<head><style>body{font-size:10pt;font-family:arial,sans-serif;background-color:#ffffff;color:black;}p{margin:0px;}</style></head><body>John,<br><br>I would have preferred to work on something like that GR-2000 vs the 42" Plasma TV I'm trying to fix right now. SMD's smaller than a gnats ....<br><br>31 years - dang! I'm sure the term "Planned Obsolescence" was not in Heath's vocabulary.<br><br><br>Thanks for the trip down memory lane.<br><br>Walt<br>WB2VSJ<br><br><br><blockquote style="padding-left: 5px; margin-left: 0px; border-left: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 255);">-----Original Message-----
<br>From: wb4lnm@aol.com
<br>Sent: Feb 8, 2011 12:14 AM
<br>To: heath@puck.nether.net
<br>Subject: [Heath] Farewell, GR-2000
<br><br><font color="black" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Just before penning this message, I tossed the last piece of my GR-2000 25" color TV into the trash bin.
<div>The low-boy cabinet had been disposed of a couple of months ago, after intercession with a Sawzall.</div>
<div>Printed circuit boards had been pulled and sent to recycling due to concerns about the lead solder content.</div>
<div>My neighbor and his .22 LR put the CRT to sleep a week or so ago so it was safe to handle.</div>
<div>It had been posted as 'free to a good home' a couple times here with no serious takers. </div>
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<div>Thus ended about 31 years life of a TV that performed as well at the end as it did in 1980 when assembled.</div>
<div>Yes, it had maintenance over the years, including a new HV power supply and new audio output IC.</div>
<div>But, in the end when disassembled, there was not speck of rust on the chassis, and every nylon tie was pristine.</div>
<div>My only complaint is the very bad choice of the "Z" lead IC sockets. They caused innumerable problems.</div>
<div>I should have just soldered the IC's into the sockets, and suffered the additional labor if I had one go bad.</div>
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<div>Soon after we moved into our house in Stevensville, Michigan, my wife and I assembled the TV.</div>
<div>She assembled all the PCB's and I the chassis wiring. Not one mistake was made. I still have the iron. </div>
<div>I remember the snow was several feet deep outside, much as it has been this winter in the midwest.</div>
<div>It took us two weeks or so, and another week of troubleshooting, but it served us well for many years.</div>
<div>The group of good folks in the TV kitting group down the hall provided much valuable assistance. </div>
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<div>Here's hoping you found your kit products as much fun and rewarding as I did. Farewell, GR-2000.</div>
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<div>John... Heathkit Amateur Radio Group Senior Design Engineer 1979-1981</div>
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