Too_Many_Tools writes:

I have a surplus xray dental head that I would like to reuse.

It has four wires entering it.

What is in a head like this and how can one use it for xraying items?

Any links to sites that describe how this device is constructed would
be appreciated.

As someone else noted, you need to determine what exactly is in there.

If it is really just the head - generally the part that is positioned
next to the patient - then it's the X-ray tube and possibly
a coil for the motor that rotates the anode (via inductive coupling
through the glass).

At a minimum, you need power to the tube filament (2 wires) and +HV.
If there is a motor, then 2 more wires for that, though it could share
one of the filament wires if that's at ground potential. Or, I suppose,
the anode if that is at ground potential.

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