Lead Market

[Slick13]

http://www.kitcometals.com/charts/lead_ ... large.html

Amazing, warehouse levels keep dropping and are at nearly the same low from fall of '07 when lead prices peaked, and yet lead prices have been dropping right along with warehouse levels this time around. A bag of shot peaked at near $50 a bag at the local Gander Moutain, and is still at $44, but dealers that are serious about selling shot are at $30 a bag, and who knows, we might see it back at $20 a bag by next summer. I assume prices went up for cast bullets, are they starting to come back down?

~Michael

[cnjarvis]

Not likely. I just read an article wherein it was stated that the EPA has mandated a 90% reduction in lead emissions by smelters, miners etc. That will cost them $$ which will be passed along to us.

[Old Ironsights]

Not likely. I just read an article wherein it was stated that the EPA has mandated a 90% reduction in lead emissions by smelters, miners etc. That will cost them $$ which will be passed along to us.

The EPA is After our lead, Again. They have reduced the allowable lead standard to .15 Microgram per cubic meter of air from 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter air .

It'll probably put the last Lead Smelter in the US in Herculean, Missouri outta of business.

EPA Press Release here. http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.ns ... enDocument

Yet another step in ensuring that if they can't ban guns, they will regulate them away.

IMOwhat DC needs is more airborne lead... in 40 to 425gr chunks.

[KirkD]

I've started the long term project of collecting lead. I pay two local garages 30 cents a pound for used wheelweights (I had to in order to compete with the scrap companies). I've been melting them down on my camp stove and pouring it into a muffin pan. Each muffin weights about 2 pounds. So far, I've got 11 lead muffins. 22 pounds ain't much, but it's a start. I need to find more tire shops. I'd like to have enough to put 1 pound of lead downrange per week. Since I'm 54 and would like to keep shooting until I'm 104, I figure I need 50 x 52 = 2,600 pounds of lead ingots. I'm almost 1 percent of the way there already.

[Hobie]

I've been accumulating .22 LR ammo as well.

[mescalero1]

I can not carry all of my .22LR at one time

[otteray]

I've started the long term project of collecting lead. I pay two local garages 30 cents a pound for used wheelweights (I had to in order to compete with the scrap companies). I've been melting them down on my camp stove and pouring it into a muffin pan. Each muffin weights about 2 pounds. So far, I've got 11 lead muffins. 22 pounds ain't much, but it's a start. I need to find more tire shops. I'd like to have enough to put 1 pound of lead downrange per week. Since I'm 54 and would like to keep shooting until I'm 104, I figure I need 50 x 52 = 2,600 pounds of lead ingots. I'm almost 1 percent of the way there already.

Since I'm 4 years older than you; have about 3,ooo lbs. and I plan to shoot for only 40 more years, I'll still have a few hundred pounds of wheelweights left over when I meet my Maker.
Stop by in about 2048 with a pickup truck and they are yours; I'm sure my wife will still be glad to get them out of the patio.

[Old Ironsights]

I have just under 1000# I need to smelt, and about 500# of Pure pb already smelted.

What I need now is a few thousand more primers and another couple of kegs of 2400.

[TedH]

I've only got about 800 lbs, but I scrounge every ounce I can. Problem around here is most of the wheelweights are zinc or iron anymore. So you might only get 20 or 30 pounds of the good stuff out of a full 5 gallon bucket.

[Idiot]

This is a good topic. I sold a bunch of lead a while back when it was cheap and I thought it would stay that way. I had to move and didn't want to take a couple hundred pounds of the stuff with me. Nowadays I mostly store lead after its been cast, but I should really get back to finding lead. This post has got me thinking about it again. Thanks.

[O.S.O.K.]

I was going to start buying from the tire places too - they get a bunch - but the last time I asked they said their wheel weight supplier gives them credit for the srap weights - Kirk - you say 30 cents - is that what the credit is there? Anybody know what the credit is in the US?

[otteray]

I used to get them free or for a six pack.
Last time I went to a tire shop a few months ago, the guy pointed to a 1/2 full 5 gallon bucket and said, "you can have it for $50.
I left without the weights...
A week later I contacted a retired commercial salmon fisherman that was moving out of the Republic of Kalifornia to Texas. He had about 500 lbs of 2lb. ball sinkers that he was going to leave behind.
I got those for free

[Hobie]

I can not carry all of my .22LR at one time

I can't carry 1/8th of my .22LR at one time.

[Andrew]

I have a tad over 50# of lead, all cast bullets I got in bulk on GunBroker auctions. I don't have any sources here that I know of and that was the cheapest way to get lead. I need more, but that will come later after other investmenst.

I should probably stock up on that .22 ammo as well. That stuff will probably be extremely useful later on.

[J Miller]

You guys have me worried. I'm in a situation where I already have more loaded ammo than I can handle, and some extra bullets. I do have some ingots I cast years ago, and my casting equipment.
I'd love to start making the rounds to acquire lead, but when our big western migration does happen, I'm like the guy with the fishing weights, I can't really handle it all.

Not to mention I'm living in the great, wonderful, fun state of Illienoise.


Joe

[KirkD]

I hit the jackpot today. I was in the city and was driving past a major tire shop. I swung in and, bottom line, I'm the fellow they are going to sell their wheelweights to for 30 cents a pound. 30 cents a pound is the going rate the local scrap company pays for wheel weights. The fellow showed me two buckets of used wheel weights. I never thought I'd go bug-eyed over a bucket of used wheel weights, but I almost started drooling at the thought of all the wheel weights that place produces per week. I just want 2,600 pounds of lead ingots and I'm off to a good start.

I called the scrap company and asked what they give for used wheel weights. They said 30 cents, so that is what I give. So far, out of about 26 pounds of melted lead, I've only found one zinc wheel weight. I could tell that one because it was just floating on top of the molten lead and it wouldn't melt, so I fished it out. After taking a look at it, I think I'll be better equipped to find any more. It looks like I'm fortunate, in that all the rest of the wheel weights were lead.

[Old Ironsights]

... I could tell that one because it was just floating on top of the molten lead and it wouldn't melt, so I fished it out. After taking a look at it, I think I'll be better equipped to find any more. It looks like I'm fortunate, in that all the rest of the wheel weights were lead.

It is important to keep your melt below 750 degrees so you can do just that.

Zinc in your alloy is bad mojo.

A Lead Thermometer is a very worthwhile purchase.

[AJMD429]

So far, out of about 26 pounds of melted lead, I've only found one zinc wheel weight. I could tell that one because it was just floating on top of the molten lead and it wouldn't melt, so I fished it out. After taking a look at it, I think I'll be better equipped to find any more. It looks like I'm fortunate, in that all the rest of the wheel weights were lead.

I thought "even a trace of zinc" would ruin your lead. Is the 750 degree rule going to keep your lead ok...?

[otteray]

Just like the Ivory soap advertisement.
"It Floats"
I've found a few floating at about the same time that the valve stems, rubber grommets, nails and all the steel come to the surface.
The zinc melting temp. is higher than lead, so the zinc wheelweights are still intact.
If you want, sort through the bucket of wheelweights and pick out the bright shiny or painted ones; those are the suspects to look for.
I think the zinc sometime have a code or number indicating what it is, but I can't remember right now.
Some folks say there is a different "ring" when dropped onto a hard suface.

[J Miller]

Zink wheel weights are marked with "Zn" I think. Not to long ago someone posted a pic of the zink wheel weights he got out of his bucket of scrap. I can't find it now.

Joe

[Chuck 100 yd]

Yes, most of the few that I have found were marked Zn or had the steel clip riveted to the weight. They look enough different that they are not hard to sort out from the good ones.
Keep your melt temp. low and they will float just like the guys say.