30
Apr
Minitron / Pinlite
I found a few cool misprinted minitron style 7 segment incandescent displays. Essentially, they are numitrons that are in a flat pack. As best I can tell, they were primarily used in the aviation industry because of their dependability and durability. I’ll take some more photos of them in use after I figure out their pin out. Stay tuned. Read more
1
Apr
Numitron Tester
I found this great little RCA DR 2000 / DR 2010 tester on eBay. For $4.99, it was worth every cent. I cannot find much information on this device other than the markings on the markings on the device itself. ”RCA Numitron Digital Display Device Demonstrator 1g1308″
The controls are pretty simple – the knob controls the brightness and power. The switch has three positions. In the center position, the numitron counts through the digits. In the upper position it illuminates all of the segments of the display while in the bottom position, it only illuminates the decimal point on the display.
The power supply itself is odd. I cannot tell what type of cells it uses. The internal mechanism supports 5 cells that seem to be narrower and longer than a C sized cell. To make it work, I wired a 9V battery to the internal terminals. (Oddly, this thing draws so much current that a single 9V battery cannot actually power the device. As the display begins counting, it seems to reset at the 8 position. To get around this, I had to wire three batteries in parallel to support the load.)
Click to enlarge
25
Mar
Unknown Packard Instruments PCB
I need some help. I have a PCB that I can’t identify and I am hoping someone can shed some information on this.
It is a Packard Instrument PCB from 1971. It has the numbers 7100398 and 5065082 on the board. There are 7 RCA DR-2110 Numitron tubes soldered to the fron and each one seems to be driven by an EL-RAD X72-333. There is also one AMD IC with the markings 930159x 7317 and a TI M 7523 SN7446AN. Read more
10
Aug
MSM-5A Mosaic Readout Indicator
Note: this is a follow up from post: http://www.ineedcaffeine.com/content/2009/08/ebay-find-msm-5a-incandescent-display/
I received my MS-5a Mosaic readout displays from the Vintage Technology Association today. Not only did they include the two displays, but there were also a few other extras included as well. Nice work, guys!
The units themselves are rated for 3v, 50 mA but I can’t tell if that is 50 mA per segment or total. Powering them is simple, all you need is two AA batteries and a few alligator clips. The top set of fingers provide the common connection and the remaining connectors power the individual elements and the decimal point. Read more
27
May
TubeClockDB Video
This is just a quick video I made for TubeClockDB.com. Be sure to share the YouTube video link.
Featured:
- Jeff Thomas / Nixichron Nixie Clock
- Jon Ellis / Nimimini Numitron Clock
- Konstantin Bodrenkov / IV-11 clock VFD Clock
3
May
Nixie, Numitron and VFD Tester
I am considering building the following tester based on my own design. I’d like some feedback:
Features:
- Clearly labeled inputs for power (VFD, Nixie and Numitron)
- On board batteries for Numitron power (no other power needed)
- On board batteries for the filament for VFD Displays (only +30v needed or 3 9v batteries)
- Outputs for up to 18 elements: should handle any type of display you will encounter!
- Buttons for each element to allow for testing of each element individually
- A black finish on the board with white silk screened text
- Fully assembled!
- Probably more as I go
Price: Est. $50. Read more
27
Apr
Display Tube Database
I’m working on creating a database of all of my Nixie, Numitron, and VFD display tubes. Below is the preliminary table and all of the photos can be found here. Please let me know what you think. Changes? Suggestions?
Last updated 04-30-2009
added IV-17, IV-22, photos
15
Mar
Numimini – Preview
By Jon Ellis / ~$150
via eBay
Okay, I just ordered this clock and should have it in about a week. Below is the photo Jon sent me of my actual unit and the description was lifted from the eBay auction description. The highlights are:
Numitron based display. Numitrons are display tubes that are fundamentally different than Nixie tubes of VFD tubes. The display is formed using the standard 7-segment pattern but the elements are actually little filaments like one would find in a flashlight or other incandescent bulb. They are low voltage / low current devices that had a short lived popularity until they were replaced by LED displays.
The Numimini is computer programmable. You can change the display patterns and types via USB and the included software.
Full description from the auction after the jump.