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Vintage Test Gear and Workshop Equipment For discussions about vintage test gear and workshop equipment such as coil winders. |
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13th Oct 2017, 8:21 pm | #1 |
Heptode
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Taylor 47A valve tester help
Hi Folks, I need to test some EL84's and don't have a B9A base fitted to my tester. I have read many posts on the forum but I can't find an answer to my needs. Can anyone provide an idiots guide how to do this, which base is best to make the adaptor fit and connections etc. I will provide the idiot if someone could give me some direction. Any advice or information will be gratefully received. Best regards, Norman.
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13th Oct 2017, 9:32 pm | #2 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
I have a Taylor 45D Valve Tester, which has a limited number of test sockets. Originally adaptors were available, but rarely turn up, so I made several adaptors to suit my own needs. All the pins on valve testers are 'commoned' - IE, all pins 1 are connected, all pins 2 etc. I wanted to extend the range of valves that could be tested, so I made my range of adaptors to all fit into the I.O valve socket on the 45D.
The article was published in the BVWS Bulletin, and the forum thread can be found here: http://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/s...+Base+Adaptors Hope that helps Norman.
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David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339. |
13th Oct 2017, 9:40 pm | #3 |
Banned
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Mmm, but IO has only 8 pins. Is there any 9 pin socket on the tester? As David says all pin numbers are common, if you get a B9A socket and connect to a plug that fits any 9 pin socket on the Taylor, you can test B9A valves.
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13th Oct 2017, 10:26 pm | #4 |
Octode
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
From Sideband way back in 2010 with a 45B which is basically a 47A with more valve holders.
Hi Guys. I've got one of these testers that is working well after some restoration work. What I wanted to do was expand it's testing capabilities. Whilst it has B9A valve holders, there are no settings listed for EL84, ECL82 etc. My initial thought was to make an adaptor board fitted with a B9A holder, bring the pins out to 9 wander sockets and then make some leads up with wander plugs on the end and the other ends fitted to an octal plug. This plug would then fit into octal base 12. My thought was then to set the selector switches for 6V6 and plug the appropriate wander plugs into the wander sockets corresponding to anode, grid, cathode and of course heaters on the adaptor board. I would then set the other controls for the EL84 parameters. In other words, the tester thinks it's reading a 6V6 via the A,B,C switches but, via the adaptor, is connected to an EL84. Setting the gm and grid volts to the EL84 specs I should be able to test an EL84. To try this out, I've temporarily wired a B9A valve base with EL84 connections to an octal plug via shortish leads, plugged this in to octal base 12, set the A,B,C selectors for 6V6 (which via the adaptor, supplies Anode, grid, cathode and G2 volts to the B9A holder), set the gm, grid and anode/screen volts for EL84 and switched on. Well it worked and I was able for the first time to test an EL84.
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13th Oct 2017, 10:43 pm | #5 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
The original Taylor 45D adaptors used the 14 pin socket but plugs for that are rare to non existant. In my case I only needs a max of 8 pins, (for an M.O. Adaptor) so the I.O. Socket was fine. I don't know what bases are standard on the 47A, hopefully at least a 9-pin. Luckily, the switch settings in the Taylor Valve Data book cover a wider range of valves which needed the adaptors to test them.
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David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339. |
13th Oct 2017, 10:49 pm | #6 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
I used to have a 47A valve tester many moons ago, can't remember for sure but possibly a B9 base was used for a B9A adaptor, B9's are quite rare these days.
Lawrence. |
13th Oct 2017, 11:25 pm | #7 |
Heptode
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Location: Leven, Fife, Scotland
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Hi Guys, Thanks for the replies, I don't know if there are any 9 pin sockets on the tester, I will have a look tomorrow. It all seems a bit over my head how these testers work but that is also down to my lack of valve theory. All the best for now, Norman.
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14th Oct 2017, 9:58 am | #8 | |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Quote:
The 45A is a 9 position circuit selector job like what the 47A is. The first link in post#14 here shows a 45A schematic: https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=71806 Lawrence. |
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14th Oct 2017, 10:10 am | #9 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
That was well spotted Lawrence - really helpful.
What a labour intensive job it was to wire up valve testers. A real bonanza for the wire manufacturers too!
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David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339. |
14th Oct 2017, 10:47 am | #10 |
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Yes, pin to pin mirror for B9A to B9 in that schematic for example would exempt some valves from being tested, take the ECF80 as an example...
ECF80 pin connections: 1=at 2=g1 3=g2 4=h 5=h 6=ap 7=kp 8=kt 9=gt g1(pin2) can't be routed to the grid supply via circuit 4 because there's no pole connection via circuit selector B to a contact that's connected to the grid supply, neither can ap (pin6) be routed to the anode supply via circuit 7 because circuit 7 is permanently connected to the cathode rail. There are ways around that. Lawrence. Last edited by ms660; 14th Oct 2017 at 10:52 am. |
14th Oct 2017, 12:38 pm | #11 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Showing my ignorance, the manual provided by Bill at post #14 in the other thread shows a 'BR9' base. I'm not familiar with that - only B9, B9A and B9G, none of which seem to conform to the 'BR9' base in the manual in terms of numbering or pin layout. (See the undated diagram below entitled 'Standard Vale Bases in Use Today'). Obviously a donor valve with a suitable nine-pin base would be needed to make an adaptor, cross wired to a B9A socket, to enable EL84s to be tested.
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David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339. |
14th Oct 2017, 12:48 pm | #12 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
According to this, B9 is the bottom right hand one:
http://www.tubecollector.org/documents/bases/diag5.gif That looks like the same pin spacing arrangement as the BR9 in the 45A schematic. EDIT: It's also used for the two panel interconnect in the AVO two panel valve tester, the B9 is often called a British 9 pin hence (probably) the BR prefix in the 45A schematic Lawrence. Last edited by ms660; 14th Oct 2017 at 12:59 pm. |
14th Oct 2017, 1:36 pm | #13 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
And here's one shown for a valve from some Mazda valve data which clearly shows the pin spacing difference:
http://www.r-type.org/pdfs/tp22.pdf Lawrence. |
14th Oct 2017, 1:53 pm | #14 |
Heptode
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Hi Folks, I have had a quick look at this today, there are two 9 pin valve holders described as "9 pin English and British 9 pin glass". I don't know if this is any help or not. I don't have time to look at it further today but will try to get to it tomorrow. Thanks for the replies thus far. Norman
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14th Oct 2017, 2:10 pm | #15 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
The 9 pin English will be a B9, the British 9 pin Glass will be a B9G (as used for the EF50 valve etc)
Lawrence. |
14th Oct 2017, 2:42 pm | #16 | |
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Quote:
I've attached clips from the two sources below to show what I mean.
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David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339. |
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14th Oct 2017, 2:57 pm | #17 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
It doesn't matter about the orientation angle, what matters is the perpendicular from pin 9 heading across the valve base/holder, in both cases it falls between pins 4 & 5, in both cases pin 9 is the center pin of the group of five pins that are wider spaced. That spacing is clear on the valve tester schematic and in the link to the B9 valve base data which I posted earlier but in the last thumbnail you posted the difference in the pin spacing is not clear in the right hand drawing.
Lawrence. |
15th Oct 2017, 9:25 am | #18 |
Pentode
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
Greetings Norman.....it seems ages since we last chatted!
I have an old 47a too, and when I bought mine it came with the adaptor I have photographed. It seems to take a different approach to those mentioned thus far, utilising an eight-pin socket on the tester plus a fly-lead. To me it looks commercially-made and has the name 'Spearette' on it if that means anything to anyone. You may remember that my interest is in older radios and gramophones so I have never used this thing, and know nothing about it; but if the knowledgeable folk on this forum think it will work for your job, I will happily post it down to you for you to borrow. I suppose you could make your own copy of it too? best wishes Duncan |
15th Oct 2017, 9:40 am | #19 |
Dekatron
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
That looks like a TV valve adaptor.
Lawrence. |
15th Oct 2017, 1:30 pm | #20 |
Hexode
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Re: Taylor 47A valve tester help
This is the valve base wiring chart, shows what's connected to what. Hope it's of some help.
Regards Martin
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