Civil Defense collection

[scalebowler]

I thought you guys might like to see some of my civil defense collection. I have a few survey meters, two geiger counters, some dosimeters and a stack of documents about 3 or 4 inches thick plus some old film strips for training. I don't have pics of the documents or the film strips although I am going to take pictures of each slide and make a powerpoint so I will have a digital copy of the film strips incase something happens to them but I do have pics of the detection equipment. One of these days I would love to find an old siren and restore it. Basically it is a motor with some metal parts so they would not be that hard to restore. I would also like to find a fallout shelter sign. Funny thing is out of all these items I have never found a fallout shelter sign.

Here are the pics.
Dosimeter box


Inside of dosimeter box


CDV-700 low level geiger counter



Close up of probe showing beta shield

[tkaz]

Give this a shot, looks like there are a few out there:  http://craiglook.com/all.html?q=fallout+shelter

[scalebowler]

High level survey meters


CDV-715 survey meter measures high level gamma radiation


CDV-715 bottom


CDV-720 survey meter measures high level beta and gamma radiation


Bottom showing ion chamber and beta shield


3rd survey meter basically the same as the CDV-720 but not made for the government


Has beta shield like the 720

[scalebowler]

The only digital meter I have. I also have another one like this with a dial on it but I only have a video of it working and no picture

[scalebowler]

Give this a shot, looks like there are a few out there:  http://craiglook.com/all.html?q=fallout+shelter

Awesome! I might go for one but right now I am actually working with someone at getting some that have never seen the sun. They even still have the reflective paint outlining the letters and no fading. They have to figure out what they are going to do with them before they say I can have them.

[scalebowler]

Also if you guys want any close up pictures of anything or some pictures of the insides of any of the machines let me know. The only one I can't get inside pics of is the digital one but the rest I can.

[dr galaga]

Pretty cool.
I have a Fallout Shelter sign hanging in my gameroom. I also have an old metal Civil Defense water can (which then served as a comode) in my garage that I store camping chairs in.  I got it from work when they were gutting my old building during a remodel job. For a few years it was a garbage can in my area! The custodians took it out of the bomb shelter/tunnels under the building (a high school that was built in '69) since my old garbage can came up missing during summer cleaning in the mid 90's. 

[BrianB]

That's an awesome collection of meters you have! I just got finished with a 40 hour Industrial Radiographers Course so survey meters are near and dear to my heart!! The largest cause of accidental exposure is the Radiographer not using his survey meter to ensure the source is where it should be. Nasty way to buy the farm.

When I was a kid, my dad brought home a HUGE box of CD First Aid Kits. The individual boxes were about 3 feet long by 6 inches square. They had everything that you might need including a full set of wooden splints. My pops worked for the City of Palo Alto, CA. and they were throwing them out and he thought they would be cool to give to my Boy Scout troop.

[Kilroy]

I have fallout shelter signs; you can have one for the cost of shipping. And you have to listen to  my stories of  the actually having to practice :Duck and Cover"

[Creighton]

Dang SB,
There was just a siren and diesel powered spotlight on the local craigslist. Thought about you. Spotlight was a mess, no lense etc. Prices were high.

Kilroy,
If you have a second fallout sign I'd be interested.
Thanks!
Creighton
 

[scalebowler]

I really am just facinated by this stuff. I don't really know why but I always have thought nuclear stuff was really cool. I remember in 4th grade understanding how the power plant worked had it all down except at that time I did not understand the whole fission process but I did know the differences between the types of reactors. I also remember teaching the class about the detectors in high school chemistry class. That was really fun the teacher had me bring them in and she gave me almost the whole class time to talk about how they worked and how they were used. I have been asking the local emergency management agencys about getting a siren. None have had any yet but there are still a few left in service so I keep checking periodically just to see. Thing is I have to find one locally because they are so big and weigh so much.  I guarente if they ever replace the one at the elementary school near me I will be down there with money in my hand asking for it. Only place that still has one with the Civil Defense logo on the control box.

[scalebowler]

I also got to tour the state emergency management agency and the radiation callibration lab. That was really cool! The agency is located in an old bunker that was built for the state government incase of a nuclear attack and they still have the generators, blast doors, ventalation system, and water pumps in there. It now has the agency down there and they do have some really neat command centers which I got to see. Neat thing is I have a broucure from the 70's about the place from when it was the Civil Defence place and everything is still mostly the same except more offices and computers. The calibration lab was also really neat. I was not allowed to take pictures there so I am not going to say too much about it but they did have some neat stuff there. Basically every kind of detection equipment ever to have the CD logo was there. Also got a demonstration on how they callibrate the newer stuff. I had to stand behind a line and watch on a tv screen the number on the display go up by 1000 times. That was really cool.

[scalebowler]

That's an awesome collection of meters you have! I just got finished with a 40 hour Industrial Radiographers Course so survey meters are near and dear to my heart!! The largest cause of accidental exposure is the Radiographer not using his survey meter to ensure the source is where it should be. Nasty way to buy the farm.

When I was a kid, my dad brought home a HUGE box of CD First Aid Kits. The individual boxes were about 3 feet long by 6 inches square. They had everything that you might need including a full set of wooden splints. My pops worked for the City of Palo Alto, CA. and they were throwing them out and he thought they would be cool to give to my Boy Scout troop.

Thanks! I really enjoy this stuff. I really liked it when I got a tour of the calibration lab for the state. The person who took me on the tour told me about all kinds of stuff and showed me everything he was allowed to. Even offered to get me a job there which I would love. At the time it was not in the buget but I am checking back now to see if it might me available now. Do you work for a place that uses the survey meters like a fire fighter or at a nuclear plant? Just wondering but the class does sound like it would be fun. I have had offers to attend a fire fighters training class for radioactive materials for the fun of it. I should do that sometime. I think I would enjoy it.

[BrianB]

The facility I work at, a Failure & Material Analysis Laboratory, works with various analytical instuments that produce anything from low level x-ray to higher level gamma . Everything from Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM's), Real Time X-Ray, CT Scan, Micro CT, X-ray Diffraction, a Linear Accelerator and Vault X-ray.

We use survey meters extensively to conduct pre-operation surveys and also use them during the course of  the operation to monitor for any possible exposure.

The class was very good and very hard!

[Jimbo]

Here's my 1953 International Civil Defense fire truck I bought from my town last year.  I also use a  Civil Defense water can for a trash can.

[scalebowler]

That is an awesome truck!

[scalebowler]

The facility I work at, a Failure & Material Analysis Laboratory, works with various analytical instuments that produce anything from low level x-ray to higher level gamma . Everything from Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM's), Real Time X-Ray, CT Scan, Micro CT, X-ray Diffraction, a Linear Accelerator and Vault X-ray.

We use survey meters extensively to conduct pre-operation surveys and also use them during the course of  the operation to monitor for any possible exposure.

The class was very good and very hard!

That sounds really cool!

[scalebowler]

I did contact the local emergency management agency asking about a siren that is still up at the elementary school near my house. They don't even have it listed on their list of sirens. Waiting to see what they say about it. I know they replaced all of the other old sirens but for some reason this one was not touched. Here is a picture of the same type of siren it is not the one because the one near me is still on the pole but it is the same type. http://www.airraidsirens.com/images/fed_2t22geek_440x440.jpg

[pepsi-perk]

You should of come out here and use your stuff for fun SB. 

There used to be an old ammo plant that manufactured the material for the bombs used on Japan in WWII.  They just recently super funded the project to "clean" it all up.  I went to high school not a 1/2 mile from the plant when it was still there, but it was long since abandoned then and drank the tap water that comes from the same area while at shool. I probably glow in the dark.  There is a higher level of leukemia in this area....mmmm, wonder what that is from.  I would imagine that you could probably be able to get some readings on your meters.  They say it's all neutralized now, but hey, who believes the government?

[rayg]

Cool stuff ....at work in the basements of some of the older offices that still got CD shelters  with barrels of food and other stuff , I open a tins of crackers and tasted one they were still OK scary! Here's a link to the Michigan CD museum http://www.michigancivildefense.com/

[scalebowler]

Thats a pretty neat site. I now know where to go for decals if I ever need some. Here is another neat civil defense site. I like the siren section he has on here. Lots of neat ones on there plus pictures showing how they work and even a mini one that he built. http://www.civildefensemuseum.com/

[scalebowler]

You should of come out here and use your stuff for fun SB.  

There used to be an old ammo plant that manufactured the material for the bombs used on Japan in WWII.  They just recently super funded the project to "clean" it all up.  I went to high school not a 1/2 mile from the plant when it was still there, but it was long since abandoned then and drank the tap water that comes from the same area while at shool. I probably glow in the dark.  There is a higher level of leukemia in this area....mmmm, wonder what that is from.  I would imagine that you could probably be able to get some readings on your meters.  They say it's all neutralized now, but hey, who believes the government?

I bet I would get some readings. I did bring my geiger counter to colorado on vacation one year and I did notice a higher level of background radiation. I don't remember exactly but I think there it had to do with the elevation.

[BrianB]

Actually it does have everything to do with altitude! The higher the elevation, the more "zoomies". Colorado actually has one of the highest normal background levels.

Take you GM meter to an antiuqe shop where they might have some Fiestaware plates or saucers, try to find red. Set you meter to the lowest level and take a survey of the plate, it'll scream! The creator of Fiestaware figured out that urainium was a great pigment additive!

For another fun trick, by some Nu Salt, a no sodium salt replacement anf take a quick scan of it, same thing as the Fiestaware!

[scalebowler]

I have a fiesta ware plate. One of the things I used to use in my demonstrations. I also have a radium check source on the side of my geiger counter that is still going pretty strong. I was told about the salt substitute but I never knew what it was called. Thanks for letting me know I have to get some now. I also have some lantern mantels I bought at summer camp one year. Two packs of those are pretty close to the fiesta ware. I really like this Ludlum meter that I have. It is really sensitive and I think it might even be able to pick up some alpha radiation too. I was using it with a smoke detector and I noticed that there were a few more clicks with the probe over the radioactive part. It was not a big difference but I was noticing it was a tiny bit more than the background radiation. It was pretty cool. Nothing like getting that clicking sound coming through the headphones.  

[BrianB]

Yep, the Coleman brand mantels are great! They were dipped in Thorium and the bright light that was produced was a by product of the interaction between heat and Thorium.

[scalebowler]

Is that why they used thorium? I never knew the reason for them using that in those.

[scalebowler]

I love this sign. Got it hanging up on my bulletin board. (I made sure not to push the pins in the screw holes all the way so it would not mess up the paint) Ilike how it looks like it almost glows in the dark

[BrianB]

That's a really sharp sign! 

[loman4ec]

Pepsi Perk where are you located? The same exact thing happened at my old High School. There was an ammo plant about a half mile from the school. The name of the town is Kings Mills Ohio (named after the powder mill). They had to dig up our old football stadium because of the hazardous waste they found was under it. They also used the school grounds as a firing range so there was extensive lead poisoning.