I would definable say that most TV repair shops were reputable and all customers were stingy, they thought everything should cost $2, and listened too much to the rubbish that was propagated by the media. Don't the public have a big reputation for always doing that anyway?
I never worked full time in TV repair as I could get better paid jobs, it was just an interest.
I did however complete four years of TV and video repair courses at RMIT and met many technicians who attended the courses.
I also worked part time, after work, in in the workshops of three TV repair shops as well as at home.
I have a BOCP and TVOPs, worked as a Senior Technician at Channel 7 and and have trained in installed and repaired digital TV stations.
When I hire technicians anyone who applies that is qualified in and has done TV repair gets the job.
The very best of repair technicians for sure.
Fixing all kinds of items with often no circuit, RF, SMPS, digital anything you name they can fix it and have it ready in a fraction of a day.
I worked both for PMG/Telecom Aust, then for Ch7, & I have mixed feelings about TV service companies.
At one point, in an early flirtation with "outsourcing", TVW7 decided to send all the failed "second level" picture monitors, & domestic TVs out to TV Service companies, with the aim of giving the station techs extra time for more important stuff.
Amongst these were several big, heavy 27" Sony sets.
The CRTs had low emission, so we supplied a regunned tube along with the first set, requesting that the chosen company change the tubes over, adjust & converge the TV, & return it, along with the removed tube.
We further specified that they do nothing to the removed tube, as it needed to be suitable for regunning.
After about a week & a half, we got them back, the tube flopping round in its unsealed box, with the end of the neck smashed off, & the TV with gross colour purity issues, & almost no work having been done on the convergence.
We ended up burning more time fixing their stuff-up than we took to do the job ourselves, which we proved by promptly doing the job properly on the other one.
We came out of it OK, though, as we found another company, which,although a bit slow, did a competent job, for a very much reduced number of jobs.
Even they had their moments, though, ----on one occasion, we did a bit of "first in maintenance" on one TV, determined pretty much what area the problem was in, attached a note outlining what we had done, & dropped it in to them, feeling virtuous because we had "helped them out".
Alas for our efforts, when we got it back, we could see where our note had been torn off, & a fault docket tied on, where under "reported fault" it said "doesn't work!"
On the other hand, I always found it annoying when a TV Network would find some self satisfied twat "Engineer" who would, in between talking a lot of crap, "set a trap" to prove TV service companies were ripoff merchants.
On one occasion, one of these tweaked an internal control in a new set, & sent it off to the company concerned.
The TV servicemen, tested it, saw an apparent fault, found the misadjusted control, which led them further down the rabbithole.
I know that if I found a misadjusted control, I would assume it had been so tweaked as a "bodge" to compensate for a real fault, which was evidently intermittent.
This what the guys did, then after spending hours,looking for an intermittent fault, reset the control, left the thing on test for hours, & with misgivings, returned it, saying "if it played up, bring it back!"
Of course, "Bighead" then quoted the time they spent as being evidence that they were crooks!
Why a TV Network, with "in house" technical expertise "coming out of their ears", wouldn't check with a passing Tech or EE before engaging a "showboat" is beyond me!