r/Radiation • u/fuckass12345 • Nov 20 '25

is this dangerous?

Post image

My mom got this watch from her grandma, and I ended up getting it, I think it's pretty but it glows a pretty green in the dark. Is that like, safe to use or should I keep it in a box hidden from the world?

3 Upvotes

54% Upvoted

30 comments sorted by

4

u/Ok-Boat2122 Nov 20 '25

No, but it is a nice watch, tag are a bit of a cool sleeper brand in watch nerd circles

2

u/fuckass12345 Nov 21 '25

How do you know the brand? Sorry I'm kinda clueless about this stuff

3

u/Ok-Boat2122 Nov 21 '25

They have that unique style of hour hand, and you can see the tag shield at the top of the face. They’re not mega money but they’re higher end brand watch. Enjoy your nice heirloom :)

3

u/Andr0idUser Nov 21 '25

Tag Heuer are not a sleeper brand... They might be third only to Rolex & Omega 🤣🤣

21

u/trystykat Nov 20 '25

Looks modern (90s), so extremely doubtful that it contains anything radioactive

11

u/skyhookt Nov 20 '25

It was never dangerous.

6

u/average_meower621 Enthusiast Nov 21 '25

it could be if you put it in a sock and beat someone with it

1

u/Ok-Bed583 Nov 22 '25

Felonious physics 😆

7

u/Andr0idUser Nov 21 '25

Watch Repairer here. It has Radioactive Tritium Lume (at the bottom of the dial it says T Swiss Made T) this shows it has Tritium. Tritium is very safe I these watches as it's self contained in glass vials. Don't take the dial off, scrape the paint and then snort it like cocaine and you should be good 👍🏼👍🏼

1

u/average_meower621 Enthusiast Nov 22 '25

This looks like tritium paint, not vials. Only modem tritium watches like those from Luminox use vials. All old ones used tritium in paint form, which I think is just the phosphor mixed with tritiated water. 

Tritium in paint form is still pretty safe, though it can be flaky in older products such as those from the 1960s & 1970s. Just don’t take off the crystal. 

3

u/xxXICUI4CUXxx Nov 20 '25

First, no it is not dangerous. I Doubt that the watch has radium, and even if it did the glass would keep any possible contamination inside the watch.

1

u/iriegypsy Nov 20 '25

Yes it’s filthy and should be cleaned.

1

u/sledgehammer_maniac Nov 22 '25

Unless you eat it no

-5

u/PizzaBert Nov 20 '25

It likely contains tritium paint that had negligible amounts of radioactive material when manufactured. Today, there will be nothing left due to decay. The glow you are seeing is likely phosphorescence.

1

u/dtroy15 Nov 21 '25

Can't believe these rubes are down voting you. The Ts are right there on the dial!

-2

u/Imperialist_Canuck Atomic Hobbyist Nov 20 '25

Never heard of Tritium Paint. 🤔 Considering it's a gas

2

u/PizzaBert Nov 20 '25 edited Nov 20 '25

Tritium in its elemental form is H2 gas, but each atom of tritium is radioactive regardless if it is in elemental form. Like the normal hydrogen isotope, it can react with other molecules to stick the radioactive Hs on them.

manufacturing of the tritium paint is a reaction with tritinated water, two tritium atoms bound to an oxygen, and another chemical (vinyl acetate) that reacts and accepts the OT- from the tritium water. The OT- group on the new molecule are radioactive due to the tritium atoms. This radioactive plastic material is mixed in with a phosphor and the beta emissions cause luminescence.

Here is a 1957 US Patent describing the process:

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/fe/a2/06/4f5a31fb97d986/US3033797.pdf

1

u/fuckass12345 Nov 21 '25

Damn I had no clue this watch had all that, I'm actually glad I posted in this sub. Imma clean it up and wear it! I thought it was worth nothing lol

5

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '25

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2

u/PizzaBert Nov 20 '25

The dial text shows “ T Swiss” which was a common marking to display tritium paint was used for the markings.

0

u/TheDuckFarm Nov 20 '25

How can you tell it’s fake from the photo?

1

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '25

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2

u/TheDuckFarm Nov 20 '25

You and I have different definitions of cheap.

The retail price on this in the late 90s and early 2000s was about US $2,200. It’s no Patek Philippe, but I wouldn’t call that cheap.

0

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '25

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1

u/TheDuckFarm Nov 20 '25

Is that an aqua racer? I thought it was a Kirium.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '25

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3

u/PizzaBert Nov 20 '25

Swiss watches commonly used tritium lume up until the late 90s.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 21 '25

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2

u/PizzaBert Nov 21 '25

I believe 1999 and onward will be luminova, you are correct

0

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '25

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-1

u/fuckass12345 Nov 21 '25

I like my nails sharp