Jumping the heater resistor on that set can cause immediate failure of the
heater on startup due to the excessive inrush of current.
Perhaps simply taking its value down by 1/2 would not be so bad as the
resistor will still limit the inrush current somewhat.

The G2 increase is usually the best bet. If you know exactly what you are
doing and have the schematic on hand, you can 'fiddle' with the akb
feedback resistors on a weak gun to make the akb levels closer. What them
on start up on the oscope.

Less than 1 year is typical. I usually tell people to start looking and
shop around for the lowest price on the best tv set they are willing to
buy. With the impending transition to digital, might not be a bad time to
start shopping.

David