[Steffen]

Hi Folks,

maybe it´s a stupid question, but can it be?

Dials from vintage watches were lumined in the past with little radioactive material is that right?

If it is right, was thins cancer-causing? And if yes does it act a part at a watch which is like 30 years old?

Best regards,

Steffen

 

[SurfingSeiko]

Yes. I have read great articles on this. Very sad for women working on watches.

Maybe someone else can provide one.

Mark

 

[7s26b]

Radium was used for watch dials, but was phased out in the '60s. I don't think that a single contact is much to worry about - but always better to err on the side of caution and wear some kind of filter mask. Seiko used Promethium 147 until they changed to Lumibrite. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium

 

[pollyc]

I think Radium was applied by female workers who used to lick the brushes to help application. The end results were truly horrific.

 

[LongBike]

Radium

Radium was and always be ............ " Very Toxic".
So no matter how long ago the exposure it has always been
Toxic. Many people that worked in Laboratories, were always
exposed to some sort of all these Toxin's. Many a person has
and will be effected to all this. They call it science, but actually
" It Is Slow Death ", in a progressing time period.
Radium has always been the cause of a lot of mysteries, that
could not be accounted for.
___________________________________________________
The ( Original ), Vietnam Issue Plastic Case Watch with the ..........
" 12:00 markers " and the " Seconds Hand Tips ", contained
Radium on them to glow. (Illuminate )
NOTE : ......... Only the Original ones Had these on the Dials.
They were dis-continued because the Troops complained that
it caused the enemy to see where they were at night
and caused a lot of deaths by (Snipers ) because of it.
( These watchs should be restored, by using re-placement Dials to be safe.
(Years later they are still ................. " TOXIC ".)

Radium Isotope is another ............. " A Massive Killer ".
Used in chemical Warfare, by my Nation's Today.
Also is Napalm a ...... " Very slow consuming Toxic killer.
( contains a a lot of chemicals also, mainly Highly Corrosive ones.
Also ....................... " Agent Orange ",
( Made by Monsanto Corp. ) Rainbow Herbicide Orange ( HO )
Was a Dioxin Compound called Herbicide Orange
( tetrachloridibenzedioxin )
(TCDD ) Herbicide Orange (HO )

" Bad Stuff "

 

[ClockBloke]

I think Radium was applied by female workers who used to lick the brushes to help application. The end results were truly horrific.

Yep this is true. A lot of old professions were dangerous especially in the clock and watch game. Mercury was used for gilding, barometers & making hats (hence 'as mad as a hatter'). Lead for pendulums and so forth.

I doubt seriously whether any of this will kill you unless you are doing massive amounts of work with these materials. I work with lead and mercury on a daily basis. I know lots of mates who have spent their lives working with clocks, watches and even asbestos in the building trade and so far none of them have died from working with these materials. You have to remember the ladies licking their brushes were doing this every day of their working lives and only a small percentage actually died from related illnesses such as throat cancer. In this age of health and saftey I am sure I am about to get chewed to bits by a few folk on this forum but I'd be prepared to stuff a radium coated hand in my mouth and suck it clean to prove a point!

 

[LongBike]

Agreed with

Tony agreed with on this and you a very right also about workers.
When protection is used its a lot better with what s done.
But most people still do not catch on to why safety should be used,
then the Insurance guys slaughter them for making a claim.
You have given very knowledgeable facts to much.
Thank you very much Sir
Aloha.

 

[ClockBloke]

Tony agreed with on this and you a very right also about workers.
When protection is used its a lot better with what s done.
But most people still do not catch on to why safety should be used,
then the Insurance guys slaughter them for making a claim.
You have given very knowledgeable facts to much.
Thank you very much Sir
Aloha.

Doesn't hurt to play it 'safe' but still you have more chance of kicking the bucket from a croc taking a wrong turn in the amazon and appearing in your crapper while your doing your daily dirty deed.

As I say I work with so called 'dangerous materials' on a daily basis and I've got more chance of snuffing it from being killed in my car or on my motorbike or because I smoked for 30 years or suffer from depression. Which is more likely to cause my death than any of the above even the ciggys!

 

[ClockBloke]

Well that was depressing! I better go buy a watch and cheer myself up!

Aloha!

P.S
4 months ciggy free now

 

[ivorbiggin]

So what are we saying here. No matter how much i love my 6105, its best not to lick it? Or is it ok cos im male, except on Thursday's.

 

[ClockBloke]

So what are we saying here. No matter how much i love my 6105, its best not to lick it? Or is it ok cos im male, except on Thursday's.

Just don't let anyone else lick it! except if you charge them and have a red light hanging in the room.....

 

[acier440]

glow in the dark and 6105 "licking"?...

Just don't let anyone else lick it! except if you charge them and have a red light hanging in the room.....

Acknowledging the risk that this post may be blocked by a Moderator or other "stern and serious" Forum Senior Member, I would say a 6105 deserves better than just a licking : clearly the case was designed for sucking, and even if swallowed will no doubt come out "as new", with no damage to the one-time host either

Thanks for ending this thread on such a light note --even though one has to recognise that intoxication of workers (whether by Radium-lume or other countless nasty stuff) is a real problem, has caused a lot of suffering and will be with us for a long time... with the watch industry certainly not in top position, even though the licking of brushes sounds pretty scary..............Philip

 

[LongBike]

Well that was depressing! I better go buy a watch and cheer myself up!

Aloha!

P.S
4 months ciggy free now

Congrats on saving you with that quit Sir.

 

[ClockBloke]

Well acier440 I would like to say we know better now but I am sure they are letting women children lick horrid substances in Indian sweat shops still....

 

[Sir Les]

Wearing a vintage watch with a radium, tritium or promethium painted dial and/or hands poses no risk to the user whatsoever, provided the crystal is intact. The radiation is simply too weak to penetrate the glass or acrylic.

HOWEVER, if the dial is cracked or broken, or if the watch is disassembled for repair, it is wise to wear a mask when handling such materials as radiation may be released from minute dust particles of the luminescent paint. One must be particularly careful not to ingest or inhale any of these particles via mouth or nose. It should also be remembered that the radium compound used in watches, clocks and instruments has a half-life of 1600 years, so just because it's old doesn't mean it can't cause you any damage!

And to ClockBloke: I would strongly advise against sucking a radium coated finger. Radium is highly radioactive: back in the 1940's the recommended maximum exposure was 0.1 microgram of ingested radium -- that's one tenth of one millionth of a gram. It also penetrates the skin, so you get it both ways. Still want to try it?

 

[ClockBloke]

Yeah the mouth wash was a bit extreme. As I said it's always best to take care when handling dangerous materials. I've known it must be over 20 clock and watch guys who have died over the past 15 years and to date none have died from watch related illness. All dodgy tickers and such from living too much of the good life.

Ah and by the way your Al Boliska statement is incorrect as Edison did not invent the light bulb. Swan did. Edison tried and failed and then stole Swan's idea. Hence why Swan took Edison through the courts and won and they ended up forming the company Swan Edison.

So to recap folks....

A. Do not suck your old watch hands and

B. Edison was a corporate thief.

 

[7s26b]

Yeah the mouth wash was a bit extreme. As I said it's always best to take care when handling dangerous materials. I've known it must be over 20 clock and watch guys who have died over the past 15 years and to date none have died from watch related illness. All dodgy tickers and such from living too much of the good life.

Ah and by the way your Al Boliska statement is incorrect as Edison did not invent the light bulb. Swan did. Edison tried and failed and then stole Swan's idea. Hence why Swan took Edison through the courts and won and they ended up forming the company Swan Edison.

So to recap folks....

A. Do not suck your old watch hands and

B. Edison was a corporate thief.

Swan did not invent the light bulb - Davy was producing incandescent light thirty years before Swan was born.
De La Rue also produced a bulb with a Platinum filament and Frederick de Moleyns patented the incandescent bulb in 1841.
Swan may have produced the first mass market bulb - but he didn't invent it.

 

[ClockBloke]

Swan did not invent the light bulb - Davy was producing incandescent light thirty years before Swan was born.
De La Rue also produced a bulb with a Platinum filament and Frederick de Moleyns patented the incandescent bulb in 1841.
Swan may have produced the first mass market bulb - but he didn't invent it.

Ah that's right sorry. Get on my high horse every time I hear Edison taking the credit for this on Pawn Stars and I get my facts and what nots muddled up. Knew this but the memory isn't what it use to be. Thanks for putting me straight.

 

[acier440]

start with "glow-in-the dark" lume and end the discussion on who invented the light bulb : how's that for your "Word association" thread ;-)

thanks for sharing the knowledge on Edison et al : knew there was something fishy about Edison (therefore now known as "ConEd" in the States??) but good to know the actual truth.................Philip

 

[3Pedals_6Speeds]

Wearing a vintage watch with a radium, tritium or promethium painted dial and/or hands poses no risk to the user whatsoever, provided the crystal is intact. The radiation is simply too weak to penetrate the glass or acrylic.

HOWEVER, if the dial is cracked or broken, or if the watch is disassembled for repair, it is wise to wear a mask when handling such materials as radiation may be released from minute dust particles of the luminescent paint. One must be particularly careful not to ingest or inhale any of these particles via mouth or nose. It should also be remembered that the radium compound used in watches, clocks and instruments has a half-life of 1600 years, so just because it's old doesn't mean it can't cause you any damage!

And to ClockBloke: I would strongly advise against sucking a radium coated finger. Radium is highly radioactive: back in the 1940's the recommended maximum exposure was 0.1 microgram of ingested radium -- that's one tenth of one millionth of a gram. It also penetrates the skin, so you get it both ways. Still want to try it?

Years ago I had a lovely Omega Seamaster that I treasured. I read up on this topic and since I worked on a US Air Force base I sought out the nuclear related scientists and asked what they thought. They asked me to bring my Omega in and they'd measure the radioactivity.

I brought the watch back (dress watch, not much lume) and they quickly proclaimed it 'hot' and stated there was no way any of them would wear it on their wrist day in and day out. When I explained it was the consensus on the watch sites that we were pretty safe as collectors around these watches, the guy with a PhD in I can't recall what said "If you're a collector, I assume you have other watches?" I replied, sure, lots, to which he said "Wear those, I wouldn't recommend wearing this one as it's a risk. A low risk, but a risk."

I sold the watch and all other radium dialed watches I owned. I figure there are plenty of watches out there to collect, and although it probably wouldn't have been an issue, with so many watches to own, why worry about it?