Pixellany has got it. The word 'need'. But he mentioned a 10-12. I know
I have one, needing repairs. But I haven't found it in years.

So the collective noun for tube testers is apparently " hoard' .

Show us your hoard of tube testers.

A man with One Tube Tester knows whether or not a tube is good or bad. A man with Two or More Tube Testers is Never quite sure!

Oh, c'mon, guys. Admit that using them is fun. All those switches and settings! Happy fingers!

I used to have half a dozen or so and I parted with all but one with great reluctance. I kept my WE Cardmatic because it's a good tester and I love the ker-CHUNK when the pins drop down through the holes in the punched cards.

One TV-2 does it for me. I've no interest in collecting tube testers.

Now ask me how many VTVMs I have

I'd like to expand on that thought with : "how many are there" ?? My goal is to collect enough that if I were to take one tube and test it in every tester, by the time I am done, the world will have reverted to all tubes again

My favorite right now is a standup "U-TEST-EM" drugstore tester. It's a "prop" at the entrance to my shop where I build cutting edge state of the art TV broadcast systems. A nice conversation starter

I put a small one in a rack mount, and sometimes screw it into a client's project while I am doing final testing. All kinds of comments............

Perfectly logical. TV-2 + VTVM collection = meter fetish.

I own several, and also own a GR vacuum tube bridge, but for servicing radios and instruments I normally use one of two - a Hickok 533 is my primary tester, with a restored EICO 625 for emission testing.

I bet you don't have one like this

As stated: "most connections are complete" & "Rare & different connected Tubes "

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-SECO-El ... 0005.m1851

Holy Volume Testing, Batman!! 5 at a time ... why why whyyyyy.... I could test an entire tube caddy full in under an hour....

I'm seeing steam punk on way too many eBay tube tester auctions lately... even art deco under closed tube testers searches yields hits..... argggh.

Most everyone who has worked on TV's had one of those. I still have one around here somewhere.

I must be nuts because I like pretty much everything with tubes and that has to do with tubes. As far as need tube testers you probably do if you have 10 or 15 thousand tubes and want to sell them. Besides I like em I currently have a Hickok 600, 600a, 534, Seco 88, Mercury 1100A and a Mercury 201 Drug store tester as well as 3 or 4 little heater testers. The drug store Mercury was given to me ( no cabinet ) in a wooden base and for a laugh I put it down at my pops tv repair store. He is 87 and liked to tell the story of an old lady some years back who came in with a bag of tubes to be tested. He said lady you see that bench that is where it used to be until I got rid of it and all the tubes I had. So when he was out I put it on the bench with a sign above that says Free Tube Testing. Wanted to see how long it took for him to notice it. Didnt take long. Still there and has actually been used several times. As well as the testers, I have tube amplifiers and radios, tuners and quite a bit of old test equipment, havnt counted all the test equipment but would guess 30 or so. On top of that have the little Motorola vt-71 tv, as well as a few other odd balls. I think it probably is because in the late 70s when I was 18 or 19 I had a one room apartment about 10 X20 with a shower house out side. In it I had a drug store tube tester filled with tubes and would go down to the tv stores and get the old tube consoles that needed repaired and they didnt want. Would take them home fix and repair them. I had consoles stacked along one wall and could barely move in there. To the op of the thread pretty sure the only help is to just buy some more Sam

I had a friend, who has since passed, that used to say collecting radio and such was a disease. He was super nice guy that collected radios and the nicest music boxes I’ve ever seen. I think he hit the nail on the head about collecting radios! In the last few years, seems like I got “bit” by the tube tester collecting bug. I’ve bought and sold a few… I get self-conscience about having too many and sell 1 or 2. I may have had as many as 6 or more at once, then slimmed it down. Seems like when I get to 5, it bothers me (never had that problem with radios!). Always wanted a TV-10D, a TV-7D and a 539C and now have them. The TV-7B and 800 w/CA-4 got me up to 5 again and I’m getting “antsy” about it. I have NO idea why I think I need that many tube testers, but having a few hundred radios doesn’t bother me at all, LOL!!

Seems like every time I decide to sell a tester, I turn around and buy another, like I needed it or something.

that is why you need more than 3

3?? THREE?????? is more than 20 bad?

Question: How many do you need
Answer: How many are there

muahahahahaha

lol, 20 is good, 30 is even better.. How many in your 'warehouse' Barry.

Let's not let this thread die due to natural causes Who's added a tester?

Six or Eight new ones... I"ll be posting a photo one of these days. The collection is over 50 now I think.

OK, I'll play too since you asked. Here's my list so far:

Sencore TC-109
Sencore TC-162
Sylvania 140
Knight 600
SECO 107
Precision 10-12
Tripplett 1183-S
Hickok 600A
Simpson 335
Simpson 1000
Supreme AAA-1 Diagnometer

The first three are my daily drivers at this point.

The last two followed me home from our February stay in Florida.

It's obvious I have not yet answered your question.