Fresnel lense & Home theatre conversion

[GHO5T]

Hi all,
I've seen these fresnel lenses for sale, together with a set of plans, on ebay. They claim to be able to convert my 24inch tv into a 150inch projection. Apparently its simple and some show a picture of the finished article. Can anyone advise me on the quality of the picture that is projected, and also if the plans are available free somewhere on the net, so i don't have to pay a tenner for them.
Thanks In Advance,
Dave

[fatbob]

Hi Dave,

One of the American home theatre mags ( Home Theater - April 2003 ) ran a feature on low cost home cinema equipment, and included was a small review of one of the fresnel lenses you mention.

I don't have any experience of using one of these myself, so I can only quote what the reviewer said:

" How was the picture? It looked like I was looking through a fishbowl at a sports-bar projector that hadn't been converged since the mid '80s. I imagine that, with more time and effort, I might have been able to get an acceptable picture, but it didn't look promising."

Regards,

Bob.