[Jeffhs]

I don't think the Sony Trinitrons were that bad. The set being discussed here reminds me of a similar TV two of my great-aunts (sisters, living in the same apartment) had in the 1970s. Theirs was a portable 16" Trinitron; it made a beautiful picture on all seven local TV stations in the area (near Cleveland), long before DTV, at the time, and with rabbit ears, yet. I don't know what eventually became of that set after my great-aunts died, but I do hope it found a good home, since it was still working quite well at that time. Being a Sony Trinitron, it probably is still working great, as I don't recall hearing of any Sony TV of that era (1970s) having major chassis troubles or CRT problems.

I believe Sony may well have been the "Zenith" TV of the era, as well made as Sony sets were and as well as they performed. Say what you will about Japanese-made televisions, but I believe Sony was one of the best TVs made offshore. I wouldn't be surprised if my great-aunts' TV is still working today, with a DTV converter, of course. The CRT may have been replaced once since the 1970s (the replacement may be on its last legs by now), but the chassis and everything else may be as good now as it was then.

BTW, I agree with the person who seems to think this TV (the one shown in the photos) is well overpriced for an eBay sale. These televisions were good, but I certainly don't think they were worth anywhere near $1000, even when new. Even if the VHF tuner had 16k solid-gold contacts (like 1950s-'70s Zeniths), I still don't think any Sony TV would be worth that much. I think the seller is simply trying to get as much as possible for this TV, that's all. This sort of thing often happens on eBay sales, when the seller has almost no idea whatsoever of how much the item is worth and/or should sell for.