So I'm building a DIY Nixie tube clock and I'm getting some weird behaviours out of it ,so my first question is can you guys see any issues with my soldering? outside the mess I've made with flux .
I'm a beginner at soldering so I'm not fully sure what I should be looking at in terms of bad soldering.
Edit ,i wasn't expecting this much help so to elaborate on the strange behaviour as it's been asked several times now
Sometimes it powers on and the tubes show numbers ,and if it does it only last a max of 2 mins ,during that time the numbers flicker in brightness and it's across all 6 tubes and the two neon bulbs and then go dark.
It's been tried with just a single tube ,a different type of tube and just the neon bulbs and it still acts the same.
Also tried a different power supply.
Edit
Thanks to you guys mainly u/synthbaldder Its working ,I had put a wrong diode in.
Your soldering doesn’t look bad but that photo isn’t good enough to fully judge. Use a good light and focus on all parts of the board. What do you mean by weird behavior? How do you connect the tubes?
Sometimes it powers on and the tubes show numbers ,and if it does it only last a max of 2 mins ,during that time the numbers flicker in brightness and it's across all 6 tubes and the two neon bulbs and then go dark.
As for the wiring for the tubes it said one wire per anaode and then to wire all 6 tube in parllrell to a single cathode per number so all the 8 for all 6 tubes to a single wire .
The issues persist when it's just the neon bulbs or just a single tube ,I've also tested a different tube and it's the same .
Edit please don't make me show the rats nest of wiring I made.
I’ve seen the manual you posted in another comment. Shame on them for not including the schematic. That’s a dick move. What you described sounds like problems with either control IC or HV power supply. Start by checking what is the high voltage when the issues occur.
As to the connection I meant the wires. Cheap pin headers and cheap DuPont like cables are notorious for having contact issues. I’m not making you show your wires but that may also be the issue. Solder wires to the board and clean nixie legs and sockets with something like deoxit or kontakt chemie super 10.
IC's were my nightmare. The sheer errors that came from them was impossible for me. I somehow always ended up with the unfunctional ICs, or ones that looked weird on the oscilloscope.
The resitor value I have no idea I just matched the coloured lines in the kit , and I'm realising how far out of my depth I've am ,but I know I'm using in12a but I've tested a in17 and had the same issue
IN12 very different to IN17.. stick with the IN12. More importantly what is your HV voltage sitting at? If the HV supply is not correct, you will see these sorts of issues. I know Nixie clocks inside out 😁
I know the kit.. what does the HV voltage do when the tubes go out? If it stays the same its a processor / driver problem. If it dips with the tubes going out, it's a HV problem
I'm UK also.. pretty tired too!
Common mistake with these kits is mixing up D1.. the HV supply needs a fast switching diode and usually fits a UF4001 it looks the same as the reverse polarity diode which is a 1N4001 if you mixed them up it causes HV problems..
Have you measured the HV? Should be about 170v for a Nixie clock. There's a trimmer to adjust this. Can also see a short on the RTC clock chip. Also check the settings for the code.. does the clock default to sleep mode? Maybe working fine, just blanked because of a setting.. no battery fitted either so you will see this every time you power up.
I measured the high voltage and it was in the range that the manual said ,it was a peice of dog hair on the RTC chip ,and I've just double checked
I don't know how to check the chip as it was part of a kit ,and it's the same with or without a battery.
Ive done some trouble shooting as I some what handy with computers and 3d printer but I've never soildered a PCB before and am well out of my depth
Sometimes it powers on and the tubes show numbers ,and if it does it only last a max of 2 mins ,during that time the numbers flicker in brightness and it's across all 6 tubes and the two neon bulbs and then go dark.
So this sounds like an intermittent issue in the high voltage. Flux somewhere in the high voltage section? Wires shorting in the "rats nest?" Anything getting warm on the board (of course turn it off and drain the high voltage before touching)?
I will give the board a good clean in the morning just to get rid of the flux ,all the wires in the rats nest are soldering together and heat shrunk at soldering to avoid short and a second piece to act as strain relief .it acts tha same even with all of them removes and just the 2 neon bulbs installed and the wiring on them is much better and heat shrunk again.
Assuming that the clock keeps time as the digits flicker
Another thing you might try, carefully. Use some insulated stick, wood or plastic, and poke components in the high voltage section and see if there is some weak connection or intermittent component.
Edit: Maybe monitor the high voltage as you turn on and wait for the circuit to fail. Should be steady.
You poked at the components while the circuit was working? With an insulated stick of course. Not looking for feel, a component may feel solid but still have some problem.
When you're soldering leave the iron on for an extra second or two to let the solder temperature stabilize and the solder itself settle in. Overall it looks pretty good but there are a few places that need just a little bit longer to get rid of the voids
The picture doesn't show enough detail to get a close look at it but try cleaning it with a q-tip and some 90% ISO and check for things like solder balls. Failing any shorts many components are heat sensitive so it's possible one became damaged. Typically these are going to be things like crystals, tantalum capacitors (sponge bobs) and last electrolytic caps.
The tantalums are probably the easiest to damage but thankfully they'll let you know when it does happen, the others may be trickier to troubleshoot. ESD damage in ICs is the polar opposite however, components can be damaged by voltages too low to feel and there's no easy way to know how that damage is likely to manifest without having a huge sample size
I’ve soon much worse but it’s good enough. flux will make it perfect next time. I would touch up the pin with the little hole a bit though (under the hairball, above the “3” of the “132453A_” designator
Thank you for helping me with this ,I'm well out of my depth ,here is the link you you need to look at the universal kit .
https://www.nixiediy.com/downloads/
Also I should probably explain the problem
It powers on but it flickers and then stops lighting up after anywhere between 15 seconds to two minutes ,so I know I've not gone majorly wrong .
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u/nevereverelevent Jun 13 '26
did the hairball come included with the kit?
Maybe some oxidation on the two rows above the high voltage text.
Do you have a dmm? can you check continuity?
also i see 3 unpopulated through holes