That's right, I want to drill a small hole right through the trademark of a Telefunken tube on the bottom so I can fit it with an LED. Has anyone ever tried to drill a hole into a tube? My idea is to cover the glass on the bottom with a patch of masking tape and use a tiny glass drill to make a hole large enough to fit an LED into it.
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
I think what looked a lot cooler (to a nerd) was what I did in high school when I warmed tubes with a propane torch to deform them without ruining them.
G²
If you heat the glass (slowly at first) but in a very small spot, atmospheric pressure will cause it to cave in and blow through.
It may go milky, but if you work in the centre of the pins, it probably won't show.
You would normally do this with a blowpipe, which is a thin tube with a pinhole aperture at the end, they're common in chemistry labs, you put the tube into the blue cone of a Bunsen flame and blow gently into it and a little jet of flame is produced. You can probably improvise something to do the job.
Maybe.
w
It may go milky, but if you work in the centre of the pins, it probably won't show.
You would normally do this with a blowpipe, which is a thin tube with a pinhole aperture at the end, they're common in chemistry labs, you put the tube into the blue cone of a Bunsen flame and blow gently into it and a little jet of flame is produced. You can probably improvise something to do the job.
Maybe.
w
Mounting the LED in the Socket works well enough at present 
ty for the idea, the center hole is the perfect size. I want to illuminate the tube and use it as the "on" light for a computer case mod that I am building in an old Telefunken console.
Also, as far as I know the tubes are fine, still have nice logo's on them also.
...I'm still quite curious though...If I decide to continue with drilling I'll post the results.
ty for the idea, the center hole is the perfect size. I want to illuminate the tube and use it as the "on" light for a computer case mod that I am building in an old Telefunken console.Also, as far as I know the tubes are fine, still have nice logo's on them also.
...I'm still quite curious though...If I decide to continue with drilling I'll post the results.
There isn't enough vacuum in a small tube to make much of a mess. They can fragment into several sharp pieces but that can happen even without the vacuum.
So have I. I used to take CRT's and gutted TV's out to the 'Glades and shoot them with a shotgun (a rifled slug works best), from a safe diatance away. 3 inch chunks of thick glass flying in all directions for up to 100 feet can be lethal.
Ditto. tubes on (or in) the barbie! Trust me they look cool, but don't work so well any more.
The getter spot (the silver or black spot on the inside of the glass) will turn white and crumbly if exposed to air. Mount the LED under the intact tube.
Some Telefunken tubes indeed have a high value, some however aren't worth the shipping cost to sell them on Ebay. I would advise looking up the price of any tube before purposefully ruining it. Yes, I'm guilty of trashing more tubes than most people on this forum, but I play with cheap and plentiful tubes.
The first question is "why?" Some sort of art project?
Cover the ENTIRE tube with blue masking tape. That way if the glass shatters the bits don't fly around. The blue tape has low tack and is easy to remove.
The other method for drilling glass is to use a brass tube in drill press and some abrasive and water mixed to a paste.
Yes, this is for a project, I am using a Telefunken Console from the 60's as a Computer case/desk. I am thinking of using one of the tubes from the Receiver with the LED as the "on" light. I know very little about the tubes, and don't have a way to test them. The radio worked before I removed it from the case, but it had a hum while playing (which I know think would have been old/bad capacitors).
If anyone is interested in the tubes, I would be happy to sell them as-is. I only need to keep 1 for my project. Most have good logo's on them. No response so far from the swap meet thread.
ECC85
ECC83 (thin copper around the outside of this one)
EF89 x 2
ECH 81
EABC 80
ECL86 x 2
EM84
If anyone is interested in the tubes, I would be happy to sell them as-is. I only need to keep 1 for my project. Most have good logo's on them. No response so far from the swap meet thread.
ECC85
ECC83 (thin copper around the outside of this one)
EF89 x 2
ECH 81
EABC 80
ECL86 x 2
EM84
Early picture tubes did that, thats why did have a protective tensioned glass sheet front of them. I think implosion safe pictubes took over in the late sixties.
You will need a drill press and vise to drill a vacuum tube safely. Wrap the tube in cloth or plastic to protect it and place it securely in the vise bottoms up. Chuck a soft brass rod in the drill press and set the speed to about 2500 RPM. Now comes the trick. Use black silicon carbide around 280 grit with water to make a slurry. Apply this both to the brass rod and the glass. With VERY light pressure you will be able to slowly grind through the glass without breaking it!
There are special drills made that are supposed to drill glass. They have never worked for me.
The biggest difficulty is getting the abrasive. McMaster-Carr has it at but only in 5 lb cans. You might want to try an auto parts store valve grinding compound.
There are special drills made that are supposed to drill glass. They have never worked for me.
The biggest difficulty is getting the abrasive. McMaster-Carr has it at but only in 5 lb cans. You might want to try an auto parts store valve grinding compound.
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