This Pip-Boy Smartwatch Is Built From Brass and Copper Pipe

Fallout’s Pip-Boy has inspired more wrist-worn builds than just about any other piece of fictional hardware, but most of them lean on 3D-printed shells. Huy Vector went a different route, building a Pip-Boy-style smartwatch out of plumbing parts.

What They Built

The watch runs on a Xiao ESP32-S3 board driving a 1.54-inch LCD that recreates the Pip-Boy’s characteristic green-on-black interface, with a MAX30102 sensor added on for heart rate readings. It’s a recognizable, functional take on the franchise’s signature device, scaled down to fit a wrist instead of a forearm.

How They Did It

The standout decision here is the housing: rather than printing a plastic case, Huy Vector built the watch’s body from copper tubing and brass hardware. That metal isn’t just for looks — sections of it double as capacitive touch points, so the watch’s controls are wired directly into the same material that forms its shell. A leather strap finishes the look, giving the whole thing the feel of a piece of dressed-up industrial hardware rather than a 3D print with a screen bolted on.

Why It’s Worth Your Time

It’s worth comparing this against Arnov Sharma’s PIP-WATCH v2, also covered here — same source material, but a completely different build language. Where Sharma’s build leans on an unusual wide touch display to nail the aesthetic in software, Huy Vector gets there through material choice, using copper and brass as both structure and input hardware. Two valid paths to the same wrist computer.

Go See It

Huy Vector’s build was covered by Hackaday, with photos and video of the brass-and-copper housing in action.