RCA CTC5 Special advice

[Electronic M]

Originally Posted by jr_tech

Did you reflow the solder at the base pins ?

jr

+1

I have a Philco 21AXP22 that needed the pins resoldered....Then about a year later it died again and solder wasn't working...So I soaked the base in ammonia to release the glue desoldered it and found about half the leads including heater leads had rotted off close to the glass I soldered 2-3 Strands from some lamp cord to the stubs and filed down a few of the glass mounds to reveal a solderable stub. I meticulously cleaned the stubs so they would take solder fast, gently prewarmed the neck with a plumbing torch, then quickly soldered the new wire with an iron (dwell too long and the glass will crack and bye bye vacuum), then I threaded the new wires through the base, exhaust siliconed it to the neck and soldered. Tube still lives today 5 years later...