Clock with LED Ceramic Filaments

[Mac Doktor]

https://chinese-electronics-products-tested.blogspot.com/p/ceramic-filament-clock-kit-tested.html

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256808597255015.html

This place ships to the US:

https://www.icstation.com/digital-clock-with-light-adjustment-soldering-projects-alarm-clock-electronic-kits-creative-present-p-16544.html

Terry Bowman, KA4HJH
"The Mac Doctor"

https://www.astarcloseup.com

“...the book said something astonishing, a very big thought. The stars, it said, were suns but very far away. The Sun was a star but close up.”—Carl Sagan, "The Backbone Of Night", Cosmos, 1980

[Nick Andrews]

Interesting!  Now, how about making one that mimics the venerable large Burroughs tubes?  You could make a huge alphanumeric display...

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "neonixie-l" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/0DB9A0D2-B87F-4444-ACBD-71E1BC3E05E2%40gmail.com.

[gregebert]

Well, I took the plunge and bought one. There's no way I could design & build one for that price on my own. Like the edge-lit LED clock I bought a few years ago, I expect this one will work for awhile, then get wonky.

My edge-lit clock has the tens-hours displaying multiple numerals (a logical OR of all other digits; very odd) at the same time, and at first I thought something was shorting-out signals on the board but no amount of scrubbing or tapping has fixed it. I'm having a hard time believing the code got corrupted just enough to do this, but not enough to completely trash the overall functionality.

After I get this running, I'll post a video.

Like I really need yet another clock ?????     I guess it's a form of substance addiction. At least it's not my health/safety that's at risk, or any else's. Just my electric bill. I think my clocks have gobbled close to 300kWhr in the past 2 years, according to the multifunction panel meter I installed.

[Adrian Godwin]

Likely a digit driver transistor failed short-circuit.

To view this discussion, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/69b48c25-031e-4218-8f25-4cfd1b6ebe7cn%40googlegroups.com.

[gregebert]

This clock uses addressable RGB LEDs that are on a serial link so its not a simple driver short. The software is probably rather complicated, so I think something in one of the config options got corrupted, and the software is confused. Unfortunately, there is no documented device-reset option. I will try removing the backup battery and shorting-out the power to see if that will force a reset.

[Tony Adams]

Not sure if this will attach as I haven't posted a photo before, an experiment from about 10 years back.

To view this discussion, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/CAJD4P-jwufU_6CP6_yP93wQAm00q_H%2BSnEdmY8FBfoPWvS7oZQ%40mail.gmail.com.

[gregebert]

OK, got my kit and mounted some parts. The PCB is impressively milled-out. All components are thru-hole, and you will need a soldering iron with a fine tip, along with fine solder. I hate sockets, so I'm soldering the ICs down.

The random number being displayed is for illustrative purposes only.

[gregebert]

Finished building it last night, and attempted to set it up. The controls are a bit wonky, and the contrast makes it hard to read the display without a color filter. Or, I might need to 3D print an overlay that will probably block the unique see-thru design. I wont be installing "ceramic filaments" for the colons, and will instead use discrete LEDs. One annoying feature is that changing the time is done while the numbers are flashing, and they will change during the time they are off, so you have to keep track of button-pressing. I did NOT install the speaker because I have no way of knowing when or if the alarm is set.

[Mac Doktor]

On Sep 4, 2025, at 3:39 PM, gregebert <greg...@hotmail.com> wrote:

OK, got my kit and mounted some parts.

Assembling mine right now.

The PCB is impressively milled-out.

Very clever design, very elegant.

All components are thru-hole, and you will need a soldering iron with a fine tip, along with fine solder. I hate sockets, so I'm soldering the ICs down.

I tend to make mistakes so the ICs will be socketed and I bought two kits just in case parts go flying and land who know's where. 

The included sockets are, of course, the cheapest thing there is. I have some old double-wipes around here somewhere. They don't seem to work loose. It's more likely that the legs will break off when you try to pull one.

[gregebert]

I hope yours works correctly. Mine isn't; it seems to be stuck in some odd setup mode and I have no idea how to get it reset. Removing power & battery, and shorting the power pins did not reset it. Since it has HC595 drivers for the segments, I'm probably going to remove the controller IC, and drive it from a Raspberry Pi. For now, it's in the junkpile waiting for me to finish other projects.

This is the 3rd clock kit I've built, and probably the worst. The scope clock was the most complex, and has been working flawlessly for several years. In hindsight, it's probably a ripoff from David Forbes scope clock, which I suspect is a very well done design. Next is the edge-lit clock, and it worked fine for a few years, then after I tried changing the mode, the tens-hours digit started displaying the logical OR of the lower-order digits. This *has* to be some sort of software glitch. Anyways, it's a 5-digit clock now.

All of my other clocks were designed and built by me, and they all work correctly. Go figure.....