It seems as though the number of tube testers are growing here.
The first one I got Eileen bought me a couple years back.
We have wandered into several at yard sales and the like picking them up for $10 here and there, I got a neat Green colored GE one at the last radio show in Kutztown and some small one in a wood case to replace one I had in a bad wood case, Now both of them are working, One nice and one ugly,,,
I bought a small Hockok 530 that is in real nice shape for cheap that works well.
I didnt count the testers yet, I am scared, Just like I try not to count consoles.
How many tube testers do you have and how many does one man need with 1 work bench and I dont service other folks radios.
I think I need help.
I just got a TV3 Yesterday, It is now recapped, cleaned and lubed and the pesky carbon resistors have been replaced, (I am home sick from work) and bored.
Is there somewhere I can seek help for this disorder?
Peter

I have 4 that I use on a regular basis. Your needs may vary.

I only use one - a Hickok 752a. It will test most tubes out there and is 1/3 the cost of a 539C.

-Matthew

3 here, Hickock 799, Knight 600A and a very early Jackson 580.

zero.

You can test tubes by simply wiring them up to a few power supplies and a signal generator. Or you can test for filament continuity and shorts, and then plug them into a radio.

"Simply" hardly describes the work it takes to read the tube manual and set up a test rig that you're sure is correct.

Sometimes you want to test a tube that doesn't go into any radio you have handy.

A tube tester still has its place.

-Steve W.

You won't find any help here. I have well over 100.
I use 3.

Hickok 6000A for newer tubes
I-177B for older tubes
Triplett 2413 (for quick checks on the bench)

I use 3 as well.

Tripplett 3413B for quick and easy emission testing old up to compactrons

I-177B for testing old tubes more accurately

Hickock Cardmatic because it's fun

One of these days I'll pick one up that can handle compactrons.

Is this more testers than radios?
Peter

I have two; a Jackson 648, and an EMC 206. If I ever come across a real deal on a TV-7 or TV-10, however, I will probably hang onto it. I don't have the room or the resources to keep more.

Larry

I have had quite a few of these pass through my hands as I have a thing for test equipment. You learn as you go and want to refine what you have and pass on the testers that you aren't using to others who need them. I really think hoarding them serves little, I like to fix em up and pass them on. Right now I have an I-177 military that I have had for 20 yrs, a Hickok 800 and a recently acquired TV-2 military that I have gone through and like the multitude of ranges and all the meters that keep it calibrated on the fly. One I wish I had kept was the RD Cardmatic with all the cards One older unit for the old tubes and a newer on for the post war tubes is usually enough. Having a good stock of tubes is more important to me than anything else but space becomes a problem when you get into the thousands

I'm down to around 40 radios. Use to have about 100 but I have cut back the past 5 or 6 years to make room for more test equipment. I have around 10 Victrolas and other vintage record players now. I have over 250 pieces of vintage test equipment in the collection now including tube testers at this point (I don't count the workbench stuff). I think I have around 75 pieces of Supreme test equipment now. That's been my main focus for a few years.

My wife has been very understanding. She actually allows 4 radios in the living room along with two Victrolas. She picked the radios.


Some people collect radios, and a few collect test equipment. Besides, most of mine are a little older that most would want to use on a workbench.

Wrong thread.

Steve, you have a great collection of test equipment and the theme follows a brand. Also I see your point about a lot of them aren't practical on a bench today when there are better and easier to use units readily available. Having four or five of the same model seems a little over the top if they are not just junkers for parts. It's certainly better to see them in a collection rather than the landfill. I recently sold a nice Jackson 648 to a guy in our club, I really didn't have a need for it and I spent some time restoring it. At least now it's providing the function for which it was made instead of sitting on one of my shelves(like I have room on any of them).

I have a Hickok 799, Jackson 648-1, Jackson 648-A, Jackson 648, and a Hickok 560. Most of my work is on the 799. For older work, I'll pull a Jackson out. The 560 still has to be restored. Needs a control panel.

Lou, Recognize this one?

Oh yea, Rochester AWA. Wish I had kept that crazy thing but I was glad to pass it on after having it a few years. Did you ever do anything with it, I would love to see it working?

I actually got it working enough to have it test a couple of tubes to see how it worked. It's a strange tester. With no meter and having to compare the brightness of the two rows of lamps was an interesting idea. At least you don't have to ever worry about burning up a meter. I can't believe it uses all these NE-45 neons for shorts testing.

Steve that is a great looking tester above!
I will be parting with a couple in the next couple months as well as many radios,
Moving causes us to look at whet we have and sometimes we decide not to move and other times we think, "I gotta get rid of some of this"
Peter

I have a few, but my workhorse testers are a pair of Hickoks; a 600A for older tubes, and a 6000A for later stuff.