IN18 nixies

exurbia · 2nd March 2009, 07:32 AM

I'm not sure whether this should come under the tube heading or not.
I've recently purchased a Nixie clock, the Nixies are IN18 they are russian and have 40mm high digits. They look rather impressive especially at night.
However i have a problem, some of the digits don't light properly.
Is this likely to be due to not enough drive or is it likely to be faulty tubes ?
Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.
Cheers,
Peter.

Sal Brisindi · 2nd March 2009, 08:31 AM

Well, it can be either problem you mentioned. Keep the clock plugged in for a while. Many times the partial lighting up of the cathodes will light up after a while.

Is this clock multiplexed or direct drive? I have built a bunch of nixie clocks and sometimes if I unplug them for a while the cathodes will take a while to work properly.

BTW, the IN-18's are nice tubes, I have about 30 of them.

Sal

exurbia · 2nd March 2009, 08:41 AM

Hi Sal,
Thanks for the info, i have tried swapping the positions. The problem persists though and i now have a blue glow when the 1 lights up in two of the tubes. The clock has only been running for a couple of hours. I will use a bit of patience and not condemn the tubes out of hand. The clock is multiplexed, i have read on another site that direct drive is the best way to do it.
Peter.

Colt45 · 2nd March 2009, 08:49 AM

if it lights, but is.. kind of.. flickery, you can try bumping up the current a bit.

quadtech · 2nd March 2009, 10:42 AM

Oh Oh! Take a deep breath, get a hold of yourself.
You may have a case of the Big C ....

http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nix...-poisoning.htm

exurbia · 2nd March 2009, 10:54 AM

Please Dr nixie, it can't be the big C mine are NOS , well the russians said they were.
I will have to build a Nixie tester like Dieters and try and cook them.
Thanks for all the glum tidings chaps

quadtech · 2nd March 2009, 11:54 AM

BTW, the blue glow on IN18s is not unusual.
These tubes have a little bit of mercury in them, supposedly to prevent
cathode poisoning.

h00hbt · 2nd March 2009, 02:04 PM

Hi

in worst place it could be cathode poisoning....

http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nix...-poisoning.htm

cheers

/H

2nd March 2009, 07:32 AM	#1
exurbia diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Perth	IN18 nixies I'm not sure whether this should come under the tube heading or not. I've recently purchased a Nixie clock, the Nixies are IN18 they are russian and have 40mm high digits. They look rather impressive especially at night. However i have a problem, some of the digits don't light properly. Is this likely to be due to not enough drive or is it likely to be faulty tubes ? Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated. Cheers, Peter.

2nd March 2009, 02:04 PM	#8
h00hbt diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2007	Hi in worst place it could be cathode poisoning.... http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nix...-poisoning.htm cheers /H __________________ /H

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2nd March 2009, 08:31 AM	#2
Sal Brisindi diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2006	Well, it can be either problem you mentioned. Keep the clock plugged in for a while. Many times the partial lighting up of the cathodes will light up after a while. Is this clock multiplexed or direct drive? I have built a bunch of nixie clocks and sometimes if I unplug them for a while the cathodes will take a while to work properly. BTW, the IN-18's are nice tubes, I have about 30 of them. Sal

2nd March 2009, 08:41 AM	#3
exurbia diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Perth	Hi Sal, Thanks for the info, i have tried swapping the positions. The problem persists though and i now have a blue glow when the 1 lights up in two of the tubes. The clock has only been running for a couple of hours. I will use a bit of patience and not condemn the tubes out of hand. The clock is multiplexed, i have read on another site that direct drive is the best way to do it. Peter.

2nd March 2009, 08:49 AM	#4
Colt45 diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Canada	if it lights, but is.. kind of.. flickery, you can try bumping up the current a bit.

2nd March 2009, 10:42 AM	#5
quadtech diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2007	Oh Oh! Take a deep breath, get a hold of yourself. You may have a case of the Big C .... http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nix...-poisoning.htm

2nd March 2009, 10:54 AM	#6
exurbia diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Perth	Please Dr nixie, it can't be the big C mine are NOS , well the russians said they were. I will have to build a Nixie tester like Dieters and try and cook them. Thanks for all the glum tidings chaps

2nd March 2009, 11:54 AM	#7
quadtech diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2007	BTW, the blue glow on IN18s is not unusual. These tubes have a little bit of mercury in them, supposedly to prevent cathode poisoning.

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