To prepare the wood for staining I sanded the outside surface with a 400 grit sandpaper. I worked up to a 600 grit for a glassy smooth finish. Although mahogany does have a porous surface it can be polished by using fillers and a lot of elbow grease. I chose to just leave the pores in place and stain the wood as it was.

       To stain the wood I used a Minwax stain called “Red Mahogany #225” and applied it with a brush very thickly. After 30 minutes I reapplied the stain and waited a few minutes before wiping off the residual stain with a rag.

       To seal the stain in place I used a Minwax polyurethane clear satin sealer and sprayed two coats on the wood allowing each to dry. I used a satin sheen as it hides imperfections in the wood while allowing the natural shine of the wood to show through. It also looks better on porous woods as a glossy sealer would show more of the pores and imperfections.
       I could now install all of the electronics into the clock enclosure starting with the backup battery.

       I screwed in the tube board with very short screws into the top piece. I had also fabricated a aluminum panel to hold all of the switches and power jacks for the clock as seen below. Notice the added circuit board on the left, it holds the power transistor and power relay that I added to the clock earlier (The components are on the bottom side of the board - not shown).

       The middle section of the enclosure was installed on the top piece and the power panel was screwed into the side of it.

       All that was left to do was plug in the battery and fit the bottom piece to the enclosure. The tubes were installed and I plugged it in.

       I set up the clock on my entertainment system and hooked up the secondary control transformer to the power output of my audio receiver so when I turn on the receiver my clock displays the time. The AC power adaptor stays energized allowing the clock to keep accurate time when the tubes are not burning. This way I can enjoy the clock for many years opposed to burning the clock 24-7 which would result in the tubes burning out in a relatively short time.

       The warmth and beauty of the Nixie tube cannot be replaced by anything other than a Nixie tube. To watch the orange-blue glow coming from these tubes can be mesmerizing and I find myself daydreaming while watching the time pass on this 70 year old technology. I am sure I will cherish this clock for years and maybe I will hand it down to my daughter one day so she can display the history of the Nixie in it’s brilliance :0)
       I really enjoyed building this clock and by the looks of it it wont be my last. I can see that collecting Nixie tubes could be a fun hobby along with building different devices to use them with. I hope you enjoyed my Nixie project and as usual I welcome any comments or questions. Feel free to contact me if you so desire and please visit again for more of my unusual projects in the future.

Thanks, Don Giandomenico

       Here are a few cool Nixie tube links that I have found. Feel free to add your site by contacting me. Be sure to include your URL and site description. Thanks...

                                                     www.NixieClocks.de

                                       Dieter’s Nixie World - tube-tester.com

                                     Mike’s Electric Stuff - Nixie Clock Gallery

                                                 Sphere’s Nixie Tube Page

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