Reply With QuoteCan wait to see the end result.
So just this once my son was listening when he asked me what I wanted for my birthday. This should be fun, no instructions yet though :D
Can wait to see the end result.
What am I looking at?
NIXIE tubes and everything else to make a clock, they are basically glass tubes with each individual digit in and they glow orange because they are neon and they look very nice, when they were made they were much to expensive for their use in clocks to be considered sane (although the cost of digital electronics needed would have been lots also) and they were mostly used in scientific and industrial equipment, died out mostly when VFD came about and then totally killed by LED.Originally Posted by mouqvist
I have loads of tubes but have never got around to buying any clock kits and building them.
Very good! Need some more bits though as it is a basic kit and I want the neon's under the tubes, I need some legs for it and I am still deciding what sort of housing to put it in when (if) I ever finish it. I am a pragmatist with these things and although the whole idea really appeals to me it would probably be much simpler and cheaper in the long run if I had just bought a finished clock off the Interweb.
But it is certainly something to occupy my time :D
http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nixie/ ... -gr414.htm
If you want to take things to the extreme end, those tubes have a 135mm digit 8)
And a short video to show what they actually look like...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGXpLvl8IXI
Did you get this going? I have just completed the same kit (but from another supplier) and have it running. Just need a box. It is my second Nixie tube clock kit, the first having only 4 tubes. These are great! Quite unusual. My daughter's friends think it's really cool 8)So just this once my son was listening when he asked me what I wanted for my birthday. This should be fun, no instructions yet though :D
That should be interesting to make
Did someone say Nixie? What size tubes are in that kit?
Mine has Russian IN18's with the 40mm high numerals:
Thats stunning! Was it a kit or bought like that?Did someone say Nixie? What size tubes are in that kit?
Mine has Russian IN18's with the 40mm high numerals:
A beauty!
Looks very similar to a tube amp kit
Hmm maybee I should build a dual tube clock/amp for the time piece loving guitar playing audiophilic horologist crowd.......
Looks like a lot of fun!
I bought it a few years ago from this guy http://www.mrnixie.com but he's long since sold out. I bought this one ready assembled as it was the only silver powder coated base he had left and that was the colour I wanted. He supplies kits too - I had one of his "Cyclox" kits that I built for my dad for his birthday.Thats stunning! Was it a kit or bought like that?
very nice - how much power do they use
The kit in the OP runs from a 13amp power supply transformer to 12V DC. To save the tube life, they shut off after 11pm and come back on at 7.30am (but that's adjustable), but the clock module continues to keep time. These kits are well worth the effort for even the most ham fisted, such as me.
interesting - may have to do some research - ta
Anybody got a link to a kit you can buy now?
Sure. I bought mine from ebay from Pete's Kits
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/IN-14-Nixi...item27bf333cb5
These are not exactly the same tubes as I have, but the rest seems the same. These tubes use an upside down 2 for the digit 5, whereas the ones I have use a proper 5. Other than that these are all you need (excluding the wall wart) to get going. Reliable quick service (in my experience) too. Give it a go!
Very cool
Damn that's cool! How long do these chaps last? I saw the comment on cutting out overnight which got me thinking. If they are possible for those with ham-enabled hands I'm tempted... They do look soooo coolDid someone say Nixie? What size tubes are in that kit?
Mine has Russian IN18's with the 40mm high numerals:
Andy
Mine runs on reduced voltage to the tubes as a matter of course to help preserve them. Between 11pm at night and 7pm in the morning it further reduces the voltage, protecting the tubes even more. This is fully customisable so you can change the times the tubes dim or even turn the feature off. This model also has a temperature probe, an RTC receiver to set the time every night at 3am and a hand held remote control to do the programming or switch between modes (calendar, temperature etc).Damn that's cool! How long do these chaps last? I saw the comment on cutting out overnight which got me thinking. If they are possible for those with ham-enabled hands I'm tempted... They do look soooo cool
Andy
I have had this since July 2007 and I have had one tube fail. The IN18 tubes it uses are about £25 each to replace these days. I bought a box of six a few years back for £70 knowing that I would need them eventually! In the booklet that comes with the clock it mentions that all the tubes are NOS unused ones, but because they are at least 30 years old to start with they could last anything from 3 to 30 years, perhaps more, perhaps less, and anything in between :) !
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