How do you store your tubes?

Cliff Schecht · Post by **Cliff Schecht** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 10:28 pm

My collection is slowly growing and I just have everything sorted by bags and shoved in boxes. I haven't had any problems with breakage in 3 different moves but I can't afford to replace a lot of the stuff that has been given to me over the years. While I've only been building amps for about 2 years, I've been collecting tubes for much longer.

So.. How do you store your tubes?!?

David Root · Post by **David Root** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 11:04 pm

Buy some tube boxes of the right sizes, mark 'em and put each type in another box. Those boxes I use are whatever boxes I have from stuff I bought mail order. I make sure they fit tightly so they don't break loose.

So far I have only done that for my 12A*7 tubes, need another box for my power tube quads. That should be one of those fireproof steel safes you're suppopsed to keep your mortgage in, given how much $$ in NOS quads I am racking up!

Jana · Post by **Jana** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:10 am

Don't listen to anything David says--send all your tubes to me and I will take good care of them for you. They will be much safer that way!

Cliff Schecht · Post by **Cliff Schecht** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:17 am

Sent!

Did you want the 8 6550's I found today? Two Tung sols, 4 sylvania and 2 rca! You need to test these though as the getters look bad..

jjman · Post by **jjman** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:19 am

My 6v6 tubes are in my cool caddy.

David Root · Post by **David Root** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:34 am

Awesome!! Where did you find that??

selloutrr · Post by **selloutrr** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:34 am

visit tubesandmore.com.
go to the vacuum tube accessories, boxes and crating.

They sell single boxes and large box dividers for multiple tubes.

I store my tubes in drawers with dividers, labelled by type, EL34 / 6L6, 6550 / KT88, 6v6, 5881, preamp 12ax7, preamp 12ax7 NOS, 9 pin, misc. Each tube is in a box, new or blank white with a test result label rubber banded to the box and a sticker on top with an ID # for the print out of the test specs I keep in a file cabinet.
I also keep an inventory list in a 3 ring binder with notes on brands, models, matches, how many, .. I check off or write on the list as I use a tube, where and what amp it went in and once a week I edit and print a new list after storing the notes. I file the old lists until I run out of space and purge.

David Root · Post by **David Root** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:36 am

Man, that's frightening! How do you find time to build amps?

selloutrr · Post by **selloutrr** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:48 am

It took a while to orginize but now it's fast. If I need a tube it's grab and go. if I need a special tube I look at the book and pick what's best then open the drawer and grab it. the book is laid out like a grid pattern as if looking down on the drawer. (battleship)

I used to do the bag of tubes in a box thing but I could never find the tube I wanted, at least not on top.... so I'd dump them out sort for a while and then have to clean up.

I don't build many amps from scratch. Most of my time at the bench is spent retubing, and doing restoration work, getting amps back up to studio or collector spec.

Robster · Post by **Robster** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 2:44 am

Here is my storage box...perfect for holding tubes. Got it at Lowes or Home Depot. Has a clear plastic locking top. Very strong.

overtone · Post by **overtone** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 9:19 am

One thing that I find really useful for storing tubes and components are those old plan chests of drawers that architects and engineers used to use.
Pull out a drawer and you have a spread-out overview. I have a ten drawer one right behind me at "the bench".

But, they are enormous, not portable, quite difficult to find these days and you need to add many dividers.

jjman · Post by **jjman** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 12:54 am

David Root wrote:Awesome!! Where did you find that??

An auction at the old Marconi facility in Wall NJ. http://www.infoage.org/

They had hundreds of items and I paid $5 for the caddy.

dynaman · Post by **dynaman** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 2:09 am

I've a few of boxes full of empty tube containers. You can have 'em if you wanna cover shipping. Tube caddys are prolly the best way to go. Something with shallow drawers and mebbe dividers would also work nice.

greekie · Post by **greekie** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 1:10 am

Novals I stick to that pink foam manufacturers pack amps and so on. Press them down in it and they'll stay. Put them in a alumunium (I'm Danish) case and put the same foam in the lid, so it gently presses down on the top of the tubes. I have two cases for tall ones and short ones.

Octals I keep in boxes.

Structo · Post by **Structo** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 1:20 am

I store all my noval tubes at absolute zero in a cryogenic vault.
This way there is no degradation at the molecular level.
The inventory is data based and a robot fetches each tube after being
requested.
The tube is never handled by human hands, which we know can deposit skin oils on the surface of the glass and create a hot spot.

[img:990:681]http://inapcache.boston.com/universal/s ... 809016.jpg[/img]

The octal tubes are a whole different story.

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