ice tube clock voltage boost converter 0.6v

[mechbot]

while following the soldering tutorial for the ice tube clock kit i passed the first and the second test, but the third test failed.
so i checked the forums and saw that the soldering joints are the common problem so i reflowed them all so that the joints are all good.
i also checked the resistor values and there correct.

so this is where it goes wrong, at the third test instead of measuring a voltage of 40-75v i only got 0.6v.
it does beep when i plug it in, but after a while it beeps again, sometimes with a extra beep in a slightly different sound.

any help with this problem would be greatly appreciated

~~~mechbot~~~

[adafruit_support_bill]

Post clear photos of the front & back of the board and we'll take a look.

[mechbot]

i forgot to solder the inductor ....
the tube is lighting up, during the startup sequence all digits light up, but the 4th digit from the left is very dim
when it stops the startup sequence and just displays the time in 1 sec intervals or something, the 4th digit doesnt light up

its late now so im gonna test tomorrow with the schematics and post the results

[mechbot]

i just finished soldering the last things like the buttons so that i could increase the brightness to max

i don't have the time to test it right even though i had the time for it, i made some pictures so maybe you might be able to tell me which connections i need to test
the pictures are made with max brighness of the tube

also when i was done soldering it i noticed i was missing some parts, the parts i'm missing are:

12mm 3V lithium coin cell
Nylon 4-40 Hex nut X 10
Nylon 4-40 1/2" machine screw X 8
icsp 6 pin header, 0.1"x0.1" spacing

so even if we find the problem with the tube i can't finish the case

[adafruit_support_bill]

Missing digits are usually due to soldering problems between the VFD chip and the tube. Post clear photos of the solder side of both boards and we will check them.

also when i was done soldering it i noticed i was missing some parts, the parts i'm missing are:

12mm 3V lithium coin cell
Nylon 4-40 Hex nut X 10
Nylon 4-40 1/2" machine screw X 8
icsp 6 pin header, 0.1"x0.1" spacin

Check the packaging, sometimes these small parts get lost in the packing materials.
If you are still missing parts, contact support@adafruit.com with a link to this thread for replacements.

[mechbot]

here are the photo's

[adafruit_support_bill]

Soldering on the main board looks pretty good. There are a few joints on the tube board that look either solder-starved, or have not flowed well onto both the pin and the surrounding pad. Read through this guide and touch up any joints that look suspicious.

[mechbot]

i've touched up the joints and there is still no improvement to be seen

[adafruit_support_bill]

The missing 4th digit is controlled by the VFD5 signal on pin 17 of the tube. Carefully, locate pin 17 and short it to pin 16 (VFD3). The 4th digit should then display the same thing as the 2nd digit.

http://www.ladyada.net/make/icetube/design.html

[mechbot]

so im done with my other projects and now have time for my clock

so ive shorted the clock as you said, but the result is that the wrong one lit up

i took a screenshot of the brd file and highlighted the ones i shorted with purple

my phones pictures are to high res, so ive edited it with paint xD

[adafruit_support_bill]

ive shorted the clock as you said, but the result is that the wrong one lit up

Which digit(s) changed when you shorted the pins?

[mechbot]

on the picture in the post before the tube say -12 8016
the fix was supposed to do it like -12 08 16

[adafruit_support_bill]

So, before you shorted the pins it read "12__8_16" ?

[mechbot]

when i dont short it it says: -12__8_58

after i short it it says: -12__8058

[adafruit_support_bill]

Hmmm. Looks like you found VFD7 instead of VFD5. (These pins are really hard to trace )