Do you have any test equipment in your lab that uses vacuum tubes?

[bob91343]

My tube gear mostly consists in HP types 400D and 412A voltmeters.  I also have a couple of Boonton Q meters and a GR 1644-B bridge.  My HP 410B is part of my ham station where it measures the output to the antenna.

I am mildly annoyed by the warmup time as well as the high internal temperatures that invite failure.  But I have these instruments and they work very well.

My HP 428A failed and I am unable to repair it; the probe is the problem.

I have plenty of tube type units that are surplus to my needs and would love to trade them off.  They are mostly in my garage awaiting disposition.  Signal generators, voltmeters, bridge, deviation meter, power supplies.

[joeqsmith]

Not including the displays, I have an old grid dip meter.   I also have my old HF radio that I use for testing from time to time.   

[chris_leyson]

Tektronix 130 L-C meter and Heath-Schlumberger SP-2717 PSU.

[Grandchuck]

Only CRT left is inside.

[Martin.M]

something glowing, yes.

[Berni]

Now that's quite the Tek pile.

[Gyro]

I have an HP3400A True RMS voltmeter with the earlier Nuvistor input stage.

[Martin.M]

Tektronix 130 L-C

I love that, it`s one of the best instruments for very small L+C.
It have no problems to test a 0,3pF accurate

[MarkF]

I don't.   But, have you seen Mr. Carlson's Lab

His latest project:

[james_s]

I have numerous bits of gear with CRTs and a nixie display multimeter. I had an audio test oscillator but gave it to another eevblog member because I just wasn't using it.

[artag]

Another Kepco power supply here - HB525, 500V 500mA, 5 x GE7581 (KT66) in the output stage
And some 'scopes with CRTs
And some quite modern instruments with VFDs .. they're thermionic too, right ? Even more so than Nixies !

[med6753]

I have numerous bits of gear with CRTs and a nixie display multimeter. I had an audio test oscillator but gave it to another eevblog member because I just wasn't using it.

That would be me and it's been completely restored. 

[L_Euler]

How about a his one.  Nearly 100 tubes.

[DaJMasta]

No from me, unless you count the nixie clock I made a while ago.

Being a somewhat younger generation, I never had the affinity for older gear, and the size/heat/shipping fragility of even CRT gear generally dissuades me from a lot of it.  I've noticed that when powered down, most of my gear has an LCD screen of some sort....

[james_s]

I have numerous bits of gear with CRTs and a nixie display multimeter. I had an audio test oscillator but gave it to another eevblog member because I just wasn't using it.

That would be me and it's been completely restored. 

Looking good, glad to see it. If only you could find a proper knob to replace the mismatched one it would look almost new.

[vk6zgo]

HP 410C Electronic Voltmeter

HP MODEL 11036A AC PROBE (I'm not shouting, that's how it is listed in the 410C manual)

Leader LSG-11 RF Signal Generator.

BWD 511 Oscilloscope (non- functional at present)

All the other stuff is solid state.(actually my dipmeter used to be a "grid dipper", using a tube, but I modified it to use a FET)

[Stray Electron]

The only one in the house, Heathkit vacuum tube voltmeter, a freebie meter.

  Actually those are pretty decent meters. I had forgotten about them but I still have a couple of them around here somewhere. One of them still has a NIB 25,000 volt probe with it that's never been used.  I think I paid $2 for it and the meter about 10 years ago. Around that time the ham fests were full of these meters and you almost couldn't give them away.

   Other than the Heathkit meters yes, now that I think about it, I still have a lot of tube type stuff.

[Cubdriver]

How about a his one.  Nearly 100 tubes.

A triple nickel is on my wants list.  Even more beautiful with the P11 phosphor!  I have some tube stuff that gets used here and there - Sprague TO-4 and -5, a Tek 575 mod C curve tracer, HP 200CD audio generator, HP 428B clamp-on miliammeter...  Most of the other tube stuff is more for collecting's sake, though it's fun to occasionally use the old HP counters and see all the glowing heaters.





-Pat

[Smith]

I regularely use the HP 412B 2kV HV supply, basicly a 2kv version of the 410B. Its so easy to use, and verry precise. It only needed a new cap for the internal reference a few years back. The downside is the 32mA output, almost 32mA more than 1 need. The output is in series with a relay that should eventually kick in above the 32mA. Colleague got a shock from the his 3kV version once (415B), he was not amused.

Did you mean a Fluke 412B? the HP 41x Series are all meters not HV supplies.

David

You are right, but it does match my HP gear quite well 

I have 3 CRT scopes and a Philips nixie tube voltmeter if they count, but I don't really use the voltmeter.

[PaulAm]

I have and still use on occasion an old Tek 453 with tube HV rectifiers and nuvistors in the H and V sections.  I've had that scope for over 20 years and never had a problem with it.

[notfaded1]

I really like this guy I have:

[Martin.M]

that is fine, yes 

But:

Set it to 12 Volts or 15 Volts to feed any small transistor experiment,
Then press STANDBY and look what the voltage output will do before shutting down finally..  (a typical 30V Transistor will be RIP )
Heathkit made a bullshit there, it may be better to remove "Standby" and type there "WORST CASE SWITCH"

[MarkL]

I have two pieces of test equipment that has vacuum tubes:  A Heathkit IT-28 capacitor checker, and a Spellman 15kV @ 4mA HV supply.  The Spellman has an interesting set of gas voltage regulator tubes in addition to the usual drivers and rectifier tubes.  I've posted photos of it before:

  https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/how-many-psu_s-do-you-have/msg393637/#msg393637

I'm still looking for a model ID or schematics if anyone recognizes it.

I also have a tube-powered (5514/811A) Tesla coil which is physically in my lab, but it's not really a piece of test equipment.  It probably has no business being in there given the other sensitive electronics.

[med6753]

I have two pieces of test equipment that has vacuum tubes:  A Heathkit IT-28 capacitor checker, and a Spellman 15kV @ 4mA HV supply.  The Spellman has an interesting set of gas voltage regulator tubes in addition to the usual drivers and rectifier tubes.  I've posted photos of it before:

  https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/how-many-psu_s-do-you-have/msg393637/#msg393637

I'm still looking for a model ID or schematics if anyone recognizes it.

I also have a tube-powered (5514/811A) Tesla coil which is physically in my lab, but it's not really a piece of test equipment.  It probably has no business being in there given the other sensitive electronics.

Judging from the photos you posted if those metal 6L6's are original I place that supply earlier than 1960. Perhaps early to mid 1950's. It does appear that the tube on the far right....probably a 5U4....has at some point been replaced. If original it would have had a glass envelope just like your 0A3 VR tubes.

[med6753]

that is fine, yes 

But:

Set it to 12 Volts or 15 Volts to feed any small transistor experiment,
Then press STANDBY and look what the voltage output will do before shutting down finally..  (a typical 30V Transistor will be RIP )
Heathkit made a bullshit there, it may be better to remove "Standby" and type there "WORST CASE SWITCH"

That may be true but that supply is poor choice for that application and is not meant for 12-15V equipment.