A tube caddy or tube carrying case is a type of carrying case used for storing and transporting

vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric potential difference has been applied. The type known as ...

s. They were carried by repair

technicians A technician is a worker in a field of technology who is proficient in the relevant skill and technique, with a relatively practical understanding of the theoretical principles. Specialisation The term technician covers many different speciali ...

who performed home service calls in the days when

radios Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitt ...

and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

sets were too large and heavy for the average homeowner to bring to a repair shop. Caddies varied in size and shape, some resembling large briefcases with others resembling tool chests with drawers on the front. Typically they would have rows of square compartments that fit the individually boxed tubes, and often had larger compartments for other components or tools. Most of the space in the caddies was afforded to vacuum tubes (

gas-filled tube A gas-filled tube, also commonly known as a discharge tube or formerly as a Plücker tube, is an arrangement of electrodes in a gas within an insulating, temperature-resistant envelope. Gas-filled tubes exploit phenomena related to electric ...

s were also kept as needed) as most repairs could be effected with the replacement of tubes, with them being some of the few active components in electronic equipment of the time and often being made of glass with sensitive seals they were most likely to break, and were installed in sockets from which they were easy to remove. Some cases were available with built-in tube testers. The use of tube caddies, along with home visits from repairmen, declined with the use of vacuum tubes themselves as televisions and radios became smaller and cheaper, eliminating a need for repair diagnoses from technicians.

References

Vacuum tubes {{Tech-stub

See also

References