Radioactive Gauge Spotter's Guide

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

you my friend are funny ... Now this is a REAL Steel Soldier thread...!!!!

Thank you, EMR. I appreciate the Kudos.

I see you're in New Jersey. You have my empathy. (I was born in Jersey City, raised in Kearny, migrated to Texas courtesy of the USAF)

This thread was getting wayyyy too serious for a Miliatry Truck forum - It had gone Nukler (as GWB would say). It was time to spice it up with some chow hall humor.

 

[a68cudas]

If im allowed to ask what makes them radioactive? Is it the paint that they made the numbers etc out of? what type of radioactive material is it made out of?

 

[stumps]

If im allowed to ask what makes them radioactive? Is it the paint that they made the numbers etc out of? what type of radioactive material is it made out of?

On some of the older gauges, there is radioactive luminescent paint on the numbers and the dial pointers.

I can only speculate on what was used. It could be radium, promethium, or even tritium paint.

In all cases, it is harmless as it was deployed. There is some risk when the glass gets broken, but it really is minor, assuming you don't eat it, or snort it...

-Chuck

 

[Goose2448]

Your analoge alarm clock has the same paint. I would not worry about it. You are gonna die anyway.

 

[MiltonFine]

If you're afraid of the gauges, better back away from that granite countertop (urananite crystals), throw out the smoke detectors (americium 241) and your old fiesta ware that's yellow or orange (can't remember which). And avoid the yellow and orange dust in the deserts of the Southwest, particularly NM.

To keep this somewhat on topic, they do make portable radiation detectors that are key chain sized. Not sure if they would sense the level of radioactivity in the gauges however.