CRT rebuilding as hobby?

[miniman82]

Insofar as 'shadetree' tube rebuilding is concerned, yes it is possible. What needs to be understood by all is the need for a dedicated processing facility, having all the necessary tools on hand in order to do the work correctly. Please understand: it's not just a simple matter to plugging a new gun in and evacuating the tube- it's much more involved. Having done tube rebuilding myself in France, I think I have a unique perspective on this subject.

Here are some of the items you will need in your rebuilding quest:

neck cutting apparatus (hot wire tool)
Vertical or horizontal lathe
New/rebuilt guns on hand
Oven, with pumping gear (roughing pump and diffusion pump)
Timer, to control the oven
Cooling rack
Spark knocker
RF bomber (getter flashing)
Cathode activation station
Aging rack (to condition the tube prior to service)
Dag application station
Final test apparatus


Admittedly there are a few items that could be skipped or omitted entirely, but the quality of the end product depends entirely on the systems used to build said tube and the acumen of the individual doing the work. All this being said, it's my opinion that a high quality vacuum tube cannot in this day and age be produced in one's garage. It takes years of skill and many thousands of dollars worth of specialized equipment in order to do the job correctly. And I haven't even scratched the surface of what it takes to do a phosphor job...

Not to dissuade you from trying, but the right people are already working on this as I type. I'm one of the people involved (eventually) in the rebuilding effort already underway at ETF. I think if it's going to happen at all, ETF is the place where it will happen. If you want to make a difference, please consider a generous donation to the project. Any money collected will only help further the efforts already underway, though there is no promise of success in this venture. I hope to one day be parked in front of a lathe to help you all, but unless we pull together it is not likely to become a reality for anyone. That said, efforts to try and do it alone in my mind represent time and money that could be focused on the ETF project. We need to be selfless in our dedication here- it's a very ambitious goal, but it's also just waiting to happen if we dig in and get it done!