@glennewdick ”I’m willing to bet there were far more failed tubes in the early years then most here would like to admit. just the sheer amount made would dictate to a much larger failure rate then we see today. there”
Many years ago, as I was running with a friend in a forest outside of Augsburg, Germany, I remarked on the number of “holes” around us. Gunther explained these were from bombs from WW2 and we were running on land that was once a Messerschmidt (or BMW) aircraft factory and airfield and not to go off the trails as there were many UEO (UnExploded Ordnance) remaining.
Okay… so how many bombs never went off?
I’ve seen estimates in some places as high as 25% of some production runs - and this is on both sides - Axis and Allies. Low estimates of 10% are out there, out of the literally tens of MILLIONS of bombs manufactured.
Google “bomb failure rate in ww2” or similar.
How does this relate to tubes?
Well, think about it. Even at the much-vaunted “10,000 hour” lifespan of MILSPEC tubes from the era, the market isn’t exactly flooded with those tubes. I recall Army service techs in the 70’s (older NCO’s who worked on tube gear in the 50s-phase out as SS was being fielded) telling me tubes were failing right out of the box and I’ve seen that myself working in a music store in high school with a brand stinking new set of pricey tubes in Marshall and HiWatt amps - poof!
Except if it’s a bomb - no tubes, yes, but “technology” - and it fails, someone’s vacation on the Rhein, or a backyard gardener in suburban Dortmund or London has their weekend plans ruined while the EOD guys extricate a 200 pounder which is still a common occurrence.
It’s somewhat of a miracle that so MANY 75+ year-old tubes are still working at all, given the marketplace competition for the survivors the pricing is understandable.
Sturgeon’s law comes to mind, “90 per cent of everything is crap.”
FWIW.
https://mechtraveller.com/2018/03/who-had-the-most-reliable-bombs-in-ww2/