Hi CZ, I don't know if there's any connection between an English and American Voltron. It's possible that someone imported the tubes from the other country but I suspect they were independant of each other. There does seem to be a small number of references to the name, I've found mention of it with a web search (just the existance of the name) so it must have made more than just a few tubes. I guess one (or two) of the many small independant manufacturers that sprang up and then closed before becoming established. I looked up the mention in Stone's 70 years book and it's listed as a British tube. In the next paragraph he mentions several other makes of tubes sold then in Britain but says he didn't include them with the previous list as they were foreign made. This implies that the Voltron was made in Britain. If so it leaves the question whether the American Voltron was a separate make or the British one imported. The English and American companies are shown with different names, Voltron Co. in England and MacLaren in America. It's possible MacLaren imported the Voltrons from England but I think it's more likely they were made in the US. If there was some distinctive feature of Voltron tubes MacLaren might have made them under licence. Tyne says "Voltron - made by MacLaren Mfg. Co. 26 Park Plane, New York". That strongly implies they were the actual makers, though that doesn't rule out being the English tube made under licence. Personally I think they were probably independant of each other and just came up with the same name. Don't forget that words like "dyne" and "tron" were very popular then for inclusion in names. Volt + tron = Voltron is a natural and not surprising if two different people selected it. There was also Volutron tubes.
Do you have a Voltron tube in your possesion? If so does it have any specifications such as filament voltage / current and plate voltage written on it? It's probably a bit modern for that, more common a decade earlier. The base might be a pointer, does it have an American either UV or UX style base, or an English or European style with all the pins of the same diameter, probably unevenly arranged and possibly split to provide contact tension? What shape is the envelope? I'm in Australia, where are you please?
If I can find anything else I'll send it to you, I'd appreciate learning anything else you find too.
Cheers, Don Black.
: : Hi CZ, Are you sure your Voltron is a British tube (valve)? Tyne's SAga of the VAcuum Tube mentions a Voltron tube made by the MacLaren Manufacturing Co., 26 PArk Place, New York. It also list a Volutron
: : tube, no other details except it's listed as an American independent company.
: : Don Black.
: :-------------------------
: Verry interesting re the U. S. Company!!
: My source for the British "Voltron" query was "70 Years Of Radio Tubes And Valves" by John W. Stokes (The Vestal Press Ltd.)
: On Page 211 he says: "The year 1927 saw six new Brands of valve's being advertised, all of which were listed the 'Wireless World' Valve Data for that year; they were A.P. (Anchor), C.A.C, Mellodyne, Midland, Quikko, and Voltron."
: :
: Then on Page 224 in a list of British valve manufacturers, he lists the Voltron as being made by the "Voltron Co."
: :
: You brought up a VERY interesting question... WAS there a connection between the U.S. & British Company somehow, or did they think of the name, "Voltron" independently??