what do you use to remove your tubes?

The general rule of thumb is don't get body oil onto the tubes. I've always been able to get a hold of my tubes at the base and gently pull or rock them out.

I like those white knit gloves with the rubber nubbies for gripping. Auto/dept. stores carry em.

A glove or towel will work just fine.

I put my hand in a cotton athletic sock, but then- my tubes are completely exposed, and their silicone dampers make them even easier to grasp.

I too try to avoid direct finger contact with the glass of the tube. Generally I use a paper towel folded and wrapped around the tube and grip at the base...but my tubes are pretty much fully exposed. I like the cotton sock approach. Am using one to protect my safety glasses from scratches when I have to travel!

Hi,
Being that they only stick out about 3/4 of an inch as you said, try what the other guys said. Do not use anything adhesive as the adhesive may leave a residue on the glass. Do not use a pliers or anything like that due to not being able to feel how tight it really is which can so easily lead to crushing the tube in a split second or cause a microscopic crack which will leak air into it, overload the air or oxygen capability of the getter to absorb it, and destroy the tube in time; be it soon or long down the road. I had KT88 power tubes go that way. They lit up from the inside, burned a beautiful pastle like pink and purple for about 20 seconds, and then died. After a week or so though, they got all powdery white inside as the getter got swamped and could not absorb any more air. As for other tubes used in that brand and model of gear, I had a pair of NOS Mullard 12AU7's and they were as wonderful sounding in all ways as the legends of them describe accurately. JJ makes great sounding 12AU7's as does EH and Ruby. Same for the 12AX7's. It is personal preference, honestly. It can be a massive difference or a subtle and need to listen for it change. They at least tend to be inexpensive unlike power tubes.

I use one of Michael Jackson's gloves to pull them out.

Not a newsensor person, or advocating/etc, but they make a tube glove, one side fits 9pin (12a_X) and the other 6550/EL34/6L6/etc. For a few bucks its great, and just thick enough to allow you to do some swapping without waiting for hot tubes to cool off.

kleenex on cold tubes

grab the base and gently rock to remove

I asked Roger Modjeski (Ram Labs, Music Reference) about this, and he said the idea that you should not use your hands is a myth, he then explained to me why, but I don't remember his rational). I don't know, I still use a glove, but he does know a thing or two about tubes.

The Jaws of Life.

On a larger tube with a base,try to use the base to remove it so the glass bottle doesn't break loose.♫

white Glove

Tubes I've used on my Cronus Magnum - it came with Sylvania's from Rogue when I purchased the unit - liked the sound. I swapped them after awhile to try RFT (similiar in sound to my ears as RCAs) Au7s and NOS tungsol AX7s - this pairing seems a littlewarmer to me which is what I like

When everybody used tubes, nobody bothered to use anything but fingers, unless the tubes were still hot.

I asked Roger Modjeski (Ram Labs, Music Reference) about this, and he said the idea that you should not use your hands is a myth, he then explained to me why, but I don't remember his rational).

It's called audiophile paranoia. Seriously, what possible harm could come from getting bodily oils on the outside of a GLASS tube? I suppose that constant handling of the pins could cause them to tarnish a bit, but most are tarnished anyway, especially on NOS tubes. Just make sure the tube is cool, use your hand and pull it out. Wipe it off afterward if you don't like the fingerprints.

What do you use to touch your windows?

All very good points. I like cruz123's point about using your hands and wiping them off if you don't like the finger prints. Maybe a Dyson Animal vac?

What do you use to touch your windows?

I thought oil (from your fingers) on the tube caused a hot spot which might crack when the tube gets hot again

I dunno, better safe than sorry imo

Hey, if "better safe than sorry" is the operative paradigm, you're best off without tubes. I wouldn't know, but they say solid state stuff is nice these days :-)

Can't think of any reason you can't use latex gloves, as long as they are not hot when you do so. Just be patient when you remove tubes, this is one case where being gentle will save you some heartache.

Fingers.
I've always believed the myth came from other types of bulbs that get very hot. In a previous job I dealt with 1000w bulbs and the word there was don't touch. We always had latex gloves on (clean room) and we were told to put a clean pair on before we touched those bulbs. But those bulbs got many times hotter than a power output tube.
Do you put gloves on to change a light bulb? Ever had one crack?

Quartz Halogen, and some Metal Halide bulbs, will immediately go bad, if any kind of residue is left on their envelope(they get that hot). Personally, I just don't want anything leaving, or collecting, funk on the glass or bases of my tubes, or anyone else's that I service. I'm not worried about them going bad.

I used 1200 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets washed in perfume free detergent to remove tubes. Lower count risks oils to be left on the tubes.

They only stick out of my Rogue Cronus Magnum about 3/4 of an inch.
Donjr 12-18-09

Donjr,
3/4 of an inch?! Getting them out may be the easy part.
Reinstalling the tubes, trying to line up the tube pins with the tube socket may be a challenge.....

If you have a bunch of oil on your hands when you push and pull on your tube, I could see it overheating for sure.

One of Tiger Woods' golf gloves

Use your hands and fingers. No issues at all. Just wait until they are cool :-)

I have been using my fingers for years without a problem. However, I have noticed that conditioning my hands with a good quality moisturizer improves midrange bloom.

I realize that it's best to be careful with your tubes but if you are talking about old stock, they can be 50, 60, 70 years old, probably previously used, and for most of their life considered worthless. They have probably been handled, tossed, shaken, thrown in a drawer or box, stored in a basement and who knows what else.

I don't care who you are, that right there was funny! (post from Phaelon)

"12-19-09: Sebrof
Fingers.
I've always believed the myth came from other types of bulbs that get very hot. In a previous job I dealt with 1000w bulbs and the word there was don't touch."

That was precisely the reason Roger Modjeski gave for the tube/fingers myth. Now, I did not ask him about using a good quality moisturizer for improving midrange bloom - I'm going to check his webiste to see he makes any mention of it.

You need one of my cryogenically treated,1500 thread count,egyptian cotton tube gloves.The better models use 14K gold thread.I have some in minty condition(with 14K gold thread) that I'll let go for $1795.00 plus shipping.Please specify left or right,better yet,buy both so you can switch change hands and save on wear and tear.Always demagnetize the glove before using(I also have demagnetizers for $229.00,free shipping if you buy a glove).Treat your tubes right,don't settle for anything less.Don't listen to the quacks that were talking about the moisturizer,I tried it,it's a total farce.You need to stick to sound,scientifically proven ideas(like my tube gloves).Happy listening.

Quack eh?
Which moisturizers have you tried, and with which tubes? You can't disregard synergy. Various tube types respond differently to different moisturizers.
How much moisturizer did you use? The general rule is to use about half as much for "new old stock".
Were you precise in timing the conditioning? Too much time can result in a loss of base extension; too little time and you get rolled off highs.

Farce?! Don't even get me started on manicures.

Latex affords good grip. This has been great...thanks for the laughs!

-Sam

Hey, Tpreaves

Please don't waste time with quack science. You know that 1500 thread count has the wrong Gauss coefficient. Also, need to use platinum, not gold.

While there is no harm in keep oils from your hand off of the tube, it is hardly necessary. The tubes do not suffer from the same failure mode as halogen, metal halide, etc. bulbs.

When oils from your hand get on the bulb, the high temperature carbonizes the oils and this forms a dark spot on the bulb. That dark spot will then absorb light from the bulb, instead of passing the light through, which heats that particular spot more than the rest of the bulb. That temperature differential causes the bulb to explode. Your tubes never get hot enough, nor do they put out the huge amounts of energy that could cause that kind of hot spotting from what is on the glass.

Wow!! I didn't know this question could be as debatable as cryogenically treated tubes, bi-wire, and putting your CD's in the freezer. We'll have to ask A'gon to add a 'Myth's' section on the forum.

Don,there are no myths in audiophiledom,only hard scientific facts.If you read something here you can take it as a gospel fact.I am sure no one will try to steer you wrong on these forums,except those nuts above trying to push the hand lotion notion,what a crock of crap.BTW,I am running a Christmas special on my Tube Glove/Demagnetizer combo.Only $1500 for both with free shipping.In the words of the great Pete Townshend...I call that a bargain,the best I ever had.Have a nice day.

If you worry, wipe down with some Iso alcohol after install. don't drip or soak it. damp lint free cloth will be ok. Handle with latex or vinyl clean-room style gloves. Make sure any vapors have evaporated before starting equipment.

Finger oils are generally bad for thin glass envelops, hotter=worser.

I've changed hundreds of hi pressure mercury vapor lamps in semiconductor processing equipment by this means.

Worrying about how to remove the tubes seems kind of silly after seeing how they are made and packed :)

http://www.mullardtubes.com/Video.aspx

That said either use cotton gloves or some cat grooming gloves with little rubber dots. If nothing else, want to be careful not removing the logo from the tube.

Myles

As explained above, there is no operational reason for worrying about handling tubes. My only possible concern would be the easy to rub off markings on extremely rare Telefunken tubes. When my ECC803S tubes are near the end of their life, how will I be able to sell them on ebay as brand new if I am not careful about rubbing off the markings on the tube?

Donjr,

Curiosity killed the cat, did you pull the tubes? Did you have any problem putting them back in?

Beats me why a manufacture would recess a tube in a well.... http://www.uptownaudio.com/rogue/Titan.htm

Looks like the best way to pull the tubes would be with Chinese handcuffs, LOL.....

my hands.

Jea48. I pulled them and the preamp 12au7 is a Sylvania. Out of the other two 12au7's, only one of them I could read '12au7'. I got nothing off of the 12ax7's. I think they're probably all Sylvanias. I think I'll shoot Mark O'Brien from Rogue and e-mail and ask him.

I'm considering rolling the 12ax7's. Not because I'm unhappy with the sound, but because I've never tube rolled and would like to hear the differences for myself, as opposed to reading other peoples description of the differences.

Try a 7025 in place of the 12ax7.This swap worked great in my Rogue TempestII.I used an Amperex 7025.

Amperex (Bugle Boy) and Telefunken work great in other preamps I have.Make sure if you get Amperex,get the Made in Holland labeled.Since Richardson bought their name,there are all kinds of budget Chinese (plus who knows where) made Amperex tubes out there.Nos RCA's are ok,but may not perform better than the Sylvania's that you have.They're good tubes too.A link may help some.♫Link>>[http://www.guitaramplifierblueprinting.com/tube_makers.html]

I don't know about the accuracy of the link above,plus its 4 years old.New Sensor owns more brands now I believe.