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I like repairing and restoring old TV's for pretty much all the reasons given in this thread. When I was 14 (in the early seventies) I started tinkering with old TV's from the late fifties and early sixties. Most were gifts deemed not worth fixing. I felt a great deal of satisfaction bringing them back from the dead. I didn't really make any money doing this. I just enjoyed the process. I was lucky to have a local retail/repair shop nearby where I bought most of the needed parts ie caps, resistors and valves from. I owe the tech there a debt of gratitude as he guided me on the right track many times and enabled me to hone my diagnostic skills. I ended up doing an apprenticeship in that very shop where I worked installing and repairing color TV's as well as many other electronic consumer items. I also installed antennas and even car radio's. I worked there for 6 years whilst doing an associate diploma of electronics during the evenings. I guess I always knew this would only be a stepping stone for me and I could see the writing on the wall for the servicing industry as sets became cheaper and more reliable in the early eighties. I then started working for the Australian Broadcasting Corp initially as a radio tradesman but quickly advanced to an engineering officer once my course was completed. I worked initially in the TV studio maintenance dept repairing broadcast television equipment. I enjoyed that greatly and worked there for about 5 years until an opportunity to move to the Outside Broadcast section came my way. Thats when the doors really opened. Working on live broadcasts and repairing equipment in the field suited me down to the ground. I worked there for about 26 years and advanced through the system. I now work as a freelance broadcast engineer which now gives me some free time to work on vintage electronics. I love the simplicity of the old gear and the ingenious ways they overcame hurdles to make a device work with the technology of the day. It's very gratifying when you track down a fault and bring life back to an old TV/Radio etc. Also the cabinets were a piece of furniture back then. restoring the cabinet is also part of the fun. People are amazed when they see a 1956 TV working and looking as well as it did 60 years ago. Unfortunately restoreable prospects are nowhere as plentiful in Aus as they appear to be in the States. TV only dates back to 1957 here and color from 1975 so finding worthwhile resto's require a lot of searching and luck. Ebay hasn't helped either as people now want silly money for old TV's and Radio's whereas before they were give aways. I greatly enjoy reading these Forums even though I'm not familiar with the brands the basics are still the same. Pictures of the repair processes really tell a story and the lengths some go to for authenticity is amazing. My hats off to you all.
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