Nixie Machine II

Nixie Machine II is Frank Buchwald’s sequel to his original clock sculpture and an even larger expression of his “heavy-engineering” aesthetic. Stretching roughly 1.2 metres (just over 47 inches) from end to end, the piece is hand-built from burnished steel and brushed brass; its spine-like frame cradles six gigantic R|Z568M tubes made by Czech artisan Dalibor Farny, each tube standing 90 mm tall and glowing with warm orange numerals for hours, minutes and seconds. Intricate metal hoses feed the digits like arteries, while the entire assembly rests on four splayed outriggers that evoke both tripod machinery and retro-futurist starships.

Inside, a Wi-Fi-enabled control board keeps time to the second by polling NTP servers; the owner can also drive the clock in offline mode, adjust display cadence, or dim the tubes for night-time. A temperature sensor, power-loss memory and “slot-machine” digit roll-overs—all configured through a simple browser interface—bring 21st-century convenience to mid-century display technology.

Nixie Machine II is limited to twelve signed and numbered examples produced for MB&F’s M.A.D.Gallery. Each clock requires well over 300 individual, hand-finished components and several weeks of assembly in Buchwald’s Berlin atelier before the tubes are installed and aged for long-term stability. The result is equal parts kinetic sculpture, functional chronometer, and homage to the vanished era of cold-cathode displays.