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Post by drc on Oct 23, 2012 1:31:37 GMT -5
I know this has kind of been discussed before, but if you had to re-tube an entire 11 tube radio, what would you do.... where would you get 'em, and where do you personally draw the line between performance/price needs.....
No, it's not a Browning or Tram.......
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Pony
Mudduck
Posts: 13
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Post by Pony on Oct 23, 2012 1:59:20 GMT -5
There are a couple of web sites that specialize in radio tubes. Tubes Plus.Com, Vacuum Tubes Inc, and Vacuum Tubes.Net are a few that I know of off the top of my head. If you don't have a tube tester to find out which ones are bad, you might have to re-glass the whole set which could be a little pricey...Good Luck!
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss 
Posts: 6,250 
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Post by Sandbagger on Oct 23, 2012 6:12:27 GMT -5
I know this has kind of been discussed before, but if you had to re-tube an entire 11 tube radio, what would you do.... where would you get 'em, and where do you personally draw the line between performance/price needs..... No, it's not a Browning or Tram....... Most small NOS tubes are not all that expensive, and can be had at a variety of sites that specialize in tubes (including E-Bay). As for performance aspects, If the tube is weak it should be replaced, otherwise the rig will not work as intended. Chances are not all of the tubes are weak. Have them tested and replace those that are weak first. If the radio still doesn't work properly, there may be other issues (out of tolerance resistors or bad electrolytic caps), or it may need a realignment. |
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Post by cbrown on Oct 23, 2012 8:14:30 GMT -5
What Sandbagger said. You maybe not even have to retube the whole radio, but watch out for bad capacitors. Use a Variac to power the radio up slowly.
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Post by drc on Oct 23, 2012 8:26:09 GMT -5
All tubes were tested. Only two were semi good. They were cheap ones ($3 each I think), so I'm thinking about just re-tubing the whole thing....
I guess one question in my mind is how far do you go as far as quality is concerned? I need two 6BQ5's for sure, and you can get them at some of the suppliers previously mentioned from $12 to over $100.
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Post by Marc on Oct 23, 2012 9:53:50 GMT -5
Check with Alan at tubes plus. His prices are fair and I have always been happy with the ship time!!!
Marc
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,250
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Post by Sandbagger on Oct 23, 2012 17:59:47 GMT -5
All tubes were tested. Only two were semi good. They were cheap ones ($3 each I think), so I'm thinking about just re-tubing the whole thing.... I guess one question in my mind is how far do you go as far as quality is concerned? I need two 6BQ5's for sure, and you can get them at some of the suppliers previously mentioned from $12 to over $100. Well, it all depends on how much you value/like the radio. If it has a particular sentimental value, then I would do what it takes to get it right. I wouldn't spend $100 for a tube though. That's ridiculous. Those outrageous priced tubes are what picky audiophiles use for stereo preamps an what not and are usually hand selected for a particular gain or noise figure. For a CB radio, you can get by with a generic tube. But you might want to steer clear of Russian or Chinese replacements,as I've heard from people who have had issues with those. |
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Post by cbrown on Oct 24, 2012 8:57:11 GMT -5
Alan at Tubesplus is good and I've had good dealing with tubedepot.com/ |
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Post by gator7 on Oct 25, 2012 5:52:52 GMT -5
ditto,on Alan.
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Post by drc on Oct 26, 2012 0:11:52 GMT -5
Done. I'll let you know how it turns out..... Thanks for the advice.
Now I don't feel guilty for not buying $500 tubes!
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