You Know You Are Old When

[Fuddyduddy1952]

I'm a (11 yr.) retired TV repairman for 43 years. I started and retired at the perfect time.
I still have a tube caddy, vacuum tubes and tube tester. I have a 1956 Westinghouse 21" console that a friend's (rip) parents bought new for $650...almost $8,000 today.
That's the year my Dad (rip) bought our first used Silvertone table model for $75 when he was bringing home $50/week.
I'll soon donate a box truck load of stuff to a museum (seriously). I even have a B&K flying spot scanner!
It was a strange but profitable business to be in.

 

[masseyrider]

I remember going to the local corner store and they had a tube tester.
You took the back cover off the TV and pulled the tube(s) you thought might be causing the problem.
You went to the store and plugged them in the tester. If you found 1 or 2 that were bad they had replacements.
Usually that solved the problem for a while.
The closest store to the old place was a 20-25 minute bike ride.
The guy would let me take the tube(s) I needed on credit along with a candy bar and pop. He knew my Ma/Pa would be in later in the week to pay.
Do that at your local electronics store now.
I still want to know how the Gremlins knew when my favorite shows, Star Trek, I Dream Of Barbara Eden, and others were coming on. That's when the tubes always seemed to be troublesome.
We had one old TV where the channel changer was worn. You turned it to the channel you wanted and hung a diver's lead weight on it. I guess that bent the shaft down enough to make contact inside and you could watch your show(s) from a choice of 5 channels.
It was a big deal when Ma/Pa bought a new TV and it had VHF and UHF. It doubled what was available.
Color? That was space tech to them. Not until the late 80s.
It was a big deal when you saw someone's house had a color TV antenna.

 

[not2old]

Other than someone who collects obsolete old electronics gadgets, who would want one? Not compatible with today's digital off-air reception, lousy resolution, pretty sure most didn't have HDMI ports either. TVs were expensive back in the day...1st tv I bought in the early 70s was a (maybe) 11" B&W portable, cost a bit over $100 which would translate to just under $1k today. Worth fixing, I guess, but not when you can get a new, much larger one for half that.

Neighbor owned an appliance repair shop before he retired. Said that parts and documentation were not always readily available, and the time it took to fix one made it almost as expensive to repair as it was to toss & replace.
No idea who does warranty repair on appliances these days.

My son has a side job, picking up modern TV sets that don't work properly, either for free or for very little money. After repairing them he sells them for about $500.00 or $800.00. He's refunded one or two when they quit shortly after but I'm amazed how much people will pay for a used TV with no express warranty.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

We sold used TVs and personally I'd pay 10%-20% more for new with warranty but people are "funny". I could write a book.

 

[ultrarunner]

Funny how family had brand loyalty…

TV only Zenith, Refrigeration only Amana, Vacuums only Electrolux, Victrola Record player, Kenmore Washer/Dryer, GE for other appliances…

Must have done something right as all still working in the 21st century.

No brand loyalty when it came to cars… whatever dad could get a good deal on and always looking for the next… dad said buy it right and drive it without depreciation…

Never a new car in dads life and mom only the Toyota after dad passed…

 

[deserteagle71]

Would love to see pic. I live in South Bend, home of Studebaker.

I went out this morning and took a pic of the tailgate, just for you!

I've actually seen several old Studebaker pickups abandoned in the desert around here. Here's one at an old mine - looks like it was converted to a dump truck. Check out the "Climatizer" cab controls!

 

[bigtiller]

I'm a (11 yr.) retired TV repairman for 43 years. I started and retired at the perfect time.
I still have a tube caddy, vacuum tubes and tube tester. I have a 1956 Westinghouse 21" console that a friend's (rip) parents bought new for $650...almost $8,000 today.
That's the year my Dad (rip) bought our first used Silvertone table model for $75 when he was bringing home $50/week.
I'll soon donate a box truck load of stuff to a museum (seriously). I even have a B&K flying spot scanner!
It was a strange but profitable business to be in.View attachment 4133512View attachment 4133518

My ex-step-father in-law was also a TV repairman. It was a good profession for him and he also, was well known and liked.

 

[Oaktree]

My son has a side job, picking up modern TV sets that don't work properly, either for free or for very little money. After repairing them he sells them for about $500.00 or $800.00.

Seems a lot of money considering you can get a new one for the same or only a little more money. Curiously, what's typically wrong with them? I know some of the earlier flatscreens would lose the backlighting, but were otherwise OK. Still true?

My ex-step-father in-law was also a TV repairman. It was a good profession for him and he also, was well known and liked.

Senior year of high school worked after school & Sat. mornings at a tv repair shop (mid-late 60s). Those old sets were pretty easy to work on for the most part (just remember to discharge the anode on the picture tube!). Biggest PITA was when the tuner needed cleaning (contacts got dirty)...had to remove it from the set, disassemble it and clean all 1487 contacts with tuner cleaner & a Q tip.
When color sets needed alignment it was a job left to my boss.

 

[deserteagle71]

Seems a lot of money considering you can get a new one for the same or only a little more money. Curiously, what's typically wrong with them? I know some of the earlier flatscreens would lose the backlighting, but were otherwise OK. Still true?

Power supply goes out. Just had to replace a 6 year old set that I keep in my garage because it would not power up anymore.

And you are correct. Around here, no one repairs them. Cheaper, at today's labor rates, to just replace them. I see them advertised at $200 or less for 55" sets.

 

[WinterDeere]

If you remember constantly adjusting the color on your TV depending on which show or station you were watching. As I remember over adjust the intensity until everything was orange and then dial it back until the skin tone looked "right".

lol... I remember watching a lot of "too red" or "too green" TV. No way was I getting up and crawling behind the TV or flipping down that little silly access panel to adjust tint, everytime a channel went wonky!

I'm in my mid 70s, and most of the "old people" from my youth were born in the 1800s, though by my teenage years anyone born before the civil war would have been pushing the century mark. Not impossible, but not common either.

Get @oldballs out here! I think he's in his early 90's.