RCA 21CT55 #8802897 is Dead

[Tomcomm]

But in the event you're not................I'll ramble on. My sacred FBT died of old age. It developed a short in the primary winding very near the core. I could see a tiny blue arc and a whiff of white smoke on the side of the winding near the core when I tried to restart the TV.

I did not cause this tragic failure, I wasn't even in the same room and the HV cage was locked. This FBT was toast, all dried out and brittle. It was non-repairable in my estimation. It had to be replaced.