SB-230 re-tube?

[Bill Crowell]

Well, Larry Gauthier recently offered to sell me his last 8873 for a
reasonable price, but I simply lacked the money to buy it at the moment.
But now I'm wondering: when I _do_ get the money, do I really want to use
another 8873?  They're getting expensive and scarce; Larry will no doubt
sell his before then; and the SB-230 tends to shorten tube life because the
grid current level isn't too well controlled.  Larry had previously
mentioned the possibility of using a somewhat more "current-technology" tube
in place of the 8873, such as, perhaps, an 8874 or a 4cx-250 (are those the
same or different)?  I don't know too much about RF power tubes.  Are the
above current technology and therefore likely to be around for awhile?  Has
there ever been a thread on re-tubing the SB-230?  I'm assuming it would be
necessary to convert to forced-air cooling, and I'm resigned to that.




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