"From Fleming to Fetrons"

 2002 - TCA's Fourth Year
You can purchase this full year of Tube Collector
$18 for North America, $23 elsewhere. Each year's set includes all six issues of Tube Collector as well as the Special Publication. You may order through the Club's Ashland, OR address. If you have questions, please contact TCA's editor, Lud Sibley: tubelore@jeffnet.org.

Volume 4, Number 1 - February, 2002
 
  • Missing Tubes - Ever Wonder?
    Some of the interesting gaps in the numbering of "registered" North American tubes - with a special note on the 6AE4 (featured on the cover).
  • The General Electric UV-213 Rectifier.
    A nice review of the first of the commercial full-wave rectifiers.
    • "DOD" Tubes.
      Information on the U.S. Government-sponsored "DOD-" line of JAN-qualified tubes.
    • Amperex's Inside-Out Tube
      Description of a novel packaged UHF tube and amplifier that was (almost) marketed by Amperex.
    • The Nuvi-Story
      Nine pages of history, development, capability and variety of RCA's huge advance in tube design: the Nuvistor.
     
    On The Cover: The RCA 6AE4 UHF magnetron.
    Volume 4, Number 2 - April, 2002
     
    • German FuG202 and FuG220 "Lichtenstein" Airborne Radar Sets
      A detailed historical and technical report on this WWII radar and its tubes.
  • From "Whatzit" to e/m Tube
    The RCA e/m tube is identified and explained.
    • Gold Seal Metals: The Whole Line
      A listing of odd early metal-glass tubes from the manufacturer's literature.
    • The Loewe Multiple Valve - An IC of the '20s
      A discussion of the history, operation and main types.
    • More Low-Down on Loewe
      More on the ubes and the radios that used them.
     
    On The Cover: The Eimac XM15 Developmental Power Tetrode.
    Volume 4, Number 3 - June, 2002
     
    • Heil Tubes
      A technical description of these velocity modulated tubes as well as a listing of those produced by STC.
  • Tube-Heater Flash - Some Retrospective Thoughts
    An in-depth explanation of why the filaments of some audio tubes flare up brightly before settling to their regular glow.
    • An Odd One From Arcturus
      A decription of the Arcturus type P4 photocell.
    • The Type A Transistor and the "First" Transistor Radio
      The first "mass produced" transistors.
    • VT-155 - Mystery Solved!
      The identity of one of the "missing" military VT numbers is finally revealed.
    • "Undocumented Aliens" - Curse of the Restorer
      A discussion of foreign types encountered in the US and how to determine their characteristics.
     
    On The Cover: Bell Labs Type A Transistors.
    Volume 4, Number 4 - August, 2002
     
    • Schickerling and the Triangle Plate Tubes
      A comprehensive article on the Schickerling company and their tubes with a great many pictures of rare types .
  • Reverse-Engineering the CS8404 Klystron
    A collector determines the pinout and characteristics of this tube.
    • Thorn Estate Auction Report
      Report on tube sales at the estate auction of collector Ralph Thorn.
    • Hytron Mystery Solved
      The differences between the HY113/HY123, HY115/HY145, and HY125/HY155 line of hearing aid tubes.
    • Forgotten Electronic Organ Tubes
      Descriptions of some odd miniature types designed specifically for organs.
     
    On The Cover: The Schickerling TVT 11A
    Volume 4, Number 5 - October, 2002
     
    • Some Historic British Tubes
      Pictures and descriptions of some unusual British tubes.
  • The Magnatron DC-112.
    Photo and decription of this unusual adaptor-base tube.
    • Early German Radar Transmitting Technology
      An in-depth technical discussion of the tubes and equipment.
    • "Forbidden" Tube Pins
      Tube designers use of unused pins as support points might have dire consequenses in some sets.
    • Bendix "Red Bank" Tubes
      A comprehensive listing of these military and industrial types.
     
    On The Cover: The Liberty Valve
    Volume 4, Number 6 - December, 2002
     
    • The Condor Radio Valve
      A comprehensive listing with a history of Goosens, Pope and Company.
  • Old-Time Data on Navy Tubes
    Scarce data on several WWI Navy types.
    • The Milkotron
      A long-lost deForest promotional piece is rediscovered after 70 years.
    • More on Tube Flash and Heaters
      An expansion of the topic introduced in the June 2002 issue.
    • The Long-Ignored Compactron
      A short history of compactrons with an equivalency table.
     
    On The Cover: The Amperex 211G RF Heating Triode
    Special Publication No. 4 - December 2002
    A Tribute to George Clark, with Audio CD
    Historian George Clark observed the rise of the radio-electronic industry in its first 50 years and recorded it in his "Radioana" archive, which is now available for use at the Smithsonian Institution. He wrote an autobiography, published for the first time in this 30 page booklet. Accompanying it is an audio CD in which tube historian Gerald Tyne interviews Mr. Clark. This interview was digitally restored from its original early paper magnetic tape.