TV Humour Book

[Belford boy]

Hi All, For all those Ex TV Engineers and others from the trade a humourous book on the trade. Set in the 1970s.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Set-Ok-Cust...ps%2C74&sr=8-1

[Nickthedentist]

Sounds fun, albeit a bit of a niche market!

Are you the author, by the way?

[Mooly]

If it is anything like my experiences it should be a fun read.

As we used to say, 'Don't worry madam, its only the newness wearing off'.

I'm sure this must have been posted on here before, however:
https://www.radios-tv.co.uk/memories-of-the-tv-trade/

Be sure to click 'next' at the lower right of each page.

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by Mooly

As we used to say, 'Don't worry madam, its only the newness wearing off'.

Ah..... That dropper that's been lying in the back of the van for months. Don't worry, it's not smoke, it's just steam.

[Bobdger]

Job card reads. Adjust customer. I have just ordered a copy. Bob

[dave walsh]

I think I may end up with a birthday copy. I love reading these recollections from many and varied sources. Already it's a long lost trade in a way, one that has only, relatively recently, disappeared with the exception of a few staunch individuals. Despite an apparent lack of interest from younger people [see the current age thread] anything that goes away, tends to come back. Even the up-cycling craze and the Repair Shop type series, for example, are hopefull. I was at Tatton Hall last summer and watching the carefull repair, restoration and research re a painting from there [last night BBC4] made me think that people are almost doing the same with Radios now!

Of course we can't quite replicate the interaction with customers in the same way but the Repair Shop does retain that vital human element from a different angle. The late Chas Miller was great with tales of the Serviceman's life on the road. I think his was the one about a rolling picture. The family had grown used to it and when the engineer said "I can soon fix that!" they pointed out there was a problem with the sound I liked the tale about an AC/DC TV whose elderly owners had moved to another type of mains without adjustment. When it started to smoke they poured a vase of water into it, exploding all the valves! I didn't know Chas that well but he once rang to say I'd paid my Radiophile subs twice. I said, "There you go then. So good I paid it twice!"

I was never in the trade but I did three weeks on a Co-op TV Van in the winter of 1966 with two other guys. One was very pleased with his brand new side cutters [tools weren't so readily available then]. He asked a customer if the extension lead was unpluged but it wasn't, blowing a hole through his pride and joy when he cut the cable . A woman in Helmshore called us out re no TV reception on her, just purchased, new TV set. We stood outside her house looking up at the hundred foot cliff behind it. The Winter Hill signal was not going to get through.

Dave W

[Graham G3ZVT]

With field work, it's often as much psychology of the customer, than it is engineering of the set. It achieves precisely nothing to tell your customer their set has no fault.
Like a patient who feels cheated unless the doctor writes a prescription, so it was with our customers, and they expected one or two new valves, and I was always happy to oblige (swapping them back for the originals when their back was turned!)

In a different scenario that could have been construed as fraud, but ours were all rental customers, who weren't paying for parts separately. With field work, it's often as much

[Station X]

Originally Posted by Nickthedentist

Sounds fun, albeit a bit of a niche market!

Are you the author, by the way?

Yes it would appear that Belford boy is the book's author and is promoting his own book here.