Thank goodness you're about 2 states away from me
Right. I could cause some serious damage to your county.
All bullcrap aside, any reasonable person would agree:
#1. one cannot simply explain away the fact that the Tx manufacturers make and sell them in direct violation of the FCC law which tells me the FCC couldn't care less that they're doing it. These kinds of laws are made in the hope of discouraging every Tom, Dick, and Harry from swapping stuff all over the place without proper range checks and such and potentially causing a problem. This is similar to woodworking where every publication loudly states one should NEVER remove the blade guard from their tablesaw when in reality, they are often impractical and I'd bet 90% of professional woodworkers use them off and take a little more care while they work. The FCC. Futaba, and the rest know darn well people are changing their Tx crystals and if you read Futaba's FAQ you can even read between the lines "We cannot [recommend] changing crystals" Translation, "Can you change them...uh...go ahead but if someone asks me, I'll deny ever telling you to"
#2 Many here put much faith in the "certified technician" If they're so qualified and professional, so many here would not have stories of how they're Tx is never working right when they get it back. So if the "certified" tech smoked a little too much dope that day, is my Tx setup any safer than if I swapped a lousy crystal and did a range check?
#3 it all boils down to common sense. If you start swapping stuff and throwing the plane into the air without testing, etc. yeah, that's bad, but on the same note, these are not nuclear reactors were dealing with here. People should take care not to be such extremists.
and...some feel they've been "flamed" by me? well let me tell you, there are ways so subtly flame people with provocative phrases such as "I suppose you informed the buyer of your radio that you ilegally changed the crystal so he could add in the expense of getting it retuned" insinuating I am a thief and dishonest with buyers. (I choose not to tell you if he knew or not. so there. you can wonder)
and if you're so worried about safety, the next time you have an urge to pass a line of cars on a two way highway to save yourself 30 seconds to your destination, or tailgate, or walk on the ice with your hands in your pockets or whatever.
you're way more of a menace than I'll ever be with my "illegal" crystal.