6 HN users recommended this documentary6 months2017–2026score 7.5
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026
HN commenters call it mesmerizing and a great look at how things are actually made by a dedicated craftsman.
Dalibor Farny documents the hand manufacture of a nixie tube, from glassblowing to evacuation, with text notes rather than narration. He revived the lost craft of nixie tube making.
“The video in the article is just amazing. You don't normally get to see the exact details of how things get made.” (HN, 2018)
I came to comment about Dalibor as well - amazing youtube channel. Recommended viewing for anyone who loves home-ish-scale, high-quality manufacturing: [this video] He's got to be one of the world's experts on nixie tube manufacturing, at this point.
Channel on small-scale high-quality manufacturing by a nixie tube expert
if you liked watching this, then maybe you'd also like these videos, which i watched some time ago: making a miniature vacuum tube triode [link] The Art of Making a Nixie Tube [this video]
Getting a custom VFD made would be a very expensive process indeed. If you need a very small number of segments then Dalibor Farny can make a custom Nixie tube, which is similar technology: [link] Also a good introduction to how they are made (making a VFD would be similar but more difficult): [this video] Otherwise Noritake itron still make VFD monitors for industrial applications (seems they have high temp advantages over LCDs): [link]
Tangentially, this is a beautiful (with no music or narration; text notes only) high quality video of modern artisanal (i.e. all by hand) nixie tube manufacturing. [this video]
Beautiful high quality video of artisanal nixie tube manufacturing, text notes only
CRT production is a much more complex bit of modern manufacturing than making vinyl LPs. This youtube video documents what a rather dedicated individual does to resurrect small-scale Nixie tube manufacturing: [this video] And technologically, color CRTs are way beyond that. [link]
Small-scale Nixie tube manufacturing by a dedicated individual
And of course, there's the Nixie tube. [this video] (Previously posted in [link] , the maker's web site via [link] , and covered in an IEEE article via [link] )
In some ways it's never been easier to get all the equipment you will need. But if you're wanting to make ones even half as good as the ones on this page, you'd probably want to become a skilled glassblower and outfit a lab that looks something like this: [this video]
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