Where can one get Tritium paint?

ALL FAL · February 24, 2008, 16:43

Any of you guy's know of a source? Had some for sights, but it went bad and I don't remember where I got it.

hagar · February 24, 2008, 16:46

I don't think you can buy Tritium paint, but you can buy phosporus or glow paint on gaybay.

ggiilliiee · February 24, 2008, 16:55

youll be pissin heavy water for 12.5 years ..he he
http://www.physics.isu.edu/radinf/tritium.htm

tracyballard · February 24, 2008, 17:30

maybe you can find some old radium paint in an antique shop - look in the back of big clocks...

ALL FAL · February 24, 2008, 17:46

Thanks Gentlemen for the info. Gil, I'm a pisser already!! Nukes in the service done it, yea...

TKTM · February 24, 2008, 19:03

It probably could be micro encapsulated and put in a paint base, but I doubt it would be too effective.

**J. Armstrong** · February 24, 2008, 19:09

I know the gummint is having a hissy fit over the radium in old aircraft instruments, so it may prove hard to find, and probably not wise to screw around with if you do, unless you want your offspring to have three eyes and purple hair

. Bad juju !!

ggiilliiee · February 24, 2008, 19:25

allfal ...how did my fuel core tubes work ???...he he ...fellow nuker >>>

i recall a story about all the ladies in england durin ww2 workin for the 8 day clockmakers ....most died ...from painting the radium on the hands of the clocks.... iirc

some of the LISA plastics can be iluminating with low level light ....

PBR Streetgang · February 24, 2008, 19:37

I heard clock making cities in Europe had more cancer and deaths than anywhere in history. They would lick or touch the tips of their the brushes to their tongues to make the tip smaller, like before threading a needle. Big problem in germany.

easttex · February 24, 2008, 23:12

I think some glow-in-the-dark sight paint would be your best bet.

Try Lauer Custom Weaponry. A bit pricey, but they have something that works....Duraglo Sight Paint

SWOHFAL · February 25, 2008, 03:56

Quote:

Originally posted by ggiilliiee
allfal ...how did my fuel core tubes work ???...he he ...fellow nuker >>>

i recall a story about all the ladies in england durin ww2 workin for the 8 day clockmakers ....most died ...from painting the radium on the hands of the clocks.... iirc

some of the LISA plastics can be iluminating with low level light ....

A lot died right in downstate Illinois too, from licking the brushes to keep the bristles moist and at a fine point to put on small numerals and luminous dots on watch faces.

brownknees · February 25, 2008, 05:10

Try an internet search for "glow-in-the-dark" You'll find a lot of options, including meltable luminous plastic beads, or powder you can mould while melted.

**Lee Carpentieri** · February 25, 2008, 20:37

You have a NRC license? Otherwise buy the regular glow in the dark paint.

tac-40 · February 26, 2008, 11:37

A helpful hint. If you use glow in the dark paint, use a bright white base coat. This will reflect the glow back toward you and not absorb it.

hagar · February 26, 2008, 12:18

I bought some glow dots from a guy on gaybay, and they work great. You just stick them on, and let them cure for a day or so.

Arizona Highlander · February 26, 2008, 12:34

A company called "Glow Inc." manufactures non-radioactive phosphorescent paints, and markets some of them specifically for making your very own glow-in-the-dark gunsights:

http://glowinc.com/glow-in-the-dark/gun-sights.aspx

I've tried their product (on a Yugo SKS, which came with dead tritium capsules) and while it works okay, the phosphorescent paint really needs constant exposure to bright light to work when you need it to.

It would be fine on (say) a well-illuminated rack of rifles down at the station (in a grab-and-go situation) but if you paint up your handgun's sights and pop it into a holster, I’m afraid the luminescent paint would be barely be visible after having spent a few hours in darkness.

fastfreddy · February 26, 2008, 13:29

Radium paint was used on old clocks/watches. It glowed on its own power due to radioactivity. It killed a lot of folks in the watch industry and its discoverer Marie Curie, before the danger was learned.

I've considered the idea of buying NOS (new old stock) watch faces and hands that have radium paint. Most are pretty well decayed by now but still glow. Note, the radium has a half life of 1600 years but the zinc sulfide seems to get old. Anyway, getting the right painted bit off an old watch part might provide some useful dots. Just don't lick 'em or eat 'em or breath any scrapings!!

Tritium is a radioactive gas. It can be contained in a glass vial. It cannot be mixed with paint. It has a half life of about 12 years.

"Glow in the dark" paint glows for a short time after being exposed to light. Green and blue glow longer than red or orange. It would work fine if you charge it up for a planned excursion into the dark. If you want it to be "ready to go" then you need to store the gun under a light.

Tritium vials are like beads that contain tritium, available in various sizes and shapes. They are self-powered.

ALL FAL · February 27, 2008, 00:06

Thanks ALL,for the advice, will get after the good sight paint and white basecoat.

mdlmkr 7.62 · February 27, 2008, 00:30

I believe that Trijicon will put the night sight tubes into your sight if you send them your sight. Maybe email them and ask them to confirm this?

7.62

February 24, 2008, 16:43	#1
ALL FAL Registered Contributor FALaholic #: 24447 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 2,178	Where can one get Tritium paint? Any of you guy's know of a source? Had some for sights, but it went bad and I don't remember where I got it. __________________ The Future is ALWAYS Open!! An ARMED society is a POLITE society.

February 24, 2008, 17:46	#5
ALL FAL Registered Contributor FALaholic #: 24447 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 2,178	Thanks Gentlemen for the info. Gil, I'm a pisser already!! Nukes in the service done it, yea... __________________ The Future is ALWAYS Open!! An ARMED society is a POLITE society.

February 24, 2008, 19:03	#6
TKTM Registered FALaholic #: 9073 Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 750	It probably could be micro encapsulated and put in a paint base, but I doubt it would be too effective. __________________ This communication contains NO intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person(s)

February 24, 2008, 19:09	#7
J. Armstrong Minister of Amusement Silver Contributor FALaholic #: 13629 Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: SE Pa Posts: 8,503	I know the gummint is having a hissy fit over the radium in old aircraft instruments, so it may prove hard to find, and probably not wise to screw around with if you do, unless you want your offspring to have three eyes and purple hair . Bad juju !! __________________ "The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools" Herbert Spenser "A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." Sigmund Freud

February 24, 2008, 19:37	#9
PBR Streetgang Registered FALaholic #: 8684 Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Atlanta Posts: 1,203	I heard clock making cities in Europe had more cancer and deaths than anywhere in history. They would lick or touch the tips of their the brushes to their tongues to make the tip smaller, like before threading a needle. Big problem in germany. __________________ "A viler evil than to murder a man, is to sell him suicide as an act of virtue" --Ayn Rand "A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." -- Robert A. Heinlein 'You have to pinch yourself - a Marxist radical who all his life has been mentored by, sat at the feet of, worshiped with, befriended, endorsed the philosophy of, funded and been in turn funded, politically promoted and supported by a nexus comprising black power anti-white racists, Jew-haters, revolutionary Marxists, unrepentant former terrorists and Chicago mobsters, is on the verge of becoming President of the United States. And apparently it's considered impolite to say so.' Last edited by PBR Streetgang; February 24, 2008 at 19:46.

February 24, 2008, 16:46	#2
hagar Registered FALaholic #: 228 Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Columbia, SC Posts: 6,695	I don't think you can buy Tritium paint, but you can buy phosporus or glow paint on gaybay.

February 24, 2008, 16:55	#3
ggiilliiee banned again FALaholic #: 17179 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: orygun Posts: 4,838	youll be pissin heavy water for 12.5 years ..he he http://www.physics.isu.edu/radinf/tritium.htm

February 24, 2008, 17:30	#4
tracyballard Registered FALaholic #: 22431 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Amarillo Posts: 3,410	maybe you can find some old radium paint in an antique shop - look in the back of big clocks...

February 24, 2008, 19:25	#8
ggiilliiee banned again FALaholic #: 17179 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: orygun Posts: 4,838	allfal ...how did my fuel core tubes work ???...he he ...fellow nuker >>> i recall a story about all the ladies in england durin ww2 workin for the 8 day clockmakers ....most died ...from painting the radium on the hands of the clocks.... iirc some of the LISA plastics can be iluminating with low level light ....

February 24, 2008, 23:12	#10
easttex Registered FALaholic #: 20438 Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Nacogdoches, TX Posts: 1,419	I think some glow-in-the-dark sight paint would be your best bet. Try Lauer Custom Weaponry. A bit pricey, but they have something that works....Duraglo Sight Paint __________________ Chance favors the prepared mind. Molon labe

February 25, 2008, 05:10	#12
brownknees Registered FALaholic #: 14917 Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: mid atlantic Posts: 12,015	Try an internet search for "glow-in-the-dark" You'll find a lot of options, including meltable luminous plastic beads, or powder you can mould while melted.

February 25, 2008, 20:37	#13
Lee Carpentieri Curio & Relic Gold Contributor FALaholic #: 4936 Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: N/A Posts: 4,182	Where can one get Tritium paint You have a NRC license? Otherwise buy the regular glow in the dark paint. __________________ Live life to the fullest, Because in the end there's only death and taxs.

February 26, 2008, 11:37	#14
tac-40 Moderator Armed Curmudgeon FALaholic #: 12090 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: SC-Low Country Posts: 4,526	A helpful hint. If you use glow in the dark paint, use a bright white base coat. This will reflect the glow back toward you and not absorb it. __________________ Only 2 defining forces have ever offered to die for you.....Jesus Christ and the American Soldier. One died for your soul, the other for your freedom. Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr. USAF ______________________________ If you do in fact have a problem, you have the rest of your life to solve it. How long your life lasts only depends on how well you solve it.

February 26, 2008, 12:18	#15
hagar Registered FALaholic #: 228 Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Columbia, SC Posts: 6,695	I bought some glow dots from a guy on gaybay, and they work great. You just stick them on, and let them cure for a day or so.

February 26, 2008, 12:34	#16
Arizona Highlander Registered FALaholic #: 20277 Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Arizona Posts: 475	A company called "Glow Inc." manufactures non-radioactive phosphorescent paints, and markets some of them specifically for making your very own glow-in-the-dark gunsights: http://glowinc.com/glow-in-the-dark/gun-sights.aspx I've tried their product (on a Yugo SKS, which came with dead tritium capsules) and while it works okay, the phosphorescent paint really needs constant exposure to bright light to work when you need it to. It would be fine on (say) a well-illuminated rack of rifles down at the station (in a grab-and-go situation) but if you paint up your handgun's sights and pop it into a holster, I’m afraid the luminescent paint would be barely be visible after having spent a few hours in darkness.

February 26, 2008, 13:29	#17
fastfreddy Registered FALaholic #: 7303 Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Virginia Posts: 6,185	Radium paint was used on old clocks/watches. It glowed on its own power due to radioactivity. It killed a lot of folks in the watch industry and its discoverer Marie Curie, before the danger was learned. I've considered the idea of buying NOS (new old stock) watch faces and hands that have radium paint. Most are pretty well decayed by now but still glow. Note, the radium has a half life of 1600 years but the zinc sulfide seems to get old. Anyway, getting the right painted bit off an old watch part might provide some useful dots. Just don't lick 'em or eat 'em or breath any scrapings!! Tritium is a radioactive gas. It can be contained in a glass vial. It cannot be mixed with paint. It has a half life of about 12 years. "Glow in the dark" paint glows for a short time after being exposed to light. Green and blue glow longer than red or orange. It would work fine if you charge it up for a planned excursion into the dark. If you want it to be "ready to go" then you need to store the gun under a light. Tritium vials are like beads that contain tritium, available in various sizes and shapes. They are self-powered. __________________ As you heed the call to battle, let your witness be as steel.

February 27, 2008, 00:06	#18
ALL FAL Registered Contributor FALaholic #: 24447 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 2,178	Thanks ALL,for the advice, will get after the good sight paint and white basecoat. __________________ The Future is ALWAYS Open!! An ARMED society is a POLITE society.

February 27, 2008, 00:30	#19
mdlmkr 7.62 Registered FALaholic #: 21978 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Arlington, Texas Posts: 524	I believe that Trijicon will put the night sight tubes into your sight if you send them your sight. Maybe email them and ask them to confirm this? 7.62

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