JDucros Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 I'm looking at purchasing a luminox watch as well as putting a set of Trijicon night sights on my handgun. Seeing how they both contain Tritium (, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, I was wondering what the chances are of them causing adverse health effects (maybe even cancer) if kept close to the body for a long time. I'm not a paranoid person by nature or a hypochondriac. They say prospective buyers can be assured that there is no health risk for those luminescent properties. I know that in theory the beta radiation given by Tritium should not be able to escape the capsule in which it is encased on gun sighs, and because of the mild energy output of beta radiation decay, it might not even go through human skin, but that's all general theory. The hallmark of these sights and watches is the traser illumination system. Instead of using luminescent paint which requires a "charge" of light to glow, Luminox and Trijicon use tiny glass tubes filled with tritium gas. Although it at first it sounded like fuel for an interplanetary starship, I later found out tritium is a substance that glows brightly in the dark. Now, any gas that glows worries me…reminds me of some kind of toxic ooze or something. For what it’s worth, any type of luminescent material, whether painted on or in liquid form, does have some radioactive properties. The military as well as some civilian watch and gunsight makers use the H3 designation required by the government. To me, if a set of sights or a watch requires an radioactive H3 rating, isn't there something that rating is warning you of? Has anyone heard of or had personal health issues from carrying tritium night sights close to the body for long periods?[/size] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sigsauerfan Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 (edited) no. tritium is a radio active isotop of hydrogen. beta rays from the tritium gas hit phosphor wich create the glow. a complete set of sights front/rear is filled with 0.054 curies, wich is much less than any watch, self illuminated watch sometimes reach 0.200 curies the tiny amount of tritium gaz enclosed in those sights couldn't realy dammage your health,i'm more afraid about the caffein i take in a day ,as well as the occasional cigar i light-up from time to time. a rear sight is filled with something like 0.018 curies of this gas, from recent estimation it would take 10,000 of those tiny lamps in a 10 foot by 10 foot to harm your health Edited October 17, 2010 by sigsauerfan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a.roberts Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 I asked my Inorganic Chemistry professor a similar question about tritium. Basically she said that the very small amount of relatively weak radioactive material doesn't give off enough to be harmful. I'd say that the H3 rating is more along the lines of, if it cracks open, don't eat it. More of an awareness sort of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyro Shooter Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 you recive more radiation on your typical airline flight or at the dentist for xrays and just being out in the sun. put sights on gun put watch on wrist put neither in you mouth you will be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted October 17, 2010 Share Posted October 17, 2010 Don't believe these guys. How could Spiderman be real if that radioactive spider couldn't hold enough juju to turn him so powerful ??! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyro Shooter Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Tritium Gas Radioactive venom two seperate things. . . . unless . . . . you feed your pet spiders the old sight tubes . . . . ? hang on . . . if this works I think i might have found a way to get down that slide at Ironman a bit faster. . . . now should I try California brown's or just black widows. will trijicons work better that TruGlows???? I'll get back to you on that. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modoc Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Tyro, just take them down to the local medical imaging center and leave them there for a while . Or the local college physics lab Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDucros Posted October 20, 2010 Author Share Posted October 20, 2010 Thanks for the info guys. I didn't think such small amounts would cause any problems but I thought I would ask. Tyro, now you've got me thinking about air travel! Other than the luggage x-ray machines where else are we absorbing radiation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salilus Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Its Cosmic radiation. Being higher in the earths atmosphere means you get less shielding from it. They are making EXIT signs for buildings using tritium now so I wouldn't worry about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkeeler Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Its Cosmic radiation. Being higher in the earths atmosphere means you get less shielding from it. They are making EXIT signs for buildings using tritium now so I wouldn't worry about it. Wouldn't worry about it now but in about 20 years or so it will be the prime cause of something bad like they find with everything else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COMATZD Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 I've been wearing my Traser watch for about a year now, no growths yet From what I recall reading, the gas (H3) decays into helium and a beta particle. The phosphor inside the tube absorbs the particle, raising its energy state. As the phosphor decays back to its stable state, it release a photon. The whole process converts the radioactivity to light with no other harmful by-product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokshwn Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Tritium a health risk....quite the contrary Cures fits, warts, freckles,coughs,colds, runny nose Guaranteed not rip, run or snag Make conception a wonder and childbirth a pleasure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDucros Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 I've been wearing my Traser watch for about a year now, no growths yet From what I recall reading, the gas (H3) decays into helium and a beta particle. The phosphor inside the tube absorbs the particle, raising its energy state. As the phosphor decays back to its stable state, it release a photon. The whole process converts the radioactivity to light with no other harmful by-product. Thanks for the lifecycle of Tritium. That's interesting to know how it sort of "recycles" itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDucros Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 To all the other people who replied, Thank You for your input. I am still new here and am getting used to how things work. So far everyone has been polite and full of useful information. No one has gotten confrontational or rude. This really is a great form with awesome members. Thanks guys! Cheers, -James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salilus Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Youre more than welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffWard Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 If anyone fearing for their health wants to ditch a set of tritium sights for an M&P, I'm looking for some for my carry gun... I'VE heard that tritium will make you bald, kill your sperm count, and cause bad breath... but I might be wrong. (I already shave my head, got a vasectomy, and I brush my teeth three times a day... so I'm good.) I'll pay the shipping.... Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Miles Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 I'm going to swim upstream here. I have it on good authority that tritium sights can be deadly... if you're on the wrong end of them at the wrong time! Couldn't hep it. Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modoc Posted October 29, 2010 Share Posted October 29, 2010 Tritium a health risk....quite the contrary Cures fits, warts, freckles,coughs,colds, runny nose Guaranteed not rip, run or snag Make conception a wonder and childbirth a pleasure Craig, that's COPENHAGEN! And JDucros, You are very welcome! Brian sponsors a great place to hang out and learn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokshwn Posted October 29, 2010 Share Posted October 29, 2010 Tritium a health risk....quite the contrary Cures fits, warts, freckles,coughs,colds, runny nose Guaranteed not rip, run or snag Make conception a wonder and childbirth a pleasure Craig, that's COPENHAGEN! And JDucros, You are very welcome! Brian sponsors a great place to hang out and learn. Been waiting for someone to catch that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now