sshr testing for authenticity

[von shock]

after reading some old posts about authenticating sshr's and the whole cast vs die struck discussions i have come up with 2 different possibilites to end all of the arguements. first,if a metalogical test was performed on a ring in question and it contained cesium 137 it would have had to have been cast or the silver melted after the atomic bombs were dropped. and second, if the rings were cast or die struck there is a simple test law enforcement uses on firearms when the numbers are ground off. when metal is stamped it disrupts the flow and grain in the said metal. hence they can still see the indentations from the stamped numbers. if they were cast there wouldnt be any of this. and so forth if die struck they would certainly have the flow disruptions.even on a completely worn ring! no more question about it at all. i dont know how we could facilitate doing a test but i have several friends who are law enforcement i could ask to see if its possible. its almost like ground penetrating radar. on undisturbed ground there is no waves. on dug disturbed ground it really stands out. what do you guys think.
thanks
creed

[Texasuberalles]

Sounds plausible.

[von shock]

i understand it would have to be a test readily accessable and cost effective. but if someone is willing to pay for a coa i cant see the same person not paying a similar amount for a 100% guarentee proof positive test. that being the cesium 137 test. the cesium test would be almost impossible to beat. a person would need a piece of silver smelted/cast prior to the a bombs detonation,then they would need to fashion it in to a sshr and then beat the eyes of pros who coa not to mention collectors. it would be too many hurdles. also,that cesium test could be used for lots of other ww2 pieces. i know at one point there were discussions on the gdc about helmet authentication by a similar test of the paint. idont know if it was a cesium test though.thanks
creed

[james m]

Creed:
Just to bring you up to date here: Several years ago John Pepera, rest in peace, had multiple TK rings from his collection assayed for metal content. While he acknowledged the metal content in these rings was unique he never publicly released the specifics. I believe his reasoning in keeping this private was to protect collectors from forgers having the proper content in their copies.
Jim

[von shock]

i sort of remember a bit about that. i agree with johns decision and was sorry to hear about his passing. what im talking about is the presence of post nuclear fission isotopes in the metal itself. after some research the cesium may not be the one we are looking for. it decays pretty rapidly and has a half life of 30 years or so. however,like low alpha lead and tin there should be a way to test rings a similar way not for metal content but for isotopes. i will be chewing on this for a while trying to figure it out. any input good or bad is greatly appreciated.
thanks
creed

[DR DOLCH]

Can you explain what an A-Bomb has to do with a ring?

[von shock]

dolch did you not read the first post? the a bomb or atomic bomb ie: nuclear fission created new atoms and isotopes not present when the rings were originaly made. just like rare valuable low alpha metals. hence if they are present in a ring said to be original pre 45 or pre A bomb then guess what. its not original!!!