Replacement 80W CO2 tube

[Ian Bell]

The necessity for a new tube is fast approaching, I guess 2 1/2 years of use is reasonable, as most of the latter period is weekends only.

located in UK.

So, now the quandary:-

I've done some searching, and I know from previous reviews that Reci is preferred but the prices vary drastically for apparently the same "rating" tube, and similarly the diameters can be smaller !!!

What do I actually need to buy, tube only or tube and psu - how do I tell.
What variant is recommended - current tube length is 80mm dia x 1.2m (IIRC) - stick with the same dia/length ?
Recommended manufacturer/supplier ?

I'd appreciate some knowledgeable advice, christmas is fast approaching and i'd like to use the period to recover the tube expense

[Pete Cyr]

I had a power supply fail. It was instant....not slowly. I would suspect that the tube is the issue if performance is degrading over time.

[Ian Bell]

Hi Pete, i'm confident that the tube is nearing EOL, i'm interested if there is a need to purchase a new power supply in addition to the tube for compatibility or necessity reasons, and some advice on tube selection etc.

[Gene Uselman]

A lot depends upon your wallet- it would be a good time to go for more power if you think you might use it, in which case you will need a PS as well. Tubes are deep subject- if you get a good name brand tube they are normally sold as the max safe wattage where the cheaper ones will use the max wattage as it sounds better. I was not aware the the diameters varied but have never paid much attention to it. I like the idea of the tubes with an integrated red marker light but can only remember one person talking about them and he screwed his up and admitted fault. Having no one talking about them is probably a good thing? Russ has had good luck with Cloudray tubes.

[Pete Cyr]

Typically tube power and tube diameter are related - more power = larger diameter tube - I have seen many charts of tube power and the specs for dimensions increase as power increases (both length and diameter)

I would not replace the power supply if it works - it is a sold state device - they typically work or they don't - not much in between.

[Ian Bell]

Cheers gents, i'll take a look at cloudray, and not having to replace the power supply is good.