Taylor 45C valve tester info.

[Harpone1]

I'm leaning towards buying the Taylor Windsor 45C, Is this a good tester for 30's through late 60's valve radios. I'm in the USA and can't find much info about these and I would really grateful for any input.

[Station X]

Hello and welcome to the forums.

I don't know how much experience you have in repairing vintage radios, but a valve tester isn't really necessary for that sort of work. Most faults can be fixed using nothing more than a Digital Multimeter (DMM) as test equipment. You might also like to consider getting a signal generator before purchasing a valve tester.

[trh01uk]

I would agree with Graham. Valves are usually the last things to fail - and often outright failures are easy to spot because you can see the hole in the valve!

Far more likely are resistors and capacitors - particularly electrolytics. And their failures show up with a DVM. The easiest test for a failed valve is to substitute another one. And open circuit heaters are fairly easily spotted by just looking for the glow.

Incidentally, if you do decide to get yourself a valve tester, then I have seen manuals for the Taylor ones on the net - I don't think they were free of charge though. I can't say whether they were good ones or not. Over here in the UK, the Rolls Royce of valve testers is usually thought to be the AVO ones, and they fetch prices to match.

The way I use my own valve tester is when I am trying to get a working set up to specification. I don't use it for basic fault finding. Its when I am looking for more subtle faults - like poor gain - that it becomes useful.

Richard

[David Simpson]

Hi Harpone1,
Welcome to the Forum. Why do you need to buy an old British valve tester such as the Taylor? When, in the States, you must have a wealth of choices for 2nd hand USA made testers, plus - most important- their spare parts. The Hickok range are highly thought of, but might be a bit expensive. Also, one or two of their models weren't as good as the rest. Then there is Jacksons, and several other USA made testers.
The other guys are right - get yourself a decent Digital Multi-Meter, perhaps a decent 2nd hand signal generator which covers the frequencies used by radios in the States. Have a word with the guys in your nearest 'Radio Shack'. Maybe they can put you in touch with someone nearby who shares your vintage radio interests, & who can give you advice on what to buy, test equipment-wise.

Regards, David

[chriswood1900]

If you want to work on the Taylor this site may assist you with a manual.

http://www.jogis-roehrenbude.de/Roeh...45C/manual.pdf

Regards Chris

[karesz*]

Hi Harpone,
Thes thread can be interessant for you, than what you need for Tubes testin g: is a Valve Chart! (the past 1-2 weeks was offered for 45B from Station.x Graham here as pdf file)
Greetings _ Karl