Anti-glare Coating... Removal ? (1 Viewer)

[SeanA]

I need a little advice. I am fairly certain the anti-glare coating on my 3-year old Sony KV-34XBR800 CRT is coming off. It seems to be wearing away mainly towards the bottom 1/4 of the screen, in the form of small (but numerous) smudges and vertical streaks. The smudges and streaks appear to be slowly expanding and proliferating, and a couple of them are quite large now... about dime size. These spots appear to be "silvery" compared to the rest of the screen.

I do clean the screen once every two weeks, using eye-glass cleaner (sparingly) and a soft cotton cloth. And I did make the mistake of using regular glass cleaner for the first few months of ownership, but the streaks and smudges have only appeared after 30 months or so.

In a search on this forum, I discovered that someone (with a similar problem) used a product called "Sprayway" to completely remove the anti-glare coating. Is this my only option ??? And are there any negative side effects to removing the anti-glare coating, other than increased reflections from the screen ??? Lastly, should I spend $50 to $60 for a service call, even if only to confirm that the anti-glare coating is indeed coming off ?

 

[SeanA]

OK... well I guess I will respond to my own post with a couple of additional thoughts/questions:

1) What about this "spray on" product I discovered after some "googling" ?

Glare Buster

I think it's probably a bad idea, but I am desperate and :frowning: .


2) Lastly, if the CRT screen is not repairable and needs to be replaced... Does this mean the entire picture tube assembly needs to be replaced or is there a separate screen on conventional CRTs that can be replaced ??? If it is just the screen and it can be done for under $200, I may just go ahead and replace it.

 

[Allan Jayne]

The front panel and the entire picture tube assembly are one piece, except for a few commercial grade sets with an obvious separate flat safety glass in front. It is hardly ever worth replacing especially since by then you are in the market for a TV with new improved technology, and a newly replaced CRT in an old set needs to be converged which adds to the cost.

Now that the condition has gotten as far as it has, you might use alcohol and soap water (at two different times) to be sure that the shiny spots are not added grease as opposed to loss of the anti glare coating.

Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

 

[SeanA]

Thanks Allan.

I was afraid that was the case. I guess only the rear projection sets have a separate screen/cover.

I did try cleaning the spots with alcohol and also with a little soap and water, but no improvement. In fact, it does seem to be worsening.

If the anti-glare coating is indeed wearing off, do you think removing the coating entirely is the best option ??? It does not appear that there are any really good options.