1992 Zenith J0920X Portable Color TV

[radiotvnut]

Sometime around '87, we had an early '70's Japanese-built Truetone 14" tube color TV in our motorhome. Once, we were in a town about 30 miles away spending the week with some relatives. Soon after we got there, the TV started giving vertical trouble and we took it to one of the local shops. They didn't really want to fool with a tube set; but, agreed to look at it while we waited. They replaced the vertical output tube, adjusted the vertical controls, charged my Dad $38, and sent him on his way.

As we were leaving, this dealer had several models of those smaller Zenith TV's and he was trying his best to sell my Dad one.

The next day, our tube set started rolling after it got hot and Dad took it back to the shop. The next day, they called to say it was ready and that they replaced some resistors in the vertical circuit. Dad asked how much and the guy said, "Nothing, it's not going to last much longer and you need to go ahead and let me sell you one of those little Zenith sets." I don't remember the exact cost of those TV's; but, I'm thinking in the $300 range and my Dad certainly wasn't going to spend that much for a motorhome TV.

The Truetone set limped along until we got back home and I used it in my bedroom for a little while, before the vertical started losing sync after it warmed up. When it first started acting up, the roll could be stopped with the vertical hold control. After the set got hot, the control did no good.

My Dad took that set to every shop in town and none of them would look at it because it was a tube set. After he carried it to the last shop and got the same statement, my Dad said, "I'm tired of lugging this heavy thing around and will you throw it away for me." They did and that was the last I ever saw of that TV. Had it been a few years later, I could have probably fixed it.

He still didn't buy one of those expensive Zenith's. He bought a 13" knob-tuned Emerson for $149.

[Robb]

Originally Posted by radiotvnut

He still didn't buy one of those expensive Zenith's.

Why were they so much money for such a small CRT TV ?