> > Is there any reason you couldn't use acrylic or polycarbonate
> > for nixie-tube type things ? As long as they didn't get too hot....
> > A pluggable LED nixie tube ?
> 
> Heat wouldn't be an issue with proper spacing

I haven't played with Nixie tubes for a long time - just wondered
about the heat generated by the filaments (Mike Harrison would
know - he's got a Nixie tube page)

> Looking at google results for out-gassing polycarbonate though... 

I'd imagine that acrylic would probably give off free monomer at
temperature. You can certainly smell MMA if you saw it. Not sure
about polycarbonate though. Have the perception (with absolutely
no evidence to back that up) that it's more stable and/or more fully
polymerised

Still, if you were able to enclose LEDs in any plastic heat wouldn't
generally be a problem. Potting in clear resin might be a little tricky
if you used Luxeons, but the silvering could be a "feature" ;-) A tip
I learned a long time ago when woodworking. If you make a mistake,
make a deliberate one just like and turn them into a "feature", just as
if you'd planned it all along

-- 
http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive
View/change your membership options at
http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist