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I am going to set myself up with the ability to power these battery tube portables with and external DC power supply. By doing this you bypass the internal one and all of the age related problems they can have. I think the best way to do this is with a variable bench power supply. I an looking at one the does 0 to 100VDC, 12 amps. 12 amps is way more then I need for these tube portables but I can use this power supply to also power up some on my hamradio gear that requires more. If you are going to concentrate on tube type ZTO's then a rechargeable battery pack will do. You can build them yourself however they are a couple of people online that are producing them for a price cheaper then you could put one together yourself. Often times if you power up one of the ZTO with an external power supply they will at least make noise.
If you need tubes Surplus Sales of Nebraska has them all including the 1L6 $45 dollars. I received the tubes I need for an RCA-Victor Strato World radio I have just yesterday from them 1U4's and a 3V4. Be sure to replace the 50A1 with the solid state replacement. The SS replacement is a real voltage regulator and does a superior job of protecting and keeping the expensive 1L6 going properly. Be sure to bypass the selenium rectifier with a zener diode and dropping resistor. Use a Zener to protect from inrush which can blast the tube filaments, especially if you make the huge mistake or pulling a tube while the radio in under power.
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