Nobody wants to breathe solder fumes; that’s a given. For most of us, an industrial-looking fan-and-filter made in China and picked up cheap feels like more than enough to keep our lungs clear. Other people, people like [George Conneely], have more refined tastes. Why have a fume extractor when you can have a work of art?
This is one of those projects where the images really speak for themselves, because the whole point is to be beautiful. Sure, the wooden case is lovingly sculpted by a—wait, it’s 3D-printed!? Yes, with the right stain and care applying it, it seems Wood PLA can fool the eye, or at least the camera. Inside that PLA case there’s a custom PCB with an ATMega microcontroller and some MOSFETS to drive the Nixie tubes. The two digits represent the fan’s set RPM as a percentage of maximum, as is clearly labeled. Using a READY/NOT READY indicator pulled from a Panvia Tornado to show whether the fan has actually spun up to its set speed is an amazing touch.
The only problem with this build is that it is too nice. We’d almost rather see it on Don Draper’s desk than risk dirtying it on a lab bench. Evidently, [George] ascribes to the philosophy that one should surround oneself with beauty whenever possible. Your tastes may differ, but to many, nixie tubes certainly qualify– whether on a desk clock or in a car’s dashboard, there’s just something about that incandescent glow.
Thanks to [George] for the tip.
Nixie tubes are not incandescent. They are cold-cathode gas discharge.
Is this true? I mean it is probably less toxic than smoking.
Olaf
True, smokers have better options to reduce the inhalation of harmful fumes. All others are better off replacing the charcoal filter (which is mainly good at reducing odors) with a HEPA filter.
For HEPA you need a Stronger Fan.
It’s basically tiny holed Paper.
In this case, what would make it more beautiful is removing the nixie tubes, lights, and replacing the generic toggle and knob with matching designs.
Midcentury style radio would not be this minimalistic. It would probably have some sort of canvas panel and a thin linear grille. This construction gives more of a rounded over Bauhaus / Dieter Rams vibes, so the pc-gamer-mod-esque control panel becomes jarring in contrast. A backlit mechanical dial for the speed indicator and a lightweight push toggle switch would better sell the aesthetics.
Absurdly overdesigned, as it should be.
And here I thought clamping an old PC fan to my work bench and hooking it up to my power supply was the way to go.
Absolutely gorgeous!
Very cool design! The PLA gives it a nice touch, and the removable cartridge is a great feature. The removable cartridge reminds me of the Minimalist 3D Printed Fume Extractor.