Replacement for tropical fish caps

Cursitor Doom

unread,

Jan 19, 2016, 9:34:06 AM1/19/16

to

Hi all,

Given that NOS TF caps seem to be increasingly hard to come by, is there
a modern equivalent type that can satisfactorily replace them with a
similar footprint & pinout? I'm specifically interested in the 250V rated
types found in old 'scope smps.

thanks

mako...@yahoo.com

unread,

Jan 19, 2016, 9:55:04 AM1/19/16

to

whats a tropical fish cap?

Cursitor Doom

unread,

Jan 19, 2016, 10:21:00 AM1/19/16

to

On Tue, 19 Jan 2016 06:55:00 -0800, makolber wrote:

> whats a tropical fish cap?

I'm guessing you're under 30? Ebay's your friend:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10x-Mullard-Tropical-Fish-
Capacitors-47nF-0-047uF-250v-/360338287201?hash=item53e5d5ea61:m:mcN-
DqTXnkkcyUmSf_Gylog

Chris Jones

unread,

Jan 19, 2016, 8:23:38 PM1/19/16

to

Are those just polyester film caps?

N_Cook

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 3:10:18 AM1/20/16

to

No , the main feature is that they are brightly coloured to keep
guitarist tweekers happy, as the visible colouration carries through to
the tonal colouration.

Cursitor Doom

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 6:20:14 AM1/20/16

to

On Wed, 20 Jan 2016 08:10:18 +0000, N_Cook wrote:

> No , the main feature is that they are brightly coloured to keep
> guitarist tweekers happy, as the visible colouration carries through to
> the tonal colouration.

Ah, "high end audio." That explains why they cost so much.

N_Cook

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 6:43:50 AM1/20/16

to

Also when the electrolyte leaks out, there is a much sweeter fishy smell
than the usual rank temperate latitudes fishy smell of the cheap types
of caps

Look165

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 7:43:22 AM1/20/16

to

Electrolyte in polyester caps, are you drunk ?

You can find them at farnell.com

N_Cook a écrit :

pf...@aol.com

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 8:37:01 AM1/20/16

to

On Tuesday, January 19, 2016 at 9:34:06 AM UTC-5, Cursitor Doom wrote:

Mpfffff.... Within very basic parameters and manufacturing standards, a cap is a cap is a cap.

Apart from the mystery, smoke, mirrors and hokum surrounding "bumble-bee/tropical fish" caps and so forth, about any modern polyester film cap of decent manufacture is its *actually functional* equivalent.

Keeping in mind that the fuzz-box crowd is really looking for an R/C network rather than a cap, despite the schematic, why these too-often leaky caps are sought after becomes easier to explain. I have a neighbor down the block for whom I save my pulls and leakers of this nature. I try to tell him that all he really wants is a 1 or 2 meg resistor parallel to an 0.047 cap - but he wants it all in one package complete with a bakelite case.

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA

Phil Allison

unread,

Jan 20, 2016, 11:16:26 PM1/20/16

to

Cursitor Doom wrote:
>
>
> > whats a tropical fish cap?
>
> I'm guessing you're under 30? Ebay's your friend:
>
> http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10x-Mullard-Tropical-Fish-
> Capacitors-47nF-0-047uF-250v-/360338287201?hash=item53e5d5ea61:m:mcN-
> DqTXnkkcyUmSf_Gylog
>
>

** I've always known them as " liquorice block" caps - aka "liquorice allsorts".

http://previews.123rf.com/images/robynmac/robynmac1402/robynmac140200024/25782815-Liquorice-allsorts-over-a-white-background--Stock-Photo-allsorts.jpg

Made by Philips as the "2222 352" series PETP film in values from 1nF to 6.8uF.

Colour codes on caps never did catch on, these ones vanished in the early 1980s along with colour coded tantalums - remember them ?

PCBs used to look much prettier in those days when transistors and most op-amps had gold plated leads and shiny metal packs.

.... Phil