Nixie Tube Slot Machine

Bob Cascisa, perhaps like you, has wandered near and far around the Internet, observing various Nixie tube projects that others have completed. However, the term variety may not quite be accurate here, as the vast majority of said projects are clocks, and none of them use symbol Nixie tubes. To correct both situations, he created the Handheld Nixie Tube Slot Machine Game (HNTSMG).

The HNTSMG uses an off-the-shelf rectangular project box as its housing, and features three symbol Nixies in a row that “spin” through ten different characters to indicate if the play is a winner. Spins are dictated by pseudo-random number generation via the unit’s Arduino Nano controller, and different payout values are produced depending on what symbols appear and the play number.

To start play, a button on the side spins the symbol Nixies. Upon a winning spin, a series of lights flash to indicate success. Four numerical Nixies on the bottom portion of the enclosure show how many coins you have left, starting with a default value of 25. Naturally, if you get to zero, you have lost and the game must be restarted. If you get to 9999 coins, you’ve broken the bank, and have won – though the same sort of restart is needed to keep playing.

More details are available here, and Cascisa hopes that people can take this idea and expand upon it, perhaps with a 3D-printed enclosure, sound, or any number of other ideas and add-on doodads. For now, check it out in action in the video below!