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RATS!!! I guess I'm gonna buy a tube tester!?

gearhound

gearhound

Lunatic Member
RATS!!!!

The LAST TV/Radio repair shop in my area with a working tube tester has gone out-of-business!!
So I guess unless I like tossing untested tubes into my amps, or throwing away used tubes I cannot test, I'm gonna have to spring for a tube tester.
Can anyone give me a small menu of desirable tube testers?
Something under $200 would be nice for a name-brand with a potential to find spare parts....somewhere?

THANKS!!!
Steve :thumbsdn: :tears:
 
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I would write the business a letter, so it would get forwarded, asking if they wanted to sell their tester.


Carl
 
Yes, if you were a regular customer of their shop, they should know you on sight. You should try to contact the owners and see if they will sell you their tube tester (and maybe other good test equipment too).

Also, if they did any Audio work, they may have parts and even old unrepaired units that were abandoned. Maybe even some old tubes left too.

Otherwise, if you're patient, a B&K 707, or Hickok 600-600A or 6000-6000A are nice testers that are generally easy to use, and if working properly (and perhaps calibrated), can be a good alternative to the more expensive Hickok 53x series and others that run over $300 all the time.

Bart
 
I've had the following testers Eico 625, Heathkit IT-21 (both of which will test most of the old four pin tubes), a Jackson 648, and a B&K 707 . . .

the B& K has some nice features (life test, short, tests both sides of a dual triode or FW rectifier w/o changing settings), but ease of use, I liked my Jackson the most . . .

I should say none of mine were ever calibrated - I use them to to test for dead or alive, and then use them in circuit for testing by ear (not that I have golden ears, but I have a few NOS tubes of popular types as a benchmark . . . )

all of these can usually be scored for under $100 . . . being able to test the old 4 pins is essential IMO
 
Goodness, if I could go back to the 70s and the shop I used to run back then. There drawers full of service manuals as it was a warranty station for all the big brands we see discussed here. Then there were the boxes of loose tubes and then there was the "Executive Hell Pile". This was the pile of old gear that were kept around to pull parts from. This included _lots_ of Scott and Fisher tube amps and receivers.

This didn't include the Mac and Marantz walnut cabinets and other accessories, loose speakers, tape decks and turntables, too. I always wondered what happened to all those things after I left when I graduated from engineering school.

Cheers,

David
 
Thanks guys, I saw a few....Sencor, Jackson, B&K, Heathkit....on flea-bay for under $150.
My B-day is on Monday.....so maybe I can talk the wife/kids into springing for one?
I was never a regular customer at that repair shop, but I suppose a letter to the owner couldn't hurt?
Or AK could buy me one for my 2000th post?

But I'm not going to hold my breath on that one!?

Steve
 
what do you want to test?
If you want to test for emission, grid leakage and shorts, something like a Sencore Mighty-Mite is fine.

If you want to be able to test transconductance, test tubes under load conditions, and/or match tubes... you gotta pay to play. You need a good transconductance tester (e.g., a Hickok TV-7) and it needs to be working properly and it needs to be properly calibrated.

I have a Mighty-Mite, and some fairly local colleagues with TV-7s :-)
 
gearhound said:
Thanks guys, I saw a few....Sencor, Jackson, B&K, Heathkit....on flea-bay for under $150.
Click to expand...
I would consider ebay a last resort. I am sure plenty here could tell stories of testers with issues as well as shipping. Got a couple myself.
Just remember that it will cost hundreds to pay a good tech to fix a bad deal. It is not like fixing an amp, etc. i would be all over a known good unit locally.


Carl
 
dshoaf said:
Goodness, if I could go back to the 70s and the shop I used to run back then. There drawers full of service manuals as it was a warranty station for all the big brands we see discussed here. Then there were the boxes of loose tubes and then there was the "Executive Hell Pile". This was the pile of old gear that were kept around to pull parts from. This included _lots_ of Scott and Fisher tube amps and receivers.

This didn't include the Mac and Marantz walnut cabinets and other accessories, loose speakers, tape decks and turntables, too. I always wondered what happened to all those things after I left when I graduated from engineering school.

Cheers,

David
Click to expand...

Hey David,

You never know till you try. Sometimes a business will still be around, evolve, or never change. Google the name, address, even street view it, maybe its still there. Or maybe its been torn down for a shopping mall. But try!

Bart
 
I have had a few of those Sencore Mighty Mite tube testers over the years and they are nice little units. They will test the older octal based radio tubes of the late '30's all the way up through the compactron TV tubes of the '70's. These testers are compact and easy to use. Unfortunately, I sold my last one ($20, IIRC) when I thought I was done with tube TV repair. B&K also made some compact tube testers in the 600 series that were pretty good. Of course, there was the larger B&K 700 and 707 if you have the room!

CarlV said:
I would consider ebay a last resort. I am sure plenty here could tell stories of testers with issues as well as shipping. Got a couple myself.
Just remember that it will cost hundreds to pay a good tech to fix a bad deal. It is not like fixing an amp, etc. i would be all over a known good unit locally.


Carl
Click to expand...

I too would stay off epay unless I could not find one anywhere else. Many of these testers are sold as "working condition unknown" and many sellers don't have a clue how to properly pack electronics for safe shipment. Last but not least, It's not uncommon for average middle of the road emission tube testers to top the $100 mark. I'm sure you would rather not drop $100+ into a tube tester just to have it arrive busted or in non working condition. IMHO, If you look around enough, you will find a decent Sencore, B&K, etc. tube tester locally for much less than on epay. These were made by the zillions and $100-$150 is too damn (excuse my French) much money for a common emission tube tester. I am currently looking for a deal on a newer tube tester; but, I REFUSE to pay a high ebay price if I never get one! I would come near paying a little extra for one that I could examine before I bought it. But, there's no way I'd pay a big price for one on epay sight unseen. If you know any ham radio operators in your area, they might can point you in the right direction. Also, if there any antique radio clubs in your area, they often have swap meets and these tube testers are a common find there. Flea markets, estate sales, etc. are another good place to look.
 
I ante'd up and got a transconductance tube tester before I started rebuilding my LK-72A a few years ago. It was a Hickok 6000A with an external CA-4 compactron tester in excellent condition, which I think I paid less than $135.00

The main reason I got one was because I decided I simply couldn't take someone else's word (or assumption's) about test results for tubes going into MY fully restored and modified amp.

Although that may sound a tad extreme, it's simply following the addage that states, "If you want something done right, do it yourself."

Or, "In God we trust. . . All others pay cash." :)

. . Falcon
 
dshoaf said:
Goodness, if I could go back to the 70s and the shop I used to run back then. There drawers full of service manuals as it was a warranty station for all the big brands we see discussed here. Then there were the boxes of loose tubes and then there was the "Executive Hell Pile". This was the pile of old gear that were kept around to pull parts from. This included _lots_ of Scott and Fisher tube amps and receivers.

This didn't include the Mac and Marantz walnut cabinets and other accessories, loose speakers, tape decks and turntables, too. I always wondered what happened to all those things after I left when I graduated from engineering school.

Cheers,

David
Click to expand...

This post makes me both want to :drool: (drool) and want to :tears: (cry) . Can you imagine going back and finding out that when they closed down, they just locked up the doors and walked away, and all that stuff is still sitting there, as in that "time warp" record shop recently reopened to be sold off?
 
The Heathkit TT-1 (with adapter TT-1A for newer tube sockets) is a transconductance
tester that is not to everyone's taste but that can do a lot of good things for you.
Most if not all of them were sold in kit form, so build quality can vary, and the
usual caveats regarding old tube type equipment (recapping, checking wiring, etc.)
do apply. By the way Heathkit tube testing equipment had either the prefix TC
(tube checker, simple emission type units) or TT (tube tester, only the TT-1 afaik).

I have had a TT-1 for about 6 years now, and it has been serving me faithfully
with minimal trouble or no trouble at all. I have seen a web site describing how
to restore such a unit.

Good luck!
 
A TV-7 is the way to fly. Trouble is, they're pricy, & people that have 'em generally don't wanna part w/'em. I think I gave $250 for mine 10 yrs ago. TV-2s & TV-10s are good, but a LOT harder to run & even more expensive.
 
Sandy G said:
A TV-7 is the way to fly. Trouble is, they're pricy, & people that have 'em generally don't wanna part w/'em. I think I gave $250 for mine 10 yrs ago. TV-2s & TV-10s are good, but a LOT harder to run & even more expensive.
Click to expand...

I can remember when I was about 14, Antique Electronics Supply was selling surplus TV-7's out of their catalog for less than $100. The president of our then antique radio club tried to talk me into buying one. At that time, $100 seemed like a million dollars and I wouldn't buy one. Now, I'm wishing I had. The closest thing I have to a TV-7 is a Supreme built I-177-B that I gave $50 for.
 
I would definitely ask the owner of the shop if he would sell you the tube tester. For some unknown reason I like tube testers and have about 20 of them... :-) What kind of tube tester was in the shop?

My latest was a B&K 500 (I paid $9.00 for it) previous to that one was a Hickok 539B

Regards,
Sal
 
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