Reactions to old TVs

[Sandy G]

Hey Doug-Keep yr chin up, Bro ! I guess there's still a part of me that's a 8-yr old kid who never got over the wonder of how a TV works-it's STILL about half Magick, even if I do know all that dull stuff on how they work. Pictures in a box ! Wow !! How kewl is that ?!? And as far as folks thinking you're weird, I've been accused of that MANY times. I just take it as a compliment & go on. Most of the time I agree w/'em. Look at it this way-Anybody can like stamps, coins, what have you. It takes a special, discerning type of person to appreciate old TVs. But there must be a lot more of us out there than want to admit it, there's ALWAYS a bunch of old sets & crap for sale You-Know-Where. -Sandy G.

[colortrakker]

Doug, don't feel bad that you don't have a "normal" hobby! I collect closed captioning typos. Definitely not normal. But I'm proud to say I do it because a) nobody else does, and b) I love doing it. You may get bummed that none of your local friends share your interest in old TVs, but you know what? That's their problem.

You've got a real good point about monetary value: what's money compared to the personal value of reviving a relic of the past and bringing it into the present? I'd take pride over money, even if some of those old sets are worth a buck or two.

Hold your flag high, Doug. Your "friends" may not appreciate what you've got, but we do.

[2DualsNotEnough]

Doug,
These are the same people who will spend 50 grand on an SUV and laugh at ME for spending 17 dollars at GW for another TT.In 20 years that SUV will be in the auto trader for the 5th time,and my Dual,or Thorens,or AR will have doubled or tripled in value,or more importantly,be appreciated by another "nut" who sees it in your house.
True story:My wife and I have a lot of vintage collectibles in our house-milk glass,china,old fire king,Mixmasters,old furniture,etc.We had one of my co-workers over once,and he said it looked "nice".Turns out he tells everyone at work that our house "is a Thrift Store".Now guess how many of those co-workers have asked about buying some of our "junk"?One guy gets divorced and cleaned out.He ends up with a beehive Oster,an HK receiver,and old 50's turquoise couch,and the list goes on.One guy tells me the Model 9 Mixmaster I gave him works better than any mixer hes ever owned.Sometimes you just have to bring people around one at a time....
Jimmy

[Chad Hauris]

Doug, I hear what you're saying! Let me give my perspective...I was only able to really start collecting TV's, etc. in a big way when I could drive myself out to get them at age 16 (although I had been working on them when I was younger, I could only get what Dad would consent to help load in the van).
When other high schoolers were getting ready for the prom I was driving around collecting TV's from the trash! I didn't even fit in with the "nerd" crowd in high school, I was just too far out for even them.

My parents were pretty liberal...although sometimes Dad would dissuade me from bringing home more sets, they were not upset about it at all. I didn't really care if the other kids were interested in what I did...I just did my own thing. The parents would not let me buy school buses, old cars or trucks (something else I collect) though, I would go to the auction and see them for $200, but they would not let me get them. Now that I'm in my own house, look out! I have 5 school buses, also 3 Grand Marquis, etc.

There is still a LOT of equipment at my Parents' house in Ohio, hundreds of radios, probably about 80 TV's, cart players, ampex tape machines, etc. I am making a dent in bringing it to my home in Texas but it will be incremental, as I can only do it when I can make a trip up there. They don't complain at all about it...it is all stored neatly in the garage, some in the attic. Some of it has been there for 11 years, since I was 16, but I will get it all hauled to my own house someday.

Doug, there ARE people who are really interested in old TV's, etc. There may not be a lot...but it is a lot better to have a few friends who you really have a connection with, than many who are just acquaintances.

[bgadow]

Familiar stories to me. I started out with nothing but an 8 x 10 bedroom, at one point I had about 5 or 6 tv sets in there and probably 20 or more radios, along with the bed, dresser, desk, etc. The first old tv I bought, a 21" b/w console, was when I was about 14. I wouldn't have got it except the antique store I bought it from was willing to deliver it one day right after I got off the bus (but before my Dad got home). It was a couple weeks before my parents found out about it!

My parents were very tolerant, glad I wasn't into something far worse.

[drh4683]

Chad,

I was the same in high school. I was beyond the "nerd" group. When nerds start to tease you then you know you are in a class all of your own! That was half the fun though, being different and not being ashamed of it. Once I turned 16, tvs and lawnmowers started comming home at a rapid rate! I still have many of those mowers I bought at estate sales then (only lawnboy machines. I consider those "zenith" of lawnmowers)
Dont get me wrong, I am certianly not ashamed of what my hobby is. Its just dissapointing when all you do is take smart a$$ shots from everyone including your own family for being the way you are. It gets old....very fast. Thats whats so great about AK, we all appriciate old TVs and everyone gets along like we're best friends. Thanks for the comments guys.

Hey, how do people react when you find a tv at an estate sale? First off, the people running the sale 9 times out of 10 will say "I didnt think anyone would have bought that" or "luckily we didnt throw that away before the sale". More times they will ask "what are you looking for"... You say Old tvs, responce: "Oh, we threw them out before the sale to make more room"
Thats the worst when you hear that, and unfortunatly, thats what I hear most of the time! It may seem that I find all kinds of tvs and radio stuff, but believe me, its a very rare occurance when you factor in how many estate sales I go to each weekend. Id say I find an old tv in 1 out of 50 estate sales. basically, I might find a tv every 4 months, thats about it.

Heh, I've only been out of High School for 4 years now, but I was in the same situation as Doug and Chad. I was in the A/V department, and used to go there during my study hall time. Had lots of old, tubed equipment there. TVs, record players, reel to reels, pa units, etc. That's where I scored my 1975 Sears hybrid set (it belonged to a librarian who quit 20 years before) which was my first tube TV, even though it was a hybrid. Then there was this RCA Lyceum 23" B&W TV from I think 1970, all tube, 75 ohm coax input, video line level inputs, audio line level inputs with a phono input, and lighted dials on the tuner (I love lighted dials!) I ended with that TV anyhow. Lots of stupid kids there got on me for liking the old TVs. And earlier this year, at work in the storage area, there was like an endless supply of older computer monitors and servers. I was with a coworker of mine up there looking at this old server and he was going to see if they were going to get rid of it soon. While I was up there, I noticed that there was this early 70s Admiral color hybrid tube set stuffed back in a corner. I asked the guy in charge of the IT department about that, then told him what I like to do, and got laughed at in my face, twice by that guy! Then followed the insults. What a jerk. People are very closed minded on stuff like this for some reason. I had my share of stupid remarks about my hobby.

I know I've been rather quiet here, but I really enjoy reading others posts here. This is one of the first places I visit when I get online. Too bad I didn't find out about this place until the middle of this year or so. This is a great forum. Great people and TVs.