIRBY, I forgot to mention the reverse-thread on the shaft. Sorry about that, Chief!

I think the Toshiba made sets were the best they sold.I've had several over the years that I fixed and sol and they were always something minor like solder joints or just needed deoxit in the tuner and controls.The Sanyo built sets were notorious for bad capacitors and the ones with the black rectifier/focus block combo all had trouble with that part.It would often take the flyback with it.The worst has to be the Warwick sets.My boss worked for Sears back then and they often would condemn them because they couldn't guarantee them.The module contacts were always a source of problems.Strange that they had so much trouble since Sylvania used the same type of connectors for the modules to plug in and my grandmother's set never had an intermittent problem due to that.Only the yoke connector burned up after nearly 20 years of constant use and I had to hardwire it to the board.My mom had one of those Warwick made consoles(1973 or 1974) and it was always giving trouble.I think the Sears man was out there once a year for something until he finally condemed it in 1982.I got it for a project not long after storing it at my grandmother's.A flyback and tripler got it going again but then it developed AGC troubles.An open resistor fiixed that but the tube was going gassy and it soon failed.I should have stopped there but it was from my childhood.Watched Scooby Doo,Brady Bunch,Waltons,Happy Days,Archie Bunker you name it from the 70s on that tv.I fitted a Philco tube found in the attic of the shop I work at in it and it played fine again.It always had a good picture ,just unreliable as could be.A few years later I took it to an auction.Then the guy who bought it wanted me to look at it.It had an intermittent problem and he could hit it and make it go away.I never went.I should have let it die when the tube went. What a repairman's nightmare those sets must have been.Good riddance.The Zenith System 3 my mom bought to replace it never broke in 10 years until lightning got it in 1992.Fried the tuner.My boss put a new tuner in it and sold it.Last I saw it in the new owner's house in 1998(I was there working on the big satellite dish that they have since got rid of) it was still going.Probably still working somewhere.I would imagine the Sears set hit the landfill long before 1998.

[Whirled One]

Oh yes, it's garbage night, and the feeling's right...

There have been several more "spring cleanup" bulk trash days for various neighborhoods near me these past weeks, but no more worthwhile TV-related finds. Until this Friday night, at least. Well, it's not a Predicta Holiday (that was a truly *amazing* find, Captain Moody!), but it's still kinda neat.
It's a nifty 19" Zenith Chromacolor II Space Command in a 70's-style white melmanine cabinet, complete with matching pedestal stand and mechanical ultrasonic remote. Looks a lot like a 'mini' version of the consoles that Zenith also sold in this style, like the one vintagecollect got recently. Attached is a photo of it taken just before I loaded it into my vehicle.

It's in the storage garage for now. I haven't had a chance yet to check it out and power it up. The power cord is gone, which might be a bad sign, but I've also noticed there's at least one scrapper out there on these bulk-trash nights who seems to love clipping or removing the AC cords from every electrical appliance he passes by in his truck. Frankly, I don't understand what the point of that is. What's the copper scrap value of a 6-foot long piece of zip-cord anyway? One cent? Two cents? Chee...

Also spotted (but didn't pick up) a late-60's RCA B&W console. It was rather unremarkable except that it had a kinda odd-sized CRT. It was a 21" size, but it had the more squared-off look of a 23" / 22V. Hadn't seen one like that before.

[Adam]

Another one! That's yet a different kind of base, does it swivel on that one? Seeing all these is making me want to start working on the one I have.

I don't know what it is with the removing of the power cords, I've seen that around here, too. Maybe they want to use them in other stuff.