1989 Zenith System 3 pincushion issue?
 

Finally got a pic up by connecting a video game to it. Great pic. Very clear. I like it but youll notice in one pic how the sides are bowed out. I figured its a pincushion issue.

...

Should i change all caps or just certain ones?

I wouldn't change anything. Do Google search for "access hidden Zenith TV menus". I have a similar set with the same issues but haven't bothered with it yet.

I'll keep that in mind.

If you ever go into the factory menus on any set ALWAYS
write down the numbers so you can go back to the
start. Also if a "range" is given such as 1-20 is given NEVER go beyond
it.

73 Zeno:smoke:

Right. I'll check it out. You think you can help me with my 1950's zenith b&w? Its posted here on the forum too.

Show the link & I will look.
A little before my time, most my work was early 60's to date
so I can only make general comments.

73 Zeno:smoke:

Oh ok.. Here it is:


http://www.videokarma.org/showthread.php?t=262266

Model number? Chassis? Can't pull a Sams without it....

Please folks, if you want specific answers, you'll need to give specifics on your sets.

http://www.videokarma.org/showthread.php?t=259601

Both are listed in the post. I included the link earlier.

Nope, 12 posts, no model number for the thread subject - a 1989 Zenith System 3.......no model, no chassis. I'm not a mind reader, but have resources...

Im not talking about the 89. I was asking zeno about my 50's zenith bothe model and chassis are listed. You can see the chassis numbers in one of the pics. I just have to go into my service menu for the 89. I know what to do with that one.

Why is the title of this thread 1989 Zenith System 3??? Are you even talking about a System 3?? Why post about another set in this thread?? I see the title "1989 Zenith System 3" and think, gee, I have stuff to help the OP. But wait, no model number to the SYSTEM 3 set, no chassis number, so I can't help, so let me ask......

1. Do you need help with the System 3?
2. If no, then why post?
3. If yes, then post a model number and I maybe can help. Zenith had 71 different model numbers for 1989, and if you subtract out the consoles, there are still 62 - still too wide to help - need a model number to help.

You didnt notice my earlier thread about this set. Pics and model are there. Just didnt know you needed a sams sheet for menu codes. Here it is:


http://www.videokarma.org/showthread.php?t=262296

Why not continue the discussion with the original thread? Seems odd to double thread the same set. Anyway, I'll look in the morning at what I have. My late father serviced Zenith TVs, and marked up many a Sams with symptoms/cure information. I seem to recall the Pincushion circuit in the early System 3's had a underrated pin amp transistor.

Maybe have the mods merge/move this thread with the original?

Cheers,

That was easy - for the SF2589W and F-line variants:

Always replace C3413 - 100uF 25V, while there, replace C3412 as well. Both tend to have high (>4 ohms) ESR.
Check the solder on TX3251 and LX3201 near the flyback - sweep pulls in horizontally if bad connections. May also cause snivits if intermittent. "Snivits" is my Dad's word for disturbances in the picture like snow, but are sweep related. I dunno if it's a universal term....

C3407 also fails with regularity, causing a dead set.....

22 year old comments on a Zenith, hard to decipher. Hopefully something helps.

Cheers,

The original thread was about getting it and how i got it, etc. This one was about a problem with it. I find that once you post about something and people read it, they usually dont drop back by to see if something has changed. In other words "hey he just got a zenith. Good for him. Nice tv." They wont come back. I usually post a new find, then sometimes i come back with a technical issue post. Two different things to me. You do seem to know your stuff. So theres no chance of this being a service menu issue? Parts definitely need to be updated then.

Unless someone got into the menu and played around, it's not likely a service menu adjustment. If it was a Thomson RCA, sure, but System 3's had their "always bad" list of parts to check. We'd replace them all, just to avoid the call back. The customer only paid for the bad parts, but got a TV back with many more parts replaced to ensure the set would stay fixed.

I've got the original service lit for your set - two copies.....on microfiche. The fiche subscription was way cheaper than paper, and came quicker. We had two readers and access to a reader printer at the university a mile away, so if we needed a hardcopy (rare), we had one.

PM me your address and I'l send you a microfiche (actually three).

Cheers,

Nice. PM sent.