On Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:10:41 -0500, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:

BTW, to you remember when PB made overpriced consumer electronics?
The old game shows, like 'Lets Make a Deal' stated that the retail
prices were over $1000, for a $400 color TV. I only saw ONE PB color TV
in Ohio. We had the only shop that would touch it. I was VERY happy
that I worked for the industrial electronics group, that day.

Oh, that brings back nightmares, all right... Uncle Wes helped
engineer that 19" all-tube monster, I think one of his co-workers was
Earl "Madman" Muntz with his insulated side-cutters... ;-P

He got us a deal, but told us to get the extended warranty. (He
knew the MTBF was abysmal, but you can't come out and say it and keep
a job...) And over the course of about 12 years every single
component in the set was changed at least once. Two picture tubes.
One or two complete tuners.

And I was in there in between calls, the young kid with the plastic
tuning screwdriver cleaning up the color when things drifted. Even
had my own Killer Cord and degaussing coil.

(Amazing what you pick up when you quietly watch what the repairman
is doing, and exactly how he does it. And you take it to heart when
he says "Whatever you do kid, do NOT touch here, or here, or here!" as
he points out the flyback and the HV anode pickup cup and such. And
since I never got knocked on my ass, I must have learned something.)

When they wouldn't renew the contract any more, we dumped the set
the second time it died - the first retail repair call was a very
expensive lesson. And by then solid state sets were starting to hit
the market.

-- Bruce --