Big screen parts

[horseboy]

I have a 4ish year old Sony 53" big screen (can't remember model# off hand), and the screen has some problems. I know I can pay the TV repair dude a few hundred bucks to put a new one in, but I was looking for something cheaper. Does anyone know where to look for new/used big screen parts? I mean there has to be about a million Sony (my model) big screen that broke but still have a good screen. Anyhow, any help is much appreciated. Thanks

[ChadTower]

You could call local TV repair shops to see if they have any... I'd imagine they have some parts sets, though within 4 years would be tough.  Another option might be to check places like craigslist for broken ones being sold, ebay too.  Obviously do a google on the part number and maybe just call up a sony repair center to see what they would charge for the part alone.

[horseboy]

I wonder how hard it would be to put in myself? 

[clanggedin]

I had issues with my Toshiba big screen TV. I found this website www.fixyourowntv.com and emailed the guy there he told me what part to buy to fix my TV. I had to solder in some new ICs and it fixed the problem. I think I paid $60 for the parts from him.

It was easy and cheap.

[ChadTower]

I wonder how hard it would be to put in myself? 

If it's just the screen, it's not hard at all.  They're usually held in place with clamp force from the bezel or velcro on the cabinet (or both).  Some combination of very simple things like that.  It's more nerve wracking the first time you do it than it needs to be.  Doing that gives you a good chance to clean the projector lenses while you're in there.  That is also very simple and makes a gigantic difference on an older projection TV.

[boykster]

My 4 year old plasma died a few months ago, but the screen was still good (most expensive part).  I used a tech document put out by panasonic to figure out what circuit board needed replacing and was going to order it from panasonic.  The board was $600!!!!

I setup saved searches on ebay to look for an exact model replacement of my panel that had a broken screen.  I found one, negotiated with the seller to gut the plasma and send me the circuit boards (all of em) but not the casing and broken PDP.  He did and for $300 shipped I had a working plasma again, plus a bunch more spare parts for future repairs.  Oh, and the set I ended up buying the boards out of was brand new, broken during initial shipping to its original owner.  The guy I bought it from got it at a yard sale....

 

Its worth a shot, but do as much research as possible.....

[ChadTower]

Nice work.  His projection should be muuuuuch easier than that if the problem is just the screen as he described it.  The screen is easily swappable, just a specialty plastic sheet really with a protective plexi in front of it.

[horseboy]

Yeah, it is just the screen. Got some wax on it (don't ask). It should be an easy fix if can find the part.

[ChadTower]

You could consider finding a larger dead one and cutting the screen down to size.  It would give you a little more flexibility.

[boykster]

Yeah, that should be pretty easy to fix, just gotta find the part.  I agree with Chad...widen your search to include larger models and you can always cut it down to size.

[horseboy]

Yeah, that should be pretty easy to fix, just gotta find the part.  I agree with Chad...widen your search to include larger models and you can always cut it down to size.

Assuming I look for a bigger one to cut down to size, I would still want to look for a Sony. Right?

[ChadTower]

Not sure, depends on the screen more than anything else.