On Tuesday, October 15, 2019 at 2:47:03 PM UTC-4, wrote:

Snippage

I have the B&K 700 that has maybe 15-18 sockets in it. I am rebuilding it and the small tester I have works fine for my needs.

This is a nice segue into whether a tester wants to have many switches to set, each one being an opportunity to make a mistake, or many sockets instead - which slightly reduces error opportunities, but proportionately increases the size of the device.

You can always sell the tester if it doesn't meet your need or you go in a different direction in your hobby.

Yes. I find that they are a slowly appreciating asset, and as time goes on, working examples are fewer and fewer.

As far as guidance, the more knowledgeable ppl here can cite low-end, middle of the road, and high end units for you to evaluate.

Yes, and the key here is also how far "Back" any given tester goes (all the way back to 4-pin devices), or not, and will it do such things as compactrons. Adaptors are available, but scarce and costly.

Tube testing is not always a go/no go result. The value of a number of tube characteristics can combine to make the tube 'questionable' In these situations, the most expedient way to fix the problem is with a new tube. Some ppl may want to get into the details and tease apart the operational conditions of the tube to see what is really going on. Great learning opportunity, time consuming, an you would probably need a tester with a great deal of functions.

Never 100% go, but certainly what is a No-Go will absolutely be a No-Go (shorts or gassy tube, open filament, and so forth).

On your point of 'even a new tube'.... there are two such tubes out there, being the 19T8 and the 6AQ8 that can be quite annoying. At this moment, I keep three (3) Dynaco FM3 tuners, and I have a total of five (5) 6AQ8 tubes available to me. Of the five, two work in all tuners. Two work in two tuners, one works in only one tuner. All three of them test fairly close together on the Hickok 539B.

And, I have two radios using a 19T8 in the FM section. And four (4) such tubes. None of them work in both tuners. All of them work in one-or-the-other tuner.

Go figure.

good luck in your quest.

Indeed!

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA