[Milsurplus] Hot meters.. more

[Horace W. Hall]

> radium or other alpha emitting isotope mixed with a phosphor (best
checked with a scintillation counter that is capable of detecting alpha
emission.<

If you don't need to get a count but just want to know if it uses radium or
something, you may only need an eyeloupe or other strong magnifier. Looking
at the paint with strong magnification, you can see little bright sparkles
of light as the phosphors are excited by emissions. Did that with my old
radium glow watch when I was a kid. There is an instrument, called
spinthariscope IIRC, that works similarly, detecting rays with a phosphor
plate under a magnifier.
--Wayne
  WB4OGM