just wondering if there was a source that listed hard to find radio tubes or if someone here knew what ones are hard to find.why I am asking is alot of times I go to auctions that have boxes of tubes but don't know if they are worth buying or not cause don't really know the ones people are looking for and need.if I had a list I would be all set.
thanks for any help.

I would just go to the various vendors and download their price lists.

Print out AES tube buying list

There are very few hard to find tubes....its many users that dont want to spend the going price and want others to help find a bargain from an unsuspecting seller

Carl

i have downloaded most of those price sheets and prices seem alot different from what I see being sold on here.usually higher those places and a lot less here.hard to figure out what to price a tube for or what to actually pay for a tube.totally confused when it comes to the value of tubes.thanks though for all the input so far.

Did you look at findatube.com and/or oldradioparts.com ? Their pricing tends to be more in line with the market. AES is typically 2-3x more.
When it comes to audiophile tubes then there's no rationale. The purists will pay many times over for specific brands of the same tube. Output triodes in particular and the big dealers cater to that by inflating the price. :wink

It's like anything else, it's what the seller wants to sell it for, or what the buyer wants to pay!

Then again there are plenty of tubes out there.

Dealers, if they want to stock a complete line, have to continually get their tubes from somewhere so naturally their prices will be higher. They also provide guarantees, maintain websites, cover their shipping expenses, and so on. Casual sellers can offer what they happen to have on hand, so naturally can sell for less.

Agree with all. If you need a specific tube, ask here first. Most of us have a stash of stuff we will never use and will send it out for postage or whatever you have to swap. We all help each other out, and that is how it works. Of course there are folks who make their livelihood buying and selling, and I for one think that's great. I don't want to sell my stash for a loss either, will start soon to thin it.

Probably anyone who's been doing business and posting here for a year or more is sufficiently vetted.

One more thing, drazy/scarce/rare tubes can almost always yield to a reasonable work around.

I beg to differ in the 6T5's case...

I understand that an actual 50 is rather uncommon. It doesn't help a bit that they are valued in some audio "circles."
Print a few price lists, do some remembering-type tricks (6barbeque7, whatever works for you..).

You will find that most tubes traded or sold HERE are between guys interested in radio mostly.
Some of those tube may also be sought after by the high-paying-crazy audio hobby people who typically seek them elsewhere in places that cater to those folks... and in those places you will see the high prices.
But here in antique-radio-land you will not find those same type of high priced buyers. And so (here) mostly, tubes are sold at sensible values between sensible guys.

How much do you want to pay?



I also have several UX250's remaining and bleed those "circles" for all they are worth Pays for this hobby

Carl

If I could Find a mechanically intact NON working 6T5 I'd be thrilled( preferably one of the Zenith Branded ones as many claim those worked much better)..I am still very curious as to how they where made compared to the usual fan type eye tubes. But I suppose I am a wee bit stubborn on the tube making bit... But pardon the thread Hijacking. I would go to Vacuum tubes.net and look at their( exhaustive) lists

Take a look here. No personal connection with me.
http://www.magiceyetubes.com/

I've never seen one personally but I'll make an educated guess. The 6T5 has a bit of the triode plate structure sticking up above the bottom of the target. I do know the ones that have the fan shape pattern have a vane attached to the triode plate but the plate itself is below the target.

Scott Todd