Checking out a Heathkit IT-17 Tube Tester
Tuesday, June 30, 2026 at 07:06:10
This is kind of an unusual device in the tube tester world - it’s the only “Lunchbox” style device that I’m aware of. Most devices of this nature are suitcase or other lay-flat devices.
I picked this guy up at Athens 2025, for a really cheap price. The reason for that price is someone accidentally splashed acetone on the front panel and destroyed some of the lettering. I don’t really care about that, you can still tell what it was.
The back is nothing special, and just has two screws to hold the chassis in.
Someone attached some mangled GC pin straighteners to the top of the unit. I’ll probably take these off.
Inside, it was obviously a factory build.
Almost everything in here is laced, save for a few things…
There’s a special place reserved for people who do this.
The only part of concern in this unit is a blocking capacitor of the Elmenco style. It’s dated 1974, which is surprisingly late for a tube tester. This can be easily changed but is it really worth it?
So let’s test something. I have a 6X5 laying around from the recent EICO 950A rebuild. It’s a NOS tube, let’s see how it works…
Yeah, that’s a good tube. But, remember - this is an emissions tester only. It’s a glorified go-no-go test, but it at least will tell you if the tube is working. Sort of.
This one isn’t going to need anything except maybe that capacitor. Probably not even that.
References
Manual, schematic, and tube test data chart:
IT-17 schematic and manual: https://wereboar.com … 0and%20schematic.zip