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That time my uncle swore an old CRT TV would "fix itself" if I just unplugged it for a month

My uncle Bob told me to just leave my dead 27-inch CRT unplugged for 30 days and the caps would "reform" themselves. I was like okay sure, waited a whole month, plugged it back in, and it popped and smoked worse than before. Turns out he got that tip from some guy at a garage sale back in 2003. I ended up finding a bad solder joint on the flyback after I actually opened it up. Has anyone else gotten repair advice from a family member that was just completely bonkers?
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mason.drew
mason.drew12d ago
My uncle swore a bad solder joint was "just a myth" too... turned out he was right about nothing except how to waste a month.
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the_elizabeth
It reminds me honestly how many people think basic stuff like checking connections or reading instructions is just... optional. Like there's some magic trick that makes everything work without the boring parts. Then they spend weeks chasing something that was obvious from the start. That pattern shows up everywhere not just with electronics but with recipes, with furniture assembly, even with how people handle their money. Most of the time the simple step nobody wants to do is the one that actually matters.
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robin896
robin89612d ago
Totally feel you there, @mason.drew's uncle sounds like he's cut from the same cloth as mine.
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