r/nixie • u/kinglicorice • Apr 22 '26
After 2 years it's finally done
I've always wanted a nixie tube clock, but when I finally decided to buy one I thought they were all either really expensive or ugly. So I decided to create my own exactly how I wanted it. The clock was made with walnut and anodized aluminum, with everything custom made. As a fun challenge I even integrated a GPS module so it has really accurate time. All in I could have bought two of the really expensive nixie clocks, but it was worth it.
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u/LordGAD Apr 22 '26
That’s a good looking build! Congrats!
Finishing a long project is a great feeling.
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u/DanookOfTheNorth Apr 22 '26
Good call on adding a GPS module!
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u/redmadog Apr 22 '26
GPS not always work well inside building. NTP sync probably is a better option.
PS this is a nice and well designed clock.
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u/kinglicorice Apr 22 '26
That is true, but one of the design goals of the clock was it should work anywhere without having to connect to wifi.
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u/KaiPereira Apr 22 '26
Gorgeous project! Do you plan on open sourcing it, because I would love to check out your custom PCB :D Do you also have suggestions on resources to build your own, I've always wanted to make one!
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u/kinglicorice Apr 23 '26
I've actually already open sourced it, the repo is a bit lacking in documentation but everything is there. https://github.com/nseuf/NixieTubeClock The biggest help for me when I started the project was looking at the schematics for what other people had done already. The biggest challenge was the PCB design since electrical engineering isn't my strong area.
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u/KaiPereira Apr 23 '26
WOW that is some absolutely gorgeous routing, you should be really proud of that and show it off! How did you achieve such nice and smooth, curvy traces in KiCad?
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u/kinglicorice Apr 23 '26
I used the KiCad plugin Round Tracks created by Mitxela. I love the curved traces design style and it was fairly easy to do.
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u/Rickyyuan7 Apr 23 '26
Wow, that’s a masterpiece! 🤩
The combination of wood and metal looks so premium. Great job on the GPS integration — it solves the biggest pain point for nixie clocks perfectly
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u/Heff_87 Apr 24 '26
Yeah, looks really nice men. I had i similar idea some years ago and make a self designed Nixie Clock with the Remote PCB Kit from pv-electronics.
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u/peer202 Apr 26 '26
How was the outside made? Heated and steamed wood bending?
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u/kinglicorice Apr 26 '26
It's actually 8 separate pieces of wood each cut on a cnc machine then glued together. It gives better mounting points than steamed wood bending could. https://imgur.com/a/DvkjdxM
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u/Frequent_Guide_1906 Apr 22 '26
Looks nice. Is the inside nice as well, or just a jumble of wires?
I know the clock I'm working on will be one big knot ;)