PDA

View Full Version : I <3 Craigslist


Lothair
01-02-2011, 03:49 AM
I've been wanting a big TV for quite awhile now, but I just can't afford it. Until now.

In my area and the surrounding areas, you can buy those old massive two hundred pound televisions from sizes of 50" through 60" for around if not exactly $200. I have 5 listings alone bookmarked just out of the ones I liked (widescreen ones).

There's even one I'm looking at that has 1080p and HDMI ports!

So awesome. So cheap. So worth the lackluster quality compared to todays LCDs and Plasmas. I mean really, the quality isn't that bad.
BuzzKillington
01-02-2011, 05:34 PM
They're expensive to replace the bulbs though.
TheGreatSatan
01-02-2011, 10:11 PM
And fun to lift
nevermind1534
01-02-2011, 11:48 PM
They're expensive to replace the bulbs though.

Not if you can make your own
Lothair
01-03-2011, 12:46 AM
They're expensive to replace the bulbs though.

They make bulbless ones don't they? I think that's the one I'm looking at.
x88x
01-03-2011, 01:02 AM
They make bulbless ones don't they? I think that's the one I'm looking at.

Having some sort of bulb is kinda intrinsic to the whole 'rear projection' thing. It might be a different kind of bulb, but there's always gonna be a bulb of some kind. I have seen some projector mods done where they replaced the bulb with some powerful LEDs...it'd be interesting to see a similar thing done with a rear projection TV. :D
Lothair
01-03-2011, 01:20 AM
Source?
x88x
01-03-2011, 10:05 AM
Source?

That's just how rear projection TVs work. Just like every LCD display needs a backlight, every rear projection TV needs a high power light source. The one exception (sort of) to this is CRT TVs, which I'm quite certain is not what you're talking about (I don't think they were ever made that big, and if they had been, they would have been a lot more than 200lbs).

Rear projection TVs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rear-projection_television
DLP tech (this is probably the tech you're looking at):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Light_Processing
Snowman
01-03-2011, 10:09 AM
I hate craigslist I just got hosed AGAIN...
Lothair
01-03-2011, 10:41 AM
That's just how rear projection TVs work. Just like every LCD display needs a backlight, every rear projection TV needs a high power light source. The one exception (sort of) to this is CRT TVs, which I'm quite certain is not what you're talking about (I don't think they were ever made that big, and if they had been, they would have been a lot more than 200lbs).

Rear projection TVs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rear-projection_television
DLP tech (this is probably the tech you're looking at):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Light_Processing

I meant about the LED bulb mods. That'd be a great idea if it's not too complicated.


I hate craigslist I just got hosed AGAIN...

Hosed? Do you mean you got ripped off or? I only ever do local pickup stuff for Craigslist. For delivery type deals I use Ebay or Amazon (used section). Much too risky otherwise. So much so that I'd consider it my own fault if I got boned by someone.
Snowman
01-03-2011, 10:43 AM
Hosed? Do you mean you got ripped off or? I only ever do local pickup stuff for Craigslist. For delivery type deals I use Ebay or Amazon (used section). Much too risky otherwise. So much so that I'd consider it my own fault if I got boned by someone.

No found a sweet deal on a 98 TDI Jetta set up time and place to meet and i get there and the guy sends me an email to tell me he already sold the car.
Lothair
01-03-2011, 10:49 AM
No found a sweet deal on a 98 TDI Jetta set up time and place to meet and i get there and the guy sends me an email to tell me he already sold the car.

Ah okay. Yeah, that happens a lot. It's all about being in the right place at the right time. You wait even a single day and bam, sold to someone else. Frustrating to say the least. lol

And here I'm waiting for tax returns. This should be interesting. Hopefully there isn't as much of a demand for these monsters.

I'd put money down on it happening like this, though. The TV's will be available throughout the entire period between now and when I receive my taxes back. They won't even be entertaining any offers. However, the very next day after I deposit the funds into my account they will all be sold. Almost as if by magic. HAPPENS EVERY TIME. lol
Snowman
01-03-2011, 10:51 AM
Ah okay. Yeah, that happens a lot. It's all about being in the right place at the right time. You wait even a single day and bam, sold to someone else. Frustrating to say the least. lol

And here I'm waiting for tax returns. This should be interesting. Hopefully there isn't as much of a demand for these monsters.

I'd put money down on it happening like this, though. The TV's will be available throughout the entire period between now and when I receive my taxes back. They won't even be entertaining any offers. However, the very next day after I deposit the funds into my account they will all be sold. Almost as if by magic. HAPPENS EVERY TIME. lol

See what makes me mad is I replied almost as soon as the ad was posted, but the guy didnt list a phone number.. i think it was a bad deal all the way around.. still mad about it though.. would have saved over a hundred dollars a month in fuel alone and that was just for me.. would have put the wife from a 15 mpg vehicle to a 20 mpg vehicle.
x88x
01-03-2011, 12:33 PM
I meant about the LED bulb mods. That'd be a great idea if it's not too complicated.

Ah, ok. Here's a few:
http://hackaday.com/2010/03/29/trash-heap-projector/
http://www.allinbox.com/GohtanBox3/GohtanBox3.htm
http://www.instructables.com/community/Projector-Light-Bulbs-are-too-expensive-Lets-make/
http://www.instructables.com/id/LED-Projector-Lamp-v10/
Lothair
01-03-2011, 03:30 PM
Is there anything special about the bulb in one of these old TV's? If not, it kind of seems like all you really need is a light source of some kind or another. So, I wonder if it could be just as simple as wiring up a bunch of super-bright LED's in place of the bulb? Hmm.

I think I've seen one of these bulbs before though. Aren't they oddly shaped to help magnify the light as well as spread it evenly?

I suppose if the bulb ever goes out I could just clean it and then wire up some LED's in place of the filament. :think:
x88x
01-03-2011, 03:40 PM
Yeah, they're basically just very, very bright bulbs with special focusing facets. I think one of the pages I linked has a picture of the focusing thing one guy made in his LED mod.
Twigsoffury
01-03-2011, 03:44 PM
.. would have put the wife from a 15 mpg vehicle to a 20 mpg vehicle.

lol my echo gets 39/42mpg
nevermind1534
01-04-2011, 01:08 AM
Is there anything special about the bulb in one of these old TV's? If not, it kind of seems like all you really need is a light source of some kind or another. So, I wonder if it could be just as simple as wiring up a bunch of super-bright LED's in place of the bulb? Hmm.

I think I've seen one of these bulbs before though. Aren't they oddly shaped to help magnify the light as well as spread it evenly?

I suppose if the bulb ever goes out I could just clean it and then wire up some LED's in place of the filament. :think:

My friend did pretty much what you said with his projector that he found on cragislist. He just put an LED array from DealExtreme with a lens to focus the beam of light properly in place of the burned out bulb, and it works great. The only problem is that DX tends to over-rate their LEDs, so they have a tendency to burn out really fast when used at anything to close to what they're rated at. At least they replace all of the bad ones for free.