I'm trying out some tubes in my C-37A mics and have come across this interior piece which appears to be a tube dampener. I've attached a picture of the part. It seems like the orange material may have, at one point, been soft rubber. I suspect due to age and the heat of the 6au6 tube, it has hardened into a plastic like substance.
I doubt these parts are fresh and available from Sony any longer. I was wondering about the option of fashioning a small appropriately proportioned hi-temp RTV silicon gasket in the place of the hardened orange puck.
Have you C-37A techs & owners come up with any viable alternatives or should I even worry about this?
Thanks,
Keith
EDIT: According to Wikipedia, it appears that RTV is corrosive to electronics: "Acetoxysilane-based RTV releases acetic acid during the curing process, and this can attack solder joints, detaching the solder from the copper wire." Do you know of any alternative gasketing materials that don't release acetic acid (that vinegar smell)?