[Boatanchors] Has anyone ever cut the glass top off a miniaturetube to re-use the base?

[Paul Kraemer]

Bob
I have done that to obtain 7 pin plug.  My poor experience using the "all 
you gotta do" glass cutting tricks I went a different way---used the cut off 
wheel on a Dremel.  For safety I put the tube and cutter in a heavy plastic 
bag and that way all the debris was safely bagged and minimized any risk to 
my eyes if something went wrong. The cut was nice and clean and the side of 
the disc ground it smooth.  Soldering to the pins requires scraping them 
clean and bright and using a good flux like Rubyfluid.  Filling the "plug" 
with epoxy after soldering wires get you there.
Also, the real deal plugs do show up on ebay once in a while, 9s more common 
than 7s.
Making circuit board plugs is also a possibility but you need to solder 
suitable pins to some pretty small pads and then not unsolder them when you 
connect to the back ends of the pins.  It works but not a quantity 
producible solution by any means---unless you just sell the circuit board 
and loose pins and let the buyer deal with it.
Too bad those Vector plugs of the 70's are history.
Paul K0UYA

-----Original Message----- 
From: Bob Groh
Sent: Thursday, August 18, 2016 11:41 PM
To: boatanchor ; Boatanchors at mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Boatanchors] Has anyone ever cut the glass top off a miniaturetube 
to re-use the base?

Yes, this is another stab at finding a source for 7 and 9 pin miniature
tube plugs.  Has anyone ever 'de-vacuumed' a mniature tube, cut off the top
using a glass cutter and then soldered to the pins?

I think I could get the glass off (leaving, say, a 1/4" rim on the bottom)
and cut off the tube guts. But I have my doubts about whether or not the
leads coming up would take solder.  I rather imagine the leads were spot
welded originally and that the leads may not be solderable.

Any thoughts?  Anybody done it?

73
Bob Groh, WA2CKY
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