I recently acquired a Hickok 530 tube tester but the two tubes under the panel are missing. BAMA doesn't have a 530 manual but does have a 532 manual and it shows an 83 and 5Y3. Can anyone verify that those tubes are also in the 530?

Richard

More searching has shown me that the 530 uses a 5W4 and an 83.

Now, to open a can of worms, if you have used a solid-state replacement for the 83 in a Hickok, how has it affected the calibration? Is it a significant change? I have read many discussions about SS replacements for the 83 and some say yes and others say no. Any thoughts?

Richard

Yes, the 530 uses a 5W4.

Some tubes read the same with silicon rectifiers as with an 83, and some read differently. Hickok tube testers are not laboratory instruments: any two will give you two different values of Gm, so the particular value doesn't much matter. You'll soon get used to yours and what it's telling you, after you've tested some new tubes and some worn-out ones.