[neonixie-l] Re: How do I hook up a Wester Electric 6167 Dekatron (WE 439A)?
Thanks John, I guess there is not much difference in driving these than in driving the EZ10A/B then. Do you know of any original schematic diagram where they are used? I've only seen the datasheet. /Martin On 8 Maj, 22:32, John Rehwinkel jreh...@mac.com wrote: I recently aquired a few Western Electric 6167 dekatrons. I have not been able to find a schematic drawing for these nor any equipment where they have been used. Does anyone know of any schematic drawings where it is shown how these dekatrons should be hooked up. I have checked the usual websites but only found datasheets, photos or videos of them. These are unidirectional, single pulse dekatrons. This makes them a little easier to drive than some other dekatrons. To just get one pulsing around is easy enough. Hook all the cathodes together (except for the normal cathode), and connect the guides together (pins 11 and 14). Hook the anode to a few hundred volts via an appropriate current limiting resistor. You can ignore the auxiliary anode. To figure your current limiting resistor, divide the desired current by the difference between your supply voltage and the maintaining voltage. The minimum supply voltage is 300V, and the maintaining voltage is 110V. The current the tube wants is 100 to 3000 microamps. If you have a 450 volt supply, you could use a 1 megohm current limiting resistor to provide (450 - 110) / 1,000,000 = .00034 amps, or 340 microamps. That would be a reasonable starting value. Then alternately ground the cathodes and the guides, with some overlap. You can do this manually with a pair of switches, or electronically with transistors. The glow should march around the dekatron, taking a step every time you switch between the cathodes and the guides. If you want to do counting and/or calculations, then it gets a little more intricate, and you use the normal cathode and auxiliary anode to make sure the glow starts where you want it to, and route one or more cathodes to separate circuits to detect when the glow comes to them. But the above should at least get you started. - John -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: How do I hook up a Wester Electric 6167 Dekatron (WE 439A)?
I guess there is not much difference in driving these than in driving the EZ10A/B then. Yeah, same basic idea. Do you know of any original schematic diagram where they are used? I've only seen the datasheet. I haven't seen any either. WE made a lot of oddballs for their own internal projects and government stuff, I'm guessing one of those. I'd love to find out more about this tube's history. - John -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
[neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org http://tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hi Jens, Thanks for fast answer, the second thing I'm looking for is information about metals used in cathodes and anode, and correlation between size of the electrodes and distances between them. Thanks in advance, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hi Daniil, some use iron, some use an iron-nickel alloy, I am trying stainless steel. I cannot answer your second question, but do you know Paschen curves? These will give you the ballpark. Jens Hi Jens, Thanks for fast answer, the second thing I'm looking for is information about metals used in cathodes and anode, and correlation between size of the electrodes and distances between them. Thanks in advance, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org http://tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com mailto:neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com mailto:neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org http://tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps.
[neonixie-l] Re: Current consumption
Are you running the HVPS from the 9V or the 5V? You should definitely not use the 5V for the HVPS as it can run from up to 16V and at a current inversely proportional to the input voltage. jt It is a while since I built a Nixie clock. Just finished one using Moses chip, Tayloredge hv psu, and 6 IN-16 tubes, 2 blue led's. Standard 7805 regulator, fed from 9v. Curent is almost 600ma when running. Regulator gets pretty hot (though ok with heatsink). Nothing else gets warm and clock seems to run OK. Does this seem normal? Would appreciate your thoughts. Thanks, David -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Jens, thanks again. I'm new here, but I feel that I'm in right place! People trying to make nixies!!! Wow I'm exited like a child! :):):) I don't know what is Pashen curves, but from the wiki first glance I understand what do you mean, is exactly the correlation formula, except that we do not use full sheets of metal. ...Iron nickel alloys maybe you know what kind of alloy and what is the best choice? Dan. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:56:04 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi Daniil, some use iron, some use an iron-nickel alloy, I am trying stainless steel. I cannot answer your second question, but do you know Paschen curves? These will give you the ballpark. Jens Hi Jens, Thanks for fast answer, the second thing I'm looking for is information about metals used in cathodes and anode, and correlation between size of the electrodes and distances between them. Thanks in advance, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Jens, thanks again. I'm new here, but I feel that I'm in right place! People trying to make nixies!!! Wow I'm exited like a child! :):):) I don't know what is Pashen curves, but from the wiki first glance I understand what do you mean, is exactly the correlation formula, except that we do not use full sheets of metal. ...Iron nickel alloys maybe you know what kind of alloy and what is the best choice? Dan. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/dgRGmLHoMyQJ. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
[neonixie-l] Question on XC18 trigger tubes
Hi all- I recently picked up some XC18 trigger tubes in the hope of eventually building a trigger tube clock inspired by Grahame's work http://www.neonixie.com/trigger-tube-clock/Trigger_Clock.pdf. I have reviewed some of the basic trigger tube circuits out there, but was hoping someone with experience using trigger tubes could provide some additional guidance. I am interested in building a simple ring counter circuit on a breadboard but wasn't sure what resistor / capacitor values to use, and an input for the trigger. I will probably eventually use the mains frequency in the clock, but am open to suggestions on another source for testing. Any help on the simplest possible ring counter circuit possible with these tubes and other tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Dylan -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Question on XC18 trigger tubes
Dylan, The main design flaw with the published trigger tube clock is the change of supply voltage (I frigged the anode resistor to compensate). This does effect the pulse carry timing considerably.The main problem with the XC18 is it requires light to trigger reliably - leave the clock in a dark room and one or more rings will have failed by the morning. Tubes with a keep alive electrode like the Z700U will operate in complete darkness. My own XC18 clock is now just a demonstration clock that I fire up just to show it off as and when. I have a design for a second XC18 clock with schematics and layouts done in Eagle which I can email to you if you want to see them? This will give you a (all valve) design of a stabilised PSU and a 50 (or 60) Hz to 1 Hz divider using a two stage phantasmagorical divider which has a pulse shaper at the end to drive a XC18. For a more back-to-basics on trigger tube circuit design then download this book by Neale (86MB) chapter 5 in particular: http://www.sgitheach.org.uk/dmneale.pdf As it goes through the design process for trigger tubes (it uses the Z700U in the worked example). As a general comment to anyone on the list it is an ebook worth having IMHO. Building dividers on a breadboard is very easy and work well. The first divider I built was a two tube, divide by two, and then I added several more stages just to watch it count. I used a simple neon relaxtion oscillator to provide a slow enough tick that the dividers could be seen to be working rather than just using a 'scope. There are other XC18 clocks out there but all have the same darkness problem so must be kept lit. A few UV leds seem to work fine but the holy grail of an all valve clock has perhaps then been lost. The clock web page now lives on my own website as well http://www.sgitheach.org.uk/nixie3.html Happy to correspond, and I'm sure others will have comments as well. Cheers Grahame On 09/05/2012 18:32, Dylan Distasio wrote: Hi all- I recently picked up some XC18 trigger tubes in the hope of eventually building a trigger tube clock inspired by Grahame's work http://www.neonixie.com/trigger-tube-clock/Trigger_Clock.pdf. I have reviewed some of the basic trigger tube circuits out there, but was hoping someone with experience using trigger tubes could provide some additional guidance. I am interested in building a simple ring counter circuit on a breadboard but wasn't sure what resistor / capacitor values to use, and an input for the trigger. I will probably eventually use the mains frequency in the clock, but am open to suggestions on another source for testing. Any help on the simplest possible ring counter circuit possible with these tubes and other tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Dylan -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hi Dan, People trying to make nixies!!! Wow I'm exited like a child! :):):) yep, I hope I get something glowing soon. I don't know what is Pashen curves, but from the wiki first glance I understand what do you mean, is exactly the correlation formula, except that we do not use full sheets of metal. ...Iron nickel alloys maybe you know what kind of alloy and what is the best choice? Nope, don't know the exact alloy, sorry. But I don't think that this is the key aspect of making Nixie tubes at home. ;-) Jens -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
And yes, I forgot, Paschen curves are for homogeneous electric fields, which we do not have in Nixie tubes. Jens Jens, thanks again. I'm new here, but I feel that I'm in right place! People trying to make nixies!!! Wow I'm exited like a child! :):):) I don't know what is Pashen curves, but from the wiki first glance I understand what do you mean, is exactly the correlation formula, except that we do not use full sheets of metal. ...Iron nickel alloys maybe you know what kind of alloy and what is the best choice? Dan. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:56:04 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi Daniil, some use iron, some use an iron-nickel alloy, I am trying stainless steel. I cannot answer your second question, but do you know Paschen curves? These will give you the ballpark. Jens Hi Jens, Thanks for fast answer, the second thing I'm looking for is information about metals used in cathodes and anode, and correlation between size of the electrodes and distances between them. Thanks in advance, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but you can just as easily work with Neon, only the ignition voltage will be a little higher. Typical pressures are around 20 Torr or 30 mbar. Best regards, Jens Hello, I'm searching for the same book for the same purpose. I want to make nixie tube by myself. I have all information about the glassblowing process and metal-glass seals, but have no information about gas mixtures and pressures. So I will appreciate if anyone can help. Thanks, Daniil. On Wednesday, May 2, 2012 12:29:46 AM UTC-8, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Thanks, this book is useful, I downloaded a lot of stuff from tubebooks.org http://tubebooks.org but I haven't notice this one. I still need G.F. Weston Cold cathode glow discharge tubes. Vladimir On 1 May, 17:45, Instrument Resources of America iracosa...@hughes.net wrote: This may or may not be the one you are looking for. But it is an excellent book on glow discharge lamps and devices, neon lamps. http://www.tubebooks.org/tubedata/Glowlamp.pdf Good luck Ira. On 5/1/2012 8:01 AM, Vladimir Vucicevic wrote: Hi all! I'm new member of this group. I'm currently working my way to set up a home workshop for nixie tubes. Just planing for now. I researched a lot and I found that many people mentions this book (G.F. Weston, Cold cathode glow discharge tubes) but of course I can't find it anywhere. Is there a way for me to get a PDF of this book (I'll return it, I promise :) ). I would appreciate that a lot! Thanks! Vladimir On 10 Apr, 15:12, Dieter Waechteri...@nocrotec.com wrote: Hi! I have the original book and a DVD with a scan of the book. Contact me outside: i...@nocrotec.com Please note that the original book is not cheap. Dieter Am 10.04.2012 14:46, schrieb Dalibor Farn : Hello guys, I am looking for the book from G.F.Weston,Cold cathode glow discharge tubes, 1968, but it is (surprisingly) sold out everywhere ;-) is there someone so kind to provide me a PDF or some other ebook? Thank You! Dalibor IRACOSALES.vcf 1KViewDownload -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/useN_ayW-M0J. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com mailto:neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com mailto:neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 8:47:15 AM UTC-8, Jens Boos wrote: Hi, it is a Penning mixture of 1% Argon in 99% Neon (of course), but
Re: [neonixie-l] Question on XC18 trigger tubes
Thanks for the info and comments, Grahame. As an aside, I love your clock, and your other interesting projects! I'll take a look at the book. If you wouldn't mind emailing me the design, that would be great also. I will definitely take you up on your offer for continued correspondence as I move forward. Best, Dylan On Wed, May 9, 2012 at 2:16 PM, Grahame Marsh grahame.ma...@googlemail.comwrote: Dylan, The main design flaw with the published trigger tube clock is the change of supply voltage (I frigged the anode resistor to compensate). This does effect the pulse carry timing considerably.The main problem with the XC18 is it requires light to trigger reliably - leave the clock in a dark room and one or more rings will have failed by the morning. Tubes with a keep alive electrode like the Z700U will operate in complete darkness. My own XC18 clock is now just a demonstration clock that I fire up just to show it off as and when. I have a design for a second XC18 clock with schematics and layouts done in Eagle which I can email to you if you want to see them? This will give you a (all valve) design of a stabilised PSU and a 50 (or 60) Hz to 1 Hz divider using a two stage phantasmagorical divider which has a pulse shaper at the end to drive a XC18. For a more back-to-basics on trigger tube circuit design then download this book by Neale (86MB) chapter 5 in particular: http://www.sgitheach.org.uk/**dmneale.pdfhttp://www.sgitheach.org.uk/dmneale.pdf As it goes through the design process for trigger tubes (it uses the Z700U in the worked example). As a general comment to anyone on the list it is an ebook worth having IMHO. Building dividers on a breadboard is very easy and work well. The first divider I built was a two tube, divide by two, and then I added several more stages just to watch it count. I used a simple neon relaxtion oscillator to provide a slow enough tick that the dividers could be seen to be working rather than just using a 'scope. There are other XC18 clocks out there but all have the same darkness problem so must be kept lit. A few UV leds seem to work fine but the holy grail of an all valve clock has perhaps then been lost. The clock web page now lives on my own website as well http://www.sgitheach.org.uk/**nixie3.htmlhttp://www.sgitheach.org.uk/nixie3.html Happy to correspond, and I'm sure others will have comments as well. Cheers Grahame On 09/05/2012 18:32, Dylan Distasio wrote: Hi all- I recently picked up some XC18 trigger tubes in the hope of eventually building a trigger tube clock inspired by Grahame's work http://www.neonixie.com/**trigger-tube-clock/Trigger_**Clock.pdfhttp://www.neonixie.com/trigger-tube-clock/Trigger_Clock.pdf . I have reviewed some of the basic trigger tube circuits out there, but was hoping someone with experience using trigger tubes could provide some additional guidance. I am interested in building a simple ring counter circuit on a breadboard but wasn't sure what resistor / capacitor values to use, and an input for the trigger. I will probably eventually use the mains frequency in the clock, but am open to suggestions on another source for testing. Any help on the simplest possible ring counter circuit possible with these tubes and other tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Dylan -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscribe@** googlegroups.com neonixie-l%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/** group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GBhttp://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB . -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscribe@** googlegroups.com neonixie-l%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/** group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GBhttp://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB . -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
[neonixie-l] Re: Current consumption
Hi - I was running it from 5V :( Moving 1 wire (to run HVPS straight from input voltage) :- 9V in - 390ma 12V in - 320ma Just about half the current - everything running cool. Thanks ! David On May 9, 6:06 pm, taylorjpt j...@tayloredge.com wrote: Are you running the HVPS from the 9V or the 5V? You should definitely not use the 5V for the HVPS as it can run from up to 16V and at a current inversely proportional to the input voltage. jt It is a while since I built a Nixie clock. Just finished one using Moses chip, Tayloredge hv psu, and 6 IN-16 tubes, 2 blue led's. Standard 7805 regulator, fed from 9v. Curent is almost 600ma when running. Regulator gets pretty hot (though ok with heatsink). Nothing else gets warm and clock seems to run OK. Does this seem normal? Would appreciate your thoughts. Thanks, David -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
yep, I hope I get something glowing soon. - I want to see the process and of course results, good luck!!! I'm thinking now what kind of vacuum pump I need. Evacuation before filling gas what it must be? 10(-4) torr it's enough or I need more high vacuum? What is the process steps to fill the gas mixture in to? I'm handy with all glassblowing but process of evacuation and filling with gases is new for me. Sorry for noob questions. Dan. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/OcNW7ql050IJ. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Re: looking for Weston: Cold cathode glow discharge tubes
Hi Dan, - I want to see the process and of course results, good luck!!! thanks! I have a rotary pump here that goes down to 10^-2 mbar, which is not terribly low (a diffusion pump would sure be nice), but it is OK for a start. My current problem is leaks leaks leaks, my system gains .1 mbar per second when the pump is deactivated, I have to improve the setup. But my tube is nothing special, only two parallel wires in a glass tube, so not even a symbol, it is a simple glow lamp. What is the process steps to fill the gas mixture in to? I'm handy with all glassblowing but process of evacuation and filling with gases is new for me. Actually, you need to pull down the tube to a good vacuum (better than 0.01 mbar) and hold it there. While there, you flash the tube, i.e. heat the cathode and anode, and basically every metal part inside the tube with an induction heater. This is how you get rid of all the contaminations inside the metal components. After that you fill in the noble gas / gas mixture until the pressure reaches your desired value or the glow discharge ignites, and then you seal of the tube. Another alternative is to bake out all impurities before: put the metal parts in a quartz glass tube and then put this tube in an oven at 800 degrees Celsius or so. This heats the metal very well and leaves the quarz glass unharmed because it has a very high deformation temperature. The Quarz glass tube needs to be pulled close to vacuum, of course. Of couse, when cooling down etc. the metals pick up some impurities again, but it is not that much if you are careful. Another idea is to include some kind of getter (Barium) inside your tube that binds impurities (not the noble gases, of course, they are called noble for a reason). Jens Sorry for noob questions. Dan. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/OcNW7ql050IJ. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
[neonixie-l] Re: How do I hook up a Wester Electric 6167 Dekatron (WE 439A)?
On Tuesday, May 8, 2012 5:20:59 AM UTC-7, Dekatron42 wrote: I recently aquired a few Western Electric 6167 dekatrons. I have not been able to find a schematic drawing Here's a video of one working with my kit: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xqpnm0_western-electric-we6167-in-spinner-kit_tech The few I still have a picky little bastards. They don't want to spin unless the anode current is at least 1mA. Also, if they do stall in one spot for too long, that spot gets sticky. To un-stick it, I had to up the current over 2mA, and run that way for a few minutes, then it work again at 1mA. My kit makes about 450V. The anode resistor used was 150K. The tube connects as follows: Pins 1,2,3,7,8,9,10,12, 13 tie to a 'K' connection, which is +60V on my kit. Pin 4 (K10) ties to the NDX, which goes thru an LED, but it can also tie to 'K'. Pins 11 (B6-B10) pin 14 (B1-B5) to to guide G1, The anode is pin 19, which gets tied to +450V thru that 150K resistor. Note, the drop across the tube (anode to cathode) is only 110V. This means the anode sits at ~170V, once its on. The voltage drop across the anode resistor will be 450V-170V = 280V. Most 1/4W resistors are rated for only 250V. For long term assurance, I'd split the anode resistor into two series resistors. 150K could be 75K+75K, 68K+82K, or 100K+47K. Kit schematic: http://threeneurons.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/sp393_sch.gif -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/neonixie-l/-/Mv6UCkoCD9oJ. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
[neonixie-l] Determinining correct VFD voltages for one-off Russian VFD panels?
I've collected a number of one-of-a-kind Russian VFD panels, constructed with laminated-glass technology similar to the UDT-3. I'd like to try to light some of them up and eventually turn them into conversation pieces. First question is the filament. The active display area is around 4 x 3.5, with multiple parallel filament wires running down the long axis. I don't want to over-drive the filament and burn out the display. Also, am I going to have a brightness gradient across the display if I drive the filament with DC? Each of the actual elements that lights up is typically quite small - there's probably 70 or more individual elements in there. Most are the normal blue-green VFD color, though there are some pure green ones and even a few red ones. The only picture I have of the display being lit just shows the filament pins connected to an out-of-picture power supply, and all of the elements and the grid tied to each other with a strip of foil. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
Re: [neonixie-l] Determinining correct VFD voltages for one-off Russian VFD panels?
On 5/9/12 5:13 PM, Terry Kennedy wrote: I've collected a number of one-of-a-kind Russian VFD panels, constructed with laminated-glass technology similar to the UDT-3. I'd like to try to light some of them up and eventually turn them into conversation pieces. First question is the filament. The active display area is around 4 x 3.5, with multiple parallel filament wires running down the long axis. I don't want to over-drive the filament and burn out the display. Also, am I going to have a brightness gradient across the display if I drive the filament with DC? Each of the actual elements that lights up is typically quite small - there's probably 70 or more individual elements in there. Most are the normal blue-green VFD color, though there are some pure green ones and even a few red ones. The only picture I have of the display being lit just shows the filament pins connected to an out-of-picture power supply, and all of the elements and the grid tied to each other with a strip of foil. Start low and turn it up until it looks good. You could do some comparison with a known VFD of similar size, to get in the ballpark. The anode voltage should be a function of the inter-electrode spacing, i.e. the thickness of the insides. A filament resistance measurement will help figure out a starting point. If you get the filament too hot and it glows a little orange for a short time, you won't hurt it. -- David Forbes, Tucson AZ -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/neonixie-l?hl=en-GB.
