ST tubes

12/14/2006 2:55:25 PMMartin

What exactly are ST tubes? and what do other letters like GT mean. Thanks.

12/14/2006 3:32:03 PMJon

:What exactly are ST tubes? and what do other letters like GT mean. Thanks.
Shape of tube. ST have "shoulders", GT are shorter.
Jon.

12/14/2006 5:00:10 PMBill G.

::What exactly are ST tubes? and what do other letters like GT mean. Thanks.
: Shape of tube. ST have "shoulders", GT are shorter.
:Jon.

It is a good question.
When I was a kid we thought "G" meant giant, and "GT" meant 'Glass Tube.' We were just guessing, though.

The way the electronics industry works now is that package abbreviations mean something. For example 'SOT' means Small Outline Transistor. Perhaps 'ST' meant sholder tube, but that is a guess.

All the best,

Bill G.

12/18/2006 5:19:30 AMEd

:::What exactly are ST tubes? and what do other letters like GT mean. Thanks.
:: Shape of tube. ST have "shoulders", GT are shorter.
::Jon.
:
:It is a good question.
:When I was a kid we thought "G" meant giant, and "GT" meant 'Glass Tube.' We were just guessing, though.
:
:The way the electronics industry works now is that package abbreviations mean something. For example 'SOT' means Small Outline Transistor. Perhaps 'ST' meant sholder tube, but that is a guess.
:
:All the best,
:
:Bill G.

12/18/2006 5:25:36 AMEd

The designation GT stood for Glass Tubular, meaning that the tube was cylindrical and made of glass, as opposed to the earlier "ST" shape, which had shoulders. The ST shape replaced the "globe" shaped tubes of the 1920s. GTs and metal tubes were contemporary, and were often at odds with each other. GTs sometimes will not satisfactorily replace metals, and vice versa. In metals, pin 1 is always grounded to the chassis, and in some radios meant for GTs, and GTs alone, they used pin 1 for a handy tie point for components, and it might be raised to B+ levels of voltage, so that if you plug a metal tube in that socket, the tube body will be at high voltage.

::::What exactly are ST tubes? and what do other letters like GT mean. Thanks.
::: Shape of tube. ST have "shoulders", GT are shorter.
:::Jon.
::
::It is a good question.
::When I was a kid we thought "G" meant giant, and "GT" meant 'Glass Tube.' We were just guessing, though.
::
::The way the electronics industry works now is that package abbreviations mean something. For example 'SOT' means Small Outline Transistor. Perhaps 'ST' meant sholder tube, but that is a guess.
::
::All the best,
::
::Bill G.