Is there a best time of year to look for a CRT TV?

[Brad251]

I've been checking Craigslist for the past two months and there have hardly been any decent CRT TVs listed. I had the same experience when checking Craigslist for CRTs last summer as well. Is there a particular time of year when people are more likely to put their CRTs on Craigslist?

[Ikaruga11]

I've had the same issues as well.

The best time to find CRTs is around late December when people are upgrading from their older sets with Christmas gifts and money.

[Stevens]

What the General said. I would add 4th of July week and around the Superbowl.

[tjstogy]

Don't forget to check the "free" section too.

[ELabit]

They are not in season yet. Try for the Fall, the cooler weather yields higher encounter rates.

[xelement5x]

They are not in season yet. Try for the Fall, the cooler weather yields higher encounter rates.

LOL I don't know about you, but I only use locally grown non-GMO organic CRTs.

[BazookaBen]

I've been checking Craigslist for the past two months and there have hardly been any decent CRT TVs listed. I had the same experience when checking Craigslist for CRTs last summer as well. Is there a particular time of year when people are more likely to put their CRTs on Craigslist?

You're not typing "CRT" into craigslist are you? 99% of people with CRT's don't know that they're called CRT's. Just search for "TV" or maybe "Sony TV" if you're looking for a particular brand.

[austin532]

I've been checking Craigslist for the past two months and there have hardly been any decent CRT TVs listed. I had the same experience when checking Craigslist for CRTs last summer as well. Is there a particular time of year when people are more likely to put their CRTs on Craigslist?

You're not typing "CRT" into craigslist are you? 99% of people with CRT's don't know that they're called CRT's. Just search for "TV" or maybe "Sony TV" if you're looking for a particular brand.

Exactly, plus CRT's are getting harder to find due to people throwing them away and the retro community snagging up the rest that aren't thrown away. So the sooner you look for them the better. You could always try your local pawn shop, Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc. and see if they still carry those. Last I heard was that they would stop carrying those in the near future.

I hope you find one soon as it seems like you've been looking for one for quite some time.

[Brad251]

I've been checking Craigslist for the past two months and there have hardly been any decent CRT TVs listed. I had the same experience when checking Craigslist for CRTs last summer as well. Is there a particular time of year when people are more likely to put their CRTs on Craigslist?

You're not typing "CRT" into craigslist are you? 99% of people with CRT's don't know that they're called CRT's. Just search for "TV" or maybe "Sony TV" if you're looking for a particular brand.

I use multiple search terms. I use the keywords "tv|television|crt|trinitron|wega". This is the equivalent of putting an "or" in between each keyword. I think these keywords cover all my bases. When you search the For Sale section on Craigslist, it automatically searches all sub categories, so the "Free" section is included. I also search listings that both include and don't include an image as sometimes people list good TVs but don't put an image up. I actually already have an FV310 but am not happy with it as some of you already know, so I am just looking for another TV. Specifically, I am looking for either a Panasonic TAU or JVC I'Art CRT. These TVs are hard to come by in my area. The most common flat screen CRTs I see listed are the Trinitron FS100/120s. I am in the Buffalo area and there are many more TVs listed in the Toronto area but I'm not sure I want to deal with hassle the border patrol could potentially give me bringing the TV back.

[Brad251]

They are not in season yet. Try for the Fall, the cooler weather yields higher encounter rates.

LOL I don't know about you, but I only use locally grown non-GMO organic CRTs.

I only buy gluten free, free range, grass fed, sustainable, hormone free, non-GMO organic CRTs that have a low carbon footprint.

[tacoguy64]

If you are ever in the hunt for crt's or even thinking about getting one for the near future then the best time to look is always now. Though craigslist hasnt been yielding the best results for you, you might also want to check salvation army, goodwill, and any other of the thrift shops or even recycling plants.

Also like many users have said, you might want to expand your search methods on CL and also maybe even look to near by towns for any tvs.

[bobrocks95]

I've been checking Craigslist for the past two months and there have hardly been any decent CRT TVs listed. I had the same experience when checking Craigslist for CRTs last summer as well. Is there a particular time of year when people are more likely to put their CRTs on Craigslist?

You're not typing "CRT" into craigslist are you? 99% of people with CRT's don't know that they're called CRT's. Just search for "TV" or maybe "Sony TV" if you're looking for a particular brand.

I use multiple search terms. I use the keywords "tv|television|crt|trinitron|wega". This is the equivalent of putting an "or" in between each keyword. I think these keywords cover all my bases. When you search the For Sale section on Craigslist, it automatically searches all sub categories, so the "Free" section is included. I also search listings that both include and don't include an image as sometimes people list good TVs but don't put an image up. I actually already have an FV310 but am not happy with it as some of you already know, so I am just looking for another TV. Specifically, I am looking for either a Panasonic TAU or JVC I'Art CRT. These TVs are hard to come by in my area. The most common flat screen CRTs I see listed are the Trinitron FS100/120s. I am in the Buffalo area and there are many more TVs listed in the Toronto area but I'm not sure I want to deal with hassle the border patrol could potentially give me bringing the TV back.

Holy crap thank you for posting this, I didn't know Craiglist's search engine had such robust options. Brings up hundreds of results in one search instead of me typing in several a day. Though CRTs have pretty much dried up around where I live that certainly helps me to not miss one.

[Brad251]

Holy crap thank you for posting this, I didn't know Craiglist's search engine had such robust options. Brings up hundreds of results in one search instead of me typing in several a day. Though CRTs have pretty much dried up around where I live that certainly helps me to not miss one.

No Problem. I would also recommend checking the "search titles only" option. Here is a link for tips for searching on Craigslist, https://www.craigslist.org/about/help/search. This is how I learned about using "|" to do an OR search for multiple keywords.

[mvsfan]

you could just search craigslist for tv -Flat -Flatscreen -projection -dlp and it will mostly exclude flatscreens and projections.

[Brad251]

you could just search craigslist for tv -Flat -Flatscreen -projection -dlp and it will mostly exclude flatscreens and projections.

Using the (-) function is a good idea. I wouldn't just search for "tv" in the title, though, because this would omit listings that include common words found in the title like "television" and "crt". Including "trinitron" and "wega" as search terms is a good idea as well because people sometimes just put "trinitron" or "wega" in the title and nothing else. I would not omit "flat" and "flatscreen" because sometimes flat screen crts are listed with those words in the title. Two common keywords I would omit are -lcd and -plasma. I do agree that omitting -projection and -dlp is a good idea.

I check every day and always sort by "newest". This makes the search a lot easier because once you become familiar with all the current tv listings (bound to happen if you check every day) in your area, there is only about 1-2 pages of new listings for tvs every day so you don't have to search through 20 pages of listings.

[BazookaBen]

Agreed. Flat and flatscreen were used to describe lots of early 00's CRT's that had flat faces.

This has been quite an enlightening thread, didn't know about all the CL search modifiers.

[Brad251]

I just wanted to note that I just discovered Kijiji which is an online classifieds service like Craigslist but is only for Canada. I live in the Buffalo area and there are so many more nice CRTs listed on Kijiji within 90 miles of me than on Craigslist, it is ridiculous. I have been looking for a JVC I'ART and Panasonic TAU CRT in my area on the U.S. side for close to two months and almost nothing has popped up. I just discover Kijiji and in 5 minutes of searching I discover a bunch of these models currently being listed in my area. There are also a bunch of flat screen Trinitrons and Toshiba CRTs on there.

I think I have found my answer. No more waiting months searching Craigslist for the CRT I am looking for. If you leave anywhere near the Canadian border I would definitely check it out.

[FinalBaton]

I have been saying this for a year now it's literally raining consumer CRTs on Kijiji.
That web site is a super popular platform here and everybody uses it, old and young.

Have I known you live in Buffalo, I would have recommended it to you for sure!

[Ikaruga11]

Don't you need a passport to cross the border?

[Brad251]

Don't you need a passport to cross the border?

In New York State you can either use a passport or what is called an "enhanced" driver's license to cross the border to Canada. An enhanced driver's license is just a regular driver's license with special markings on it to show you can cross the border. The enhanced driver's license is a fair amount cheaper than a passport. I would see if they have something like that in your state. If not, I would consider getting a passport. They aren't really that expensive, they last for 10 years and can be used all around the world. If you want an FV310, you likely wouldn't have a hard time finding one on Kijiji. Since you live in Ohio, you are close to the Ontario region where there are a crapload of high end consumer CRTs.

[Brad251]

FinalBaton, I noticed that the prices for CRTs (at least the ones I'm looking at) tend to be in the $40-50 range or more. Do you think I am likely to get a response if I offer the seller $20 instead of $50. I don't want to lowball the sellers but I don't want to pay $50 for a CRT. Is haggling common on Kijiji ilke it is on Craigslist?

[FinalBaton]

FinalBaton, I noticed that the prices for CRTs (at least the ones I'm looking at) tend to be in the $40-50 range or more. Do you think I am likely to get a response if I offer the seller $20 instead of $50. I don't want to lowball the sellers but I don't want to pay $50 for a CRT. Is haggling common on Kijiji ilke it is on Craigslist?

For a product sold at $50, I wouldn't offer less than $30. $20 might come across as insulting to the seller. For a $40 selling listing, I would offer no lower than $25.

Are you contacting them by e-mail or by phone?

If by e-mail: I suggest to not make your offer in the first message. Start with saying "is it still for sale" and "is it working fine" in the first message, then once they responded to you (AKA : showed a willingness to deal with you), then write back and ask if they'll take $30 instead of $50/$25 instead of $50.

[austin532]

Considering how long you've been looking for a CRT, If you do find one you really want and they are asking let's say $50 or less, I would go ahead and just pay it. You don't want to risk insulting them. As long as it works great and there is no major flaws with it, I think $50 is really not that bad considering these things cost around $500-$800 new for the higher end ones.

[Brad251]

Considering how long you've been looking for a CRT, If you do find one you really want and they are asking let's say $50 or less, I would go ahead and just pay it. You don't want to risk insulting them. As long as it works great and there is no major flaws with it, I think $50 is really not that bad considering these things cost around $500-$800 new for the higher end ones.

I agree that I shouldn't lowball them but as long as I suggest a reasonable price like FinalBaton suggested then I don't see anything wrong with haggling. The FV310 I own was originally listed for $90 and when I offered $40, the seller accepted that offer, so it can work out. I have been looking for a CRT for a long time but that is because there aren't that many decent CRTs in my area on the U.S. side. Things are different now because I discovered Kijiji and there are tons of really good flat screen CRTs being listed frequently and right across the border. Like FinalBaton said, it's raining consumer CRTs on Kijiji.