Everything owners ask before and after they buy: the tubes, the clock cases, the electronics, the warranty and how delivery works. If your question is not here, message us on WhatsApp and a human will answer.
A nixie tube clock tells time with cold-cathode gas-discharge tubes instead of a screen. Inside each glass tube sit ten wire digits, stacked one behind the other. When high voltage reaches one of them, the neon around that digit ionizes and it lights up in a soft orange glow. Nothing is projected, printed or simulated: you are looking directly at the light of the number itself.
That is why no LED matrix or LCD panel reproduces the effect. A nixie clock has depth: the digits sit at different distances inside the glass, their edges haze slightly, and the light is warm enough to read across a dark room without ever feeling harsh. Watch it for a minute and you notice the tiny flicker as the minute changes: the digit behind steps forward, the one in front goes dark.
Nixie tubes were the standard readout of the space age: laboratory instruments, mission control panels and early computers. Semiconductor displays replaced them, and the last Soviet factories producing IN-14, IN-12 and IN-18 tubes shut the lines down in 1993. Nothing has been manufactured since.
Every tube in a Past Indicator clock comes from that original stock: Soviet nixie tubes made in the 1970s and 80s, then individually tested, aged and selected by hand in our workshop. It is a finite material, and we treat it that way.
A handmade nixie tube clock is less an instrument than a light source with a purpose. No blue light, no notifications, no glass rectangle. It warms up in a second or two, settles into its glow, and becomes the thing people look at when they walk into the room: a desk object, a shelf piece, a retro-futuristic counterpoint to everything else on the table.
Owners tend to be people who care where objects come from: collectors of Soviet-era electronics, designers and engineers, anyone who would rather have one made thing than five manufactured ones. It is also our most requested gift: for anniversaries, retirements and corporate presentations, since a vintage nixie clock carries a story you can tell out loud.
A nixie clock displays time with cold-cathode gas-discharge tubes. Digits glow inside a glass envelope, producing a warm orange light that no LED or LCD screen reproduces.
An LED or LCD display draws digits with segments or pixels. A nixie tube holds ten shaped metal cathodes, one per digit, sealed in glass and lit by neon. The digit you see is a physical object glowing inside the tube, not an image of one, which is why the numerals sit at slightly different depths and the light has a warmth flat displays cannot imitate.
Only original Soviet tubes: IN-12, IN-14 and IN-18, made between the 1970s and the early 1990s. Production ended in 1993, so every tube is a finite object with its own history.
Up to 30 years in normal use. Our boards extend that further with automatic tube regeneration and precisely controlled voltage and current, which reduces cathode wear.
Yes. Tubes sit in sockets and are replaced without soldering, so servicing is simple and the clock outlives its tubes.
Natural and precious materials only. Wood: walnut, oak, ash, thermo ash, padauk, elm, mahogany, wenge, rosewood, lacewood, bubinga. Metal: gold, aircraft aluminum, brass, stainless steel, nickel. Stone: marble, serpentine, onyx, jasper, dolomite. We also work with jewellery resin, including hand-poured artwork. Every material is chosen for how it looks, how it feels and how it ages.
Yes, and it is adjustable. The backlight can be dimmed or switched off completely. Blue is the default colour and red is available on request.
Time and date, alarm, smooth or instant digit transition, sleep mode, automatic tube regeneration, adjustable backlight, 12 or 24 hour format and adjustable brightness.
Through the supplied adapter: 12V to the clock, 100 to 240V mains, so it works in any country with the right plug adapter.
Yes. The clock cases are solid wood, stone and metal, so the clock reads as an object rather than a gadget. It sits comfortably in modern, classic and vintage rooms, and in the evening the tube glow does most of the work.
Yes. All high-voltage parts are fully enclosed inside the clock case, the electronics meet current safety standards and the clock ships with a certified power adapter. Nothing is exposed in normal use.
Wipe the clock case with a dry or slightly damp soft cloth. Never use cleaners containing acids, alkalis, ammonia or chlorine: they damage wood, stone and metal finishes. Tubes need no maintenance, though sleep mode extends their life.
Two years on core models and five years on premium models, covering both the clock and the tubes. The exact term is stated in the documents shipped with your clock.
Yes. You can switch between 12 and 24 hour formats, adjust tube and backlight brightness, choose smooth or instant digit transitions and set the alarm. For a different clock case, material or engraving, see custom projects.
Pick a model in the catalogue and message us on WhatsApp. We confirm the specification, the price and the delivery window before anything is charged. We ship from warehouses in the United States, Spain and Russia: two to seven days to the US and Europe, from three days to the rest of the world. Full detail is on the shipping page.