Ice Tube Clock

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ericyeh
 
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Ice Tube Clock

Post by ericyeh »

I recently assembled my ice tube clock, and the leftmost two digits seem to always show up as 8's... is this a common problem? Does anybody know what might fix it?


Thanks!

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

the leftmost two digits seem to always show up as 8's
That is most likely a soldering problem - somewhere between the VFD chip and the tube itself. If you post clear photos of the soldering on the main and tube boards we'll take a look.

Livids
 
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Ice Tube Clock - not seeing 60 V step 28

Post by Livids »

Step 28 of the assembly instructions calls for plugging in the board and measuring the voltage output at the end of a diode. When I do this I'm seeing not 60 VDC, but closer to .6 VDC (I've checked the scale of my mulimeter several times). Up to this point everything has seemed to work correctly. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Did all the previous voltage tests & the beep test pass? If you post photos of the front & back of the board we will check your assembly so far.

Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

yes- all previous tests passed. Though step 11 (voltage regulator) now does not pass - (a clue??)

trying to post photos...
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Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

more photos
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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Though step 11 (voltage regulator) now does not pass - (a clue??)
What voltages are you seeing on the output of the voltage regulator?
Do you still get the beep on power-up?

Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

I'm no longer getting a beep on power up
The voltage on the bottom most (if the plug is on the top of the board) pin is .91 v
middle and top pin are essentially zero

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

That means you probably have a short circuit somewhere. It looks like Q2 might be installed backwards. The two pins that are bridged together should be on the side closest to the diode:

Image

Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

You are good! I think that you are right - I completely misread the step 23 instructions (I won't elaborate on how I interpreted them - it seems pretty ridiculous in retrospect). I'll be unsoldering and resoldering later today - I'll let you know how things work out. Thanks!!

Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

The high voltage transistor did not survive (at least it's not looking good) the surgery. Is it possible to order a new one? Is it a fairly standard part (available at the local radio shack), or would I be best off purchasing directly from adafruit (or, third option, specialty electronics supply house in/around SF, CA??)

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

We don't have them for individual sale, but we have a couple of sources listed in the parts finder : http://www.ladyada.net/wiki/partselecto ... 110#mosfet

I'm sure that there are some local sources in the SF area too.

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ericyeh
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by ericyeh »

Here are some photos:

http://imgur.com/AcGul
http://imgur.com/xilT1




Thanks!

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

@ericyeh - We need to see more detail on the soldering. Some close-ups of the boards like the ones Livids posted earlier in this thread would be ideal.

Livids
 
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Re: Ice Tube Clock

Post by Livids »

going back a few posts - I purchased a new high voltage transistor from mouser, and all looks good so far!! Thanks so much for your help!! (it beeps when plugged in, and we are seeing the described voltage behavior in step 28.

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