Try to resist these bargains.

[Bill Cahill]

OMG!!!
And, don't you like the dealer that says "I fired it up, and, it works. The tubes light, just no sound, or, picture. Probably just needs adjusting."
Or, how about one that actually read, "Plugged her in, and, fired her up. She made a pop, and, I saw smoke. Must be a bad tube, or, something."
Bill Cahill

[AUdubon5425]

"Plugged it in, then caught fire. Used enviro-green extinguisher, all natural contents biodegradable and will not harm the set. Rare opportunity - $250."

[Bill Cahill]

"I know nothing about these sets, but, I fired it up, and, it works! The tubes light up. I can't seem to get a picture, or, sound, but, I'm sure it's minor. Probably just needs adjusting. I know nothing of these things."
Bill Cahill

[Bill Cahill]

And, regarding non-working record players...
This machine works. The record goes round, and, I can hear some sound. But, I don't hear anything through the speaker except a loud buzz. Must need a new needle."
Bill Cahill

[John Marinello]

"...Probably just needs new bulbs."

[pugs5061]

I'm sure its an easy fix.

[AUdubon5425]

"I'm sure a new power cord would give it enough electricity to operate like new."

[radiotvnut]

When I used to buy broken TV's to fix and re-sell, these were the three most used lines by people who thought their dead console was worth a fortune:

A. There can't be much wrong with it since it won't come on. Probably just needs a new cord or fuse.

B. All it needs is a new horizontal tube (most of the time, the set would be SS, anyway).

C. It must be your cable! The TV was working fine at home!

To which I'd usually reply

A. I'm sure it has a blown fuse; but, what caused it to blow? At any rate, I don't pay over $10 for a broken TV, regardless of what you think it needs.

B. New horizontal tube? That's interesting, seeing as how your TV does not use any tubes except for the picture tube.

C. It might have played fine at your house; but, it's not playing fine at mine. And, there's nothing wrong with my cable. So, don't bring your junk over here and think I'm stupid enough to simply take your word that it works.

[PredictaNoob]

"Hello, I'm an idiot. I typically do stupid things. L@@K!!! I've done it right now by mindlessly plugging in this old television! Rare opportunity!!! Don't let this smoking, burned out hulk of potential get away!!! ...
Oh, who gives a rats... Just give me lots of money for this junk and shut up!"

[Tom_Ryan]

Originally Posted by Eric H

Seems like 75% of old TV's listed on eBay are owned by the clueless.


http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-TV-/1205...item1c1299a637


http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-TV-/1205...item1c1299b414

So, it was like this ...I contacted the seller and asked, What's the price for just the tubes? After a few days I got a reply of "same price". The tubes ship where they lie in the rusty cabinets... So for clarification, I asked a follow up question; was it possible to combine shipping? What I understood was that the 2 rusty TVs would be placed gently on top of each other into a grocery box, a bit of newspaper on the bottom. Edges of box tightly pressed against the TV cabinets to prevent them from moving around. All sides labeled "Fragile". Shipped UPS so that would get the ball rolling and delivery assured.

So, anyone still tempted to place a bid? Bid often and quickly ...'cause the auction is ending early tomorrow morning!

[PredictaNoob]

Originally Posted by Tom_Ryan

So, it was like this ...I contacted the seller and asked, What's the price for just the tubes? After a few days I got a reply of "same price". The tubes ship where they lie in the rusty cabinets... So for clarification, I asked a follow up question; was it possible to combine shipping? What I understood was that the 2 rusty TVs would be placed gently on top of each other into a grocery box, a bit of newspaper on the bottom. Edges of box tightly pressed against the TV cabinets to prevent them from moving around. All sides labeled "Fragile". Shipped UPS so that would get the ball rolling and delivery assured.

So, anyone still tempted to place a bid? Bid often and quickly ...'cause the auction is ending early tomorrow morning!

Its all OK, since the tubes aren't damaged inside. Besides all of that abrasive metal-on-metal contact will merely knock some of the rust off.

[holmesuser01]

When I had my shop, I would ALWAYS plug the set in while the customer was still there. An old friend of mine told me the story once of how he got a customer set into the shop that was supposedly working, and didnt plug it in to see. The set was dead (water damage) and the customer sued him for a new set. He took lots of pictures of the water damage in the set, and the judge agreed. My friend had to take a full day off from work to deal with this.

[Old1625]

A friend and fellow electronics enthusiast and I are always joking about this antique or second-hand dealer who was defending a radio that this friend of mine was trying before buying that only gave out a hum. My friend and I will often joke about what the dealer told my friend: "If it hums it's gonna play!"