Wyler Wednesday!
Hey... these 3 vintage beauties are currently confined to the "radium" hot area of the hubby's hoard. I love the one on the top right - that dial is amazing and the lug shape is beautiful. So many pretty old watches! I am angling to get one "fixed" for me!
@Shbamn50 Cheers!
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Helen
Always loved watches. Married a guy who also loves watches and does repair work... so I get to see and wear alot of great stuff. He buys things and somehow they never get sold....
Member since
Last active: 1 hr ago
6.25” / 15.88 cm
Wyler made some nice looking watches.
Those are some beauties. I don't understand the Radium Hot. Is the lume still hot? Looking at the pictures it appears that the radium should be gone. I can't wait to see you wearing them. Cheers 🥂
Those are some beauties. I don't understand the Radium Hot. Is the lume still hot? Looking at the pictures it appears that the radium should be gone. I can't wait to see you wearing them. Cheers 🥂
The "glow" is gone but these make the Geiger counter go off the chart!Radium loses its glow but stays radioactive for like 1600 years, and can create radon gas. We have a BUNCH of vintage watches that set it off, likely hands and some markers and in one instance the entire dial was lumed.
As he does the repair work, he'll be much more cautious about handling the dial to avoid creating chips or dust from the old lume. It's a bummer, but we were glad to identify the issue and plan out what to do to keep him safe.
Those are some beauties. I don't understand the Radium Hot. Is the lume still hot? Looking at the pictures it appears that the radium should be gone. I can't wait to see you wearing them. Cheers 🥂
Doesn't matter if the lume is gone and it doesn't bright up anymore, those watches are still radioactive, and highly dangerous if opened because of the Radon gas and even microscopic particles that the warn off lume is "shooting out". People often underestimate or overestimate the danger with those old watches.
The "glow" is gone but these make the Geiger counter go off the chart!Radium loses its glow but stays radioactive for like 1600 years, and can create radon gas. We have a BUNCH of vintage watches that set it off, likely hands and some markers and in one instance the entire dial was lumed.
As he does the repair work, he'll be much more cautious about handling the dial to avoid creating chips or dust from the old lume. It's a bummer, but we were glad to identify the issue and plan out what to do to keep him safe.
We don't want you or the hubby walking about glowing. Be safe. Oh yes by the way. There was someone on here that talked about removing that type of lume. I know that they said that they wet down the hands so particles don't go airborne. Then they scrape it off. If I come acrossed the article I will share it with you. Maybe it will help.
Incaflex was a pretty cool and unusual shock protection system involving the entire balance wheel flexing. Not that I am suggesting you open them up, given they're full of radium dust.
We've been in and out of alot of watches. That's part of the worry. I have handled alot of open dials. Now I at least know to be cautious about hand washing and a mask if he's actively cleaning parts.