Tritium Lume color

[ravenhome777]

Is it known why some tritium lume develops a nice yellowish patina, and other lume remains bright white?

If you have a watch with bright white tritium, is there a way to make it turn to a yellowish patina? Is it humidity exposure? Light exposure?

[linesiders]

Many different compounds / recipes were used in the 60s thru the 90s which has a lot to do with it, as does exposure to sunlight, moisture, and how long of each.

Get one of those Pantone wcolor wheels, mark / match your color plots as best as possible, and put in the safe for 6 months with zero light, ever - you will PROBABLY get darker.

[TimeLord2]

I believe humidity can have an affect on the color of the lume plots by introducing the potential for fungal growth but can also just discolor the plots. on another note, my 1675/3 was stored in a drawer for about 20 years until I decided to have the watch serviced. Prior to service the lume plots looked very creamy yellowish. When I had it serviced and started wearing it more in the California sun it definitely lost the patina and now appears almost white. I think by storing it in the dark it will enhance the patina to a more yellow character. Several on this forum have also said the same thing. Before (brown bezel insert) and after pics with about 2 years in between. Lighting is artificial for both pics.

[linesiders]

Originally Posted by TimeLord2

I believe humidity can have an affect on the color of the lume plots by introducing the potential for fungal growth but can also just discolor the plots. on another note, my 1675/3 was stored in a drawer for about 20 years until I decided to have the watch serviced. Prior to service the lume plots looked very creamy yellowish. When I had it serviced and started wearing it more in the California sun it definitely lost the patina and now appears almost white. I think by storing it in the dark it will enhance the patina to a more yellow character. Several on this forum have also said the same thing. Before (brown bezel insert) and after pics with about 2 years in between. Lighting is artificial for both pics.

This is why I recommend the Color Wheel (one with a lot of beige range, but the Pantone one is very expensive). Find a match, record the code, recheck in 6 months.

[XavierM]

To make it more complex, lume color is also greatly affected by the type of light it is exposed to.
Take the same watch look at it outside on a sunny day, on a rainy day or inside with strong white artificial light and you’ll get 3 different patinas…

[indianmachine]

1991 was a good year for patina.

[Old Expat Beast]

Did Rolex always use bright white tritium on all models. In my 1989 catalog the 5513 lume looked creamier than the others beside it. Could've just been the printing/photography of course. Maybe original shades, and consequently patina, varied. According to this Breitling guy (post #5 onwards) Breitling didn't even use white lume till the 1990s.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=794615