The toy at the top of my list has to be the Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab. It sold for a whopping 50 bucks from 1950-1951. So why would those Government Fun-killers put an end to this toy? Honestly, I have no clue. The set came with an electroscope, a geiger counter, a manual, a comic book (Dagwood Splits the Atom), and a government manual – that’s it. ). I mean what’s so bad about that?
Ok, maybe if I had to venture a guess, it might be ‘cause the kit also contained 4 types of low level uranium ore: a beta-alpha source (Pb-210), a pure beta source (Ru-106), a gamma source (Zn-65?), a spinthariscope, a cloud chamber with its own short-lived alpha source (Po-210.
FYI…one set sold recently on ebay for 5 grand.
