Where's my getter goin'?

[Ty_Bower]

Here's one of the 6p14p out of my 400+ volt ST-35. If you hold it up to a bright light, you can see the getter has hundreds of tiny pinholes starting to form. The whole getter itself seems to be kinda thin and almost see-through, like a potato chip bag. Is this normal?

[mesherm]

The getter is actually the small ring or pan that holds a bit of barium. After the tube is evacuated and sealed, the getter is heated up by induction to vaporize the barium which then condenses on the inside of the glass. The slightest air leak will oxidize the barium into a white powder. I haven't seen any tubes with those pinholes but I have seen tubes where the barium is thin and almost see through. There might have been some coating or cleaning substance left on the inside of the glass during manufacture that caused an adhesion problem with the barium vapors. That or they were skimping on the amount of barium they used. If you rotate the tube around do you see any tiny particles rolling around inside? 6p14ps are not that expensive, I would be just replace it.