I got to experience one of my lifetime (minor) dreams recently -- to 

see and feel a piece of Uranium. Here's a brief description for those 

of you who care --



I was in the Pacific Northwest and visited a friend who had the odd 

object. He's got this closet full of juicy mostly ancient technical 

toys that is kept locked; on the few times he's  retrieved some item 

from this room, I wasn't allowed in, even though I know him fairly 

well. To the best of my knowledge few, if any, other people are let 

in. It's not because of illegalities etc, I've seen into the room, 

it's filled with obscure instrumentation, cardboard boxes of surplus 

debris and other prized possessions. I heard through various rumor 

sources that he had some uranium, but I thought it rude to ask. 



On a recent visit, I told him I was looking for some specific 

electronic object, now forgotten did he have one. Hmm, let's look, 

and he invites me into -- the locked closet! Well sort of, it's 

stacked to the rafters, him standing on a pipe out from the wall to 

reach a box that contains the widget I'm looking for, me at the door 

leaning in as best I can.



On the way down, I notice a small jar with a large yellow tag with a 

faded red radiation symbol, containing some tiny screws and a small 

metal bracket, presumably contaminated instrumentation parts. I 

mention I have my RadAlert radiation meter with me. We take the jar 

to a table, open it, place the meter over the opening -- after a 

minute sample, only background radiation.



Upon returning the jar and contents to the closet, my friend abruptly 

picks a small black object from a shelf and says "let's check this". 

"What is it?" I ask. "Uranium". It's a 2 1/2 in square, 3/8" thick, 

with a 3/8" mounting lug on the  back. I'm not so much skeptical as 

puzzled. He hands it to me. I'm good at determining materials be feel 

(hardness, weight, surface, machining artifacts, color, etc) but of 

course I've never seen U before. This thing is heavier than steel, 

lighter than lead, about 500 grams? It does not ring when tapped, but 

is soft like a lead alloy, in fact, it "feels" as if steel alloyed 

with lead. It is jet black, like a coat of anodize, it is definitely 

an oxide, slightly hard. From the medium-tolerance tool marks (lathe 

grooving obvious) the metal is slightly gummy, tool withdrawal from 

the part abrupt.



I'm slightly nervous handling it; in my hand is just a chunk of 

metal, it's not warm and it does not move, only my  conscious brain 

manages a weak warning. I take it over to the table, run the  

radiation meter over it; oh yes this thing is hot. At approximately 

1" distance, laying on the table, I get 8400 counts/minute. 

(Background at sea level is about 14; Trinitite from the 1945 

plutonium blast reads about 30 at 1".) Wanting data, but having only 

minutes to play, I slip a dollar bill between the meter and object 

(to block alpha radiation), reset the meter, and get a 5600 

count/minute reading. Hmm, so 2800 counts/minute are alpha radiation, 

the rest presumably beta and gamma. Not something I want to carry in 

my pocket.



I ask umm, do you have any more? he says no, this is all I have. I 

believe him. I covet this object. Back in the closet it goes, just 

placed back on the shelf. "I've handled tons of this stuff" back 

during employment at some facility or other. 



Before I leave, I wash my hands... and though I was tempted, I did 

not scrape the oxide with my fingernail or pocketknife to see what 

color was underneath. I'm quite certain it was U, and I assume U238 

(since it's most common). It looks like it was a target for some test 

or other, with the flat surface with the lug behind, though it shows 

no wear other than some light knocking around in who know show many 

years since it was made -- 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50? 



Of it's origin I know only that it came in a pile of surplus 

equipment -- what it implies about inventory control is obvious. It's 

not stolen, only lost. The shape is not bomb material (which should 

be spherical or parts thereof) nor is it bulk metal. The total mass 

is relatively tiny, and is of no danger to anyone but it's owner.