WHY...are there so FEW tv's..from the late '60's -to mid-80's STILL AROUND?

[rca2000]

It seems that most of the time we find an old tv-- we have a BETTER chance--of it being from the late '40's to early '60's..than from the mid-60's to the mid '80's. I do NOT understand WHY this is the case. 60+ YO tv sets should be MUCH harder to find than one 35 or so YO...but that is often NOT the case. Take Admiral for example. Most ANY ad for one...will be for an admiral from about 1948-55 or so, MAYBE early 1960's.. Almost NEVER for one newer--even though they SHOULD be around. Example--Admiral 1973 M20 7 tube hybrid..I have only seen ONE..35 years ago...not ONE since then...but have a FEW late 1940's admiral BW sets..

Or philco sets. Not real hard to find those early 1950's philc split chassis sets, or late 1940's philco sets (EXCEPT.for a few..like the 48-700 or 50-701/702. HARD to find..) are easy to find...but NEWER ones--like maybe late 60's philco BW sets or early '70's SS philco sets..? RARE !!

WHY is this? WHY.. was it EASIER for me to find a CTC 5 set--TWO of them in fact--than ANY of the late '70's RCA direct address sets? I STILL can't get hold of ONE of those..


Or Sylvanias. Sylvania sets are rare altogether...but I CANNOT find a 1971-72 EO-1 or EO- 2 set--that SS one with the early varactor tuner..to SAVE MY LIFE..but that 1948 syl set with the RF HV supp;y--I had one and have sen another one.

WHY IS THIS?????

[Electronic M]

Part of it is cabinet quality. Newer sets tended to be particle board, fake wood, plastic or metal, and did not have the 'it is still a fine piece of furniture' excuse to keep it when the repair man eventually advised a newer set would be cheaper than a repair.

Part of it is weight (the newer ones tended to be lighter and easier to bring to the curb).

Many of the newer sets were cheaper and less reliable so the owners felt less committed and saw them as junk faster. Also tech changed a lot then, and sets got really cheap (and repair started drying up) by the time many were acting up.

A good portion of cabinet styles then were less timeless than earlier models and would wear out their welcome after redecorating.

[sampson159]

other than zeniths,i often wondered about that too.we had the largest sylvania dealer in the country.they sold 10 sylvanias to 1 other brand.everyone had a sylvania here.where are they?you will find a chromacolor 2 occasionally but thats about it.

[MRX37]

Huh. I regularly found 70's to 80's TV's up until the digital switchover when i stopped looking for them.

[CoogarXR]

It's probably about value too. People spent a lot of money on those old TVs, and they probably still worked when they upgraded to color or whatever. The BW TV got moved up to the attic or whatever, since "I paid so much for it, and it still works". Then TVs got cheaper and cheaper, and people just put them on the curb when they upgraded. Meanwhile that old BW is still up in the attic, forgotten... That's my theory anyway

That's kinda the logic with my old NEC flat-CRT PC monitor. I paid a ton for it (around $400 IIRC), and it just sits in the closet now that I upgraded to LED. CRT PC monitors are just about worthless, but I refuse to throw it away since I paid so much for it, lol.

[RetroHacker]

I see them around from time to time, but - yeah - they're fairly rare. I think it's part the relative quality of the sets - a 1971 Sylvania probably wouldn't work if you found it now, and it probably broke down in 1986. And in 1986, if your 15 year old TV broke, you wouldn't bother to get it fixed, you'd just by a new solid state one. And the other part - there is no value in keeping it. It's not a piece of furniture. It's not made of wood, it doesn't serve a purpose - it's just a metal box with a screen in it that no longer works as a television. You tossed it then and there. It wasn't a huge investment when it was new - you used it and got your money's worth out of it, it broke, you replaced it.

The large consoles stick around because they are furniture. As much as we all hate the "projects" that involve gutting a vintage TV and turning it into a bar or a bookcase - I think that idea is what kept a lot of these things alive. "Well, this set isn't useful as a TV any more, but, hey - it's a nice cabinet, I'll put it in the basement, maybe later I'll gut it and make a cabinet out of it". Unfortunately, I find several TV cabinets where someone gutted it, and then never made that bar out of it... If only they had been slightly lazier, the electronics might still be in there.

-Ian

[WISCOJIM]

There are lots of TVs from that era still around. You must be looking in the wrong places. Older TVs (pre-1970 or so) are advertised in the Craigslist antiques, collectibles, and electronics categories because people feel they are worth something. Most newer sets are considered junk, and actually cost money in most places to dispose. You'll find them in the "free" category. Even all the local estate sale business here either offer them for free, or will even pay you to take them.

Here's a big bunch here in Wisconsin (Craigslist - Free category), just waiting for anyone to pick over...

http://madison.craigslist.org/zip/5501962914.html

.

[radiotvnut]

In my area, I rarely ever find anything older than the mid '90's. Sometimes, I'll see a gutted '60's TV cabinet at an estate sale; but, never the whole TV anymore.

What amazes me is that up until the early 2000's, Zenith from the '60's and '70's were common as dirt around here. Then, it was like someone flipped a switch and they all disappeared.

A few years ago, I ran an ad in the paper, looking for vintage TV's with knobs. I got all kinds of calls; but, they were mostly from people wanting to sell their 2001 19" Orion. The only two TV's that I got from that ad was a beat up late '70's 19" Zenith B&W (that I later gave to a friend for parts) and an early '80's 19" Hitachi pushbutton set (that I probably sold for $20). Once in a blue moon, I'll see a 13" or 19" set from the '80's at the thrift store; but, our thrift stores are still proud of their TV's and have no problem asking $25-$40 for used TV's. I'm sorry; but, I currently have a 20" TV/DVD combo from 2004 that I can't even get a lousy $20 for. I'm not paying them $25+ for an '80's knob tuned 13" portable.

[jr_tech]

Originally Posted by CoogarXR

It's probably about value too. People spent a lot of money on those old TVs, and they probably still worked when they upgraded to color or whatever. The BW TV got moved up to the attic or whatever, since "I paid so much for it, and it still works". Then TVs got cheaper and cheaper, and people just put them on the curb when they upgraded. Meanwhile that old BW is still up in the attic, forgotten... That's my theory.

Add to the mony aspect perhaps a little nostalga... In most cases a 40s or 50s set was the first TV in a family, an expensive very big event, and was sometimes passed down to the children when they married, as *their* first TV. I bet that many first family's TVs are found in the attics or basements of children of original owners. After that with the exception of that first color set, which was also an expensive big event, TVs became just commodity items, of no perceived lasting value to many people.

jr

[Kevin Kuehn]

I wonder if a lot of those vintage sets didn't get disposed of by the dealer when they sold a new set. People realized they had no resale value at that time, so they worked a deal with the sales person to have it taken away. Or the dealer might have pretended to offer a trade in allowance.

[Bill R]

You also have to remember that the people that bought those tv's in the 40's and 50's were of a generation thet lived through the depression and WWII. They grew up being taught to not throw anything away. Often they kept sets going long after their normal life span. They would even then keep it because, well you never know when someone might need it. By the time the 60's and 70's rolled around the generation had changed and we were not as attached to our stuff and it was easier to throw it out. We had to have the latest and greatest.

[sampson159]

a local television station had a contest here in central ohio.looking for the oldest set used as a daily watcher.the winner was an elderly couple with a early solid state sylvania gt matic console.crt was replaced in the early 80s and still going strong.i tried to contact them to buy it because the prize was a 55 inch samsung smart set.never got a reply.there were a few chromacolor IIs and space commands.a few sylvania consoles from the early eighties with some rca s from the same era.the winner had a perfect cabinet and the picture was like new.

[zeno]

A lot of it is changes in movement. Used to be houses passed
down the family. When my ancestor fulfilled his contract
( indentured ) in 1650 he stayed & many generations stayed
within 2 towns, up to 2003 for me. The last few generations
have been constantly on the move. So Grand Ma's attic is
a rarity now. Our town was a school town. young people moved
in, put the kids through HS then quickly move away due to
very high taxes. Everything gets junked. The stuff that went
to the dump was unreal. I put kilo bucks in my pocket picking
& selling stuff. Some weeks you could make more at the
dump that 40 hrs fixin TV's. Thanks for being wasteful yuppies !!!

Tons of other reasons too.

73 Zeno

[andy]

... .

[Radiotronman]

I was just reading this thread when my neighbor asked me if I wanted this 1968 Westunghiuse JetLine tv. I don't usually see any, but I just got this one!