How do you tell if replacement hands are later tritium, or superluminova?

Posts
17,746
Likes
26,930
A $10 Blacklight torch does wonders. But can also confirm expensive mistakes 😀

you can also hunt scorpions with one.
 
Posts
875
Likes
2,606
you can also hunt scorpions with one.
I need more instructions on that though!! Pics???
 
Posts
17,746
Likes
26,930
I need more instructions on that though!! Pics???
All scorpions glow under UV light.
 
Posts
614
Likes
835
All scorpions glow under UV light.
And some frogs.

Though, what's interesting about the Pumpkin frog is— the fluorescing pigment is not on the skin, but in the bones underneath. Their skin is actually UV transparent.
 
Posts
875
Likes
2,606
And some frogs.

Though, what's interesting about the Pumpkin frog is— the fluorescing pigment is not on the skin, but in the bones underneath. Their skin is actually UV transparent.
::psy::Now that’s awesome!!!
Edited:
 
Posts
6,790
Likes
21,972
Anyone have UV experience with determining Radium vs Tritium?
 
Posts
173
Likes
365
Tritium does produce very low energy x-rays through Bremsstrahlung (braking radiation). These would not usually be detectable with a Geiger counter unless very high activities were present. Not the levels found in a watch. You would need a NaI detector, designed to see low levels of photon radiation (gamma and x-ray), to detect Tritium in a watch. This is assuming there is enough Tritium to produce a detectable number of x-rays and the efficiency of your NaI detector. Not likely in a vintage watch with Tritium’s short half-life.

The short answer is that you are not likely to detect Tritium in a “vintage” watch with any radiation detectors unless you open it and take a sample for Liquid Scintillation Counting. If you have a Geiger counter or dose rate meter and get decent reading you have Radium.
 
Posts
6,790
Likes
21,972
Tritium does produce very low energy x-rays through Bremsstrahlung (braking radiation). These would not usually be detectable with a Geiger counter unless very high activities were present. Not the levels found in a watch. You would need a NaI detector, designed to see low levels of photon radiation (gamma and x-ray), to detect Tritium in a watch. This is assuming there is enough Tritium to produce a detectable number of x-rays and the efficiency of your NaI detector. Not likely in a vintage watch with Tritium’s short half-life.

The short answer is that you are not likely to detect Tritium in a “vintage” watch with any radiation detectors unless you open it and take a sample for Liquid Scintillation Counting. If you have a Geiger counter or dose rate meter and get decent reading you have Radium.

Thanks. I was wondering how the two different luminous substances on either dial or hands respond to a burst of UV light. Hopefully, different enough to tell them apart without a Geiger counter.
 
Posts
5,259
Likes
24,252
So recently I had my TH Kirium of 20 years serviced and they replaced the tritium hands with superluminova. I didn't know after the fact I say t swiss made t on the dial so got them replaced back locally.

You can see the difference in the picture on the left, at full burst and on the right after 5 seconds, the glow on the tritium hands and the spare luminova hands.
 
Posts
6,790
Likes
21,972
So recently I had my TH Kirium of 20 years serviced and they replaced the tritium hands with superluminova. I didn't know after the fact I say t swiss made t on the dial so got them replaced back locally.

You can see the difference in the picture on the left, at full burst and on the right after 5 seconds, the glow on the tritium hands and the spare luminova hands.

I don't believe I can tell one from the other in your photo.
 
Posts
5,259
Likes
24,252
I don't believe I can tell one from the other in your photo.
it's a side by side of before and after 5 seconds with the spare loose luminova handset at the bottom.

Maybe this helps.
 
Posts
6,790
Likes
21,972
Okay, so the Tritium hands and dial are actually on the watch, and the two photos below are the Luminova hands?

If that’s the case, then I wouldn’t be able to sort Tritium from Luminova from either the color nor glow. Do you have a photo that’s similar to the above, but after a minute?
 
Posts
5,259
Likes
24,252
Okay, so the Tritium hands and dial are actually on the watch, and the two photos below are the Luminova hands?

If that’s the case, then I wouldn’t be able to sort Tritium from Luminova from either the color nor glow. Do you have a photo that’s similar to the above, but after a minute?
The luminova handset is actually in the same shot together with the watch head on the left and right.
 
Posts
875
Likes
2,606
Are you sure that they replaced the hands with Super Luminova?
Edited:
 
Posts
5,259
Likes
24,252
Are you that they replaced the hands with Super Luminova?
I assumed they would not have replacement tritium hands for a watch from '97/98. The later models Kirium came with luminova hands albeit skeletonized ones.

Also the t's disappeared from the dials on later models.

Plus the glow of the replacement hands is really strong for a few hours.
 
Posts
875
Likes
2,606
I’m not familiar with the TH Kirium brand so I’ll defer to you - but they did an awesome job of color matching the two luminous variants!!

If Omega did this it would mark it much harder to tell new hands from old.
 
Posts
5,259
Likes
24,252
I’m not familiar with the TH Kirium brand so I’ll defer to you - but they did an awesome job of color matching the two luminous variants!!

If Omega did this it would mark it much harder to tell new hands from old.
Not experienced enough to comment on luminous matching, here's a picture to compare in daylight (there is a slight greener tone on the new hands).
 
Posts
6,790
Likes
21,972
I’m not familiar with the TH Kirium brand so I’ll defer to you - but they did an awesome job of color matching the two luminous variants!!

If Omega did this it would mark it much harder to tell new hands from old.

My thoughts exactly.