Are there any TV repair shops left?

There's this one at Lane Cove, but I have never been inside it myself: https://www.e2day.com.au/

There is one in Dee why! He runs Ads in gumtree

I feel the same as you guys my every day car is 50 years old. I do volunteer work for our local Anglican op shop. Electrical inspections so they can at least sell small electrical appliances. They do not have room for larger items it is a very sad situation. Like many I am on the plus side of 70.
Regards Jimb

Vintage Pete.
That sounds like a great job. Much higher status than the Sano Man. Your blue singlets would have lasted much longer.

Jimb
Haha when I through in my mechanic job and took up being a Garbo! My family thought I was mad! My Girlfriend at the time was horrified and said , A garbo! What type of a career is that!
Well, I laughted too when I was at home by 930 in the morning and all day doing the stuff I wanted to do instead of being stuck in a work shop!
Most of the garbo's are studying! They all had something else happening like uni.
I took on a night job at the Bondi Icebergs club. It enabled me to save some money and get out of the rut I was in.

GTC, the perfect example there is Mercedes Benz. I own a Holden Commodore and the brake pads are due to be changed and I will be doing that this week. Simply remove the wheel, undo one bolt on the caliper, remove the old pads, squeeze the pots back in with a G-clamp, slip in the new pads and reinstall the bolt. Then get some help with bleeding out the air bubbles from the line. After the wheel is back on, job done. All four corners can be done in about an hour.

I am told by a modern mechanic (the one I get my pink slip and servicing done at) that a Merc doesn't let you do that. It requires a laptop plugged into the car to suck back the pots inside the calipers - apparently, amongst other strange tasks - just to change some brake pads. It's typical of the Germans though, they make something as complex as possible in order to do something that should be so simple. They did the same thing with their radios.

It can't possibly be for revenue protection - the owner of a Merc is unlikely to be doing their own mechanical work anyway. I've always been able to get Holden service manuals but even Holden always tried to resist selling them to anyone that wasn't a licenced mechanic but when pressed they always gave in - they are not cheap though. They all get you one way or another.

Apple is a major contributor to e-waste because of the way they make their phones. I've always resisted the app-craze by buying Windows phones and this goes back many years. Microsoft no longer makes them but HP and a few others still do - for now. Mine is six years old and still works as well as the day I bought it and I've dropped it a million times. The backs on Nokia-branded Windows phones are replaceable and I always use a glass protector on the screen. The phone will probably go for another six years.

No matter which way an iPhone is dropped, it'll require surgery to put right. Very few of them get to the six year mark.

the perfect example there is Mercedes Benz

Tell me about it! I have spent countless hours chasing up MB data for my mate so that he can actually get some chargeable work done. Just like the guy in the ABC News article says, the downtime these days trying to get information is terrible.

As for working on these vehicles, we have a standing joke that the first step to effect any repair on a recent model BMW is to remove the front wheels.

A lot of his work entails repairing audio equipment with water damage. These days audio gear is usually placed in the boot, right where water leaks love to go. Getting service info on that gear is almost impossible, especially Alpine branded equipment.

Some years ago I needed service information for my Hoover washing machine. After ringing around and being told "it's only available to Hoover repairers" I finally found a service guy who was happy to photocopy the relevant page for me out of his manual on the agreement that I would never tell anyone who he is.

I see both sides of the story.
I work for a company that has one department that sells and services specialist instruments.
It's a family company based in Melbourne, but, we have offices and workshops in each state.

Most of the equipment comes from a Swiss Manufacturer and we are talking high end products, when I first started there was component level repairs, with circuit diagrams included in the service manuals, now around 99% of board repairs, is by replacement. and that is a good thing, mutli-layer boards, components that I can just see, I don't want to spend time on the boards and it makes no sense as all the extra labour time would have to be passed onto the customer, not to mention blowing out the time the customer is with out the instrument.

Now the company I work for, has to purchase the documentation, tools, including service software and test jigs, and pay for our training, this is each time a new product comes out and the audits that we have on the workshops, to ensure we meet all the requirements.

We also have a number of resellers, who think they can do repairs, we have to by law, sell the parts, but! we do have a disclaimer, regrading returns, We can't be sure they comply to correct ESD procedures, and having seen some dodgy repairs and people trying to return boards, with burnt or damaged components or gouge marks, where they have tried to open a housing, with out using the correct procedure, which is just common sense...

We have to support the product five years after they are phased out, normally phased out after five years,( mind you we are still servicing some products, that are way past that, We just can't give the normal warranty on the repair, and the customers understand that.) The Swiss company, normally sources parts and also gets x number of parts (housings, boards ) produced to support the model through the lifetime, many times there are revisions, as the supply companies close, or won't produce any more parts, unless there is a major order, and during the 5 years past the phase out, they are reluctant to do a large order and be stuck with parts they will never use.

They are trying to produce instruments, that will have all the options fitted, and then just require a configuration change, customer purchases a software key to upgrade the model to suit their requirements, This saves them having to produce and support many different types of instruments, it's a win win to all involved..although we are having some teething problems at the moment in Service, I think Australia is the testing ground sometimes.

The other thing is the findings and fixes by the technicians, We have a forum, and all the technicians in the country can post all the unusual faults that turn up, it's a good reference for us, years on. But a lot of that info is not in the service manuals, They may bring out revised firmware to fix issues or to improve operation or modify some components like connectors or hardware fixes and that is reflected in the manuals.
We also have good support from the company via the company tech's and engineers.

Customers are able to upgrade the firmware them self, and we encourage it, although some people do have issues and the instruments are bricked and have to come in and have the recovery via the boot loader.

Then there is the instruments from Canada, which I get to repair to component level and we have circuits. and only three of us in Aus that service them.

It's all good in practice, to release the documents and parts to people, but how many people have the facilities on their work bench to repair to component level the items that are sold to the general public like the new generation of phones, Although the technology keeps changing with different networks systems released and other closed down.
I don't need the latest phone, I just need to keep one step ahead of the networks that close down, so it still works.
there is just so much stuff that is being produced these days, it used to be just the standard white goods and a TV/radio/hi-fi.

Yes I agree with the footpath now becoming the dumping ground for recent quick purchases, and that most of it is still fully functional.
Only thing that may change that is a recession, and that is a possibility with the next elected government.
One good thing is there are some people that are making a good side income, picking up the footpath rejects and reselling.
so a lot of the reject stuff is being recycled.

I also do repairs on some more modern stuff at home, No circuit diagrams, parts are hard to source.
I recently replaced a board on a smart TV, got the part from Malaysia and found enough info on Youtube to find the circuits and possible cause for the fault, although lots of research is required from youtube to ensure it is not rubbish info.

I like vintage stuff, I can see the components, I get to do component level repairs and you still have to go hunting for the circuits, but the history you find when you go searching is just as interesting.

Flukeoneseventyfive.
Hows life up the hill?
Have you picked up any Rare tellies of late?
I have not bought a tellie for a while now and I lost a couple unfortunately! Long story !
People phone me with tellies they want to sell every week ,but nothing Rare has come up,,,,mostly 60s consoles floor models and I just dont want them. I really only like from 1956 to 63 ish.
But you have some nice old sets too ,Any up and running yet?
All the best Pete

G'Day Pete.
Life on the hill is good, some decent rain would be good for the area, all the dams around the area have dried up.
Although we had some quick showers on the weekend with some good rainfall when they did come through, just not enough of it. But we will have some green grass back again.

No recent tellies, well nothing for many months, but I have a few extra Philips models now, I have been side tracked with many things, work, home and too many other hobbies.
I have time off coming up around April, so may get a good chance to get back to the Tele's, I still haven't got around to sending you pictures of the Music Masters radio, that has the sunken cabinet, Will have to do that too.
I have noticed the price on tellies on Gumtree has gone up around South east Qld, more so the 3in1's, but not seeing any of the early ones up here, even the clearance auctions, have had no radios or tellies for a while..
my main issue is having enough space, rearranging the shed, for more shelf's and hope to have the tellies in one area, trouble is, free space means, I can fit another TV or console in.
Good to see you back on the forums Pete.

I think we still have a couple that take on TV's here. Vintage radio I think I am the only one seriously repairing. Mainly reflected in where they materialise from.

I finally tracked down a transformer for the 1968 Thorn radiogram here that fried its. Its rectifier chucked a hissy fit & melted down. Interesting to see what voltage I get. (no info on it) Old transformer was for full wave single winding new one, centre tapped. So that will be two 1N4007's

I have a split workshop setup. One shed has the welding & turning & fitting & the other, a repurposed studio, has the computers & paperwork plus the electrical repair stuff. Stack overflow is a container. As we have two lightning started fires & a storm brewing a 32V set that came in, is in the living area. Computers & Repairs are normally banned from the house, even there is no female to complain.

Repairs are what I like about the 1951 Fergy & 1958 Ford, I can still gets bits that I can install & keep them running. Both need some TLC but as I have said, I am not going to pull down the limping Fergy engine, or modular replace the utes fuel pump (in stock) during the fire season as it may be needed if there is a fire, and there is.

Marcc
Are you near the areas on fire at the moment on the news?
Where I live I'm right on the bush, Its about 10 meters from my back door! So I get concerned about dry storms lately.
Plus,,, re Transformers I'm getting a couple rewound from a guy down your way and I will let you know what there like when I get them back....looking forward to seeing them actually.
Pete