Lead hardest test what do you have?

[Keppy]

From time to time there has been talk about testing hardest of lead. Here's what I have and have use it for at least 15+ years I think. Don't remember when I got it. But when I was shooting the pistol silhouette game was using wheel weights and came in handy. Now its real nice to check out the lead hardest for my RB.
The first picture shows a lead ball under the knob which you screw down til the little wire on the right is all the way to the top. The knob is pointed. You are ready to test hardest.

This picture shows me putting my finger on the top. I will press down with one quick motion to the bottom and let up. It will leave a small pin hole in what ever you are testing unless it very hard. soft metals only.

Here it shows the wire is down on the bottom. Tests under 5 so the RB is pure lead for sure. When using wheel weight my idea bullet hardest would test around 14 to 16. Very little leading.

What do you use to test? The LBT is the only one I have ever had. Oh I use to do the finger nail thing but this is a better tester.

 

[George Holton]

I have a homemade one using an arm with a point on it ,over the lead ball of known purity. a guage is set there a o, then a known weight is hung on the arm for a known time. the amount of movement is registered. then repeat with your suspect lead. less penetration = harder and vice versaKinda McGiverish but it works. Bob

 

[jtmattison]

I do this. It's a bit time consuming but fine for testing a sample of a large quantity.

Lead Hardness Test
Here is a simple way to test the Bhn number of unknown lead samples: all you need is a caliper, two bottle caps, a vise, a 5mm diameter (aprox. size) ball bearing, and a known pure sample of lead (Corbin can furnish pure lead of 99.995% Pb with trace silver).
1. Melt enough lead to fill one bottle cap with unknown sample, and the other with known pure lead. Make sure the surface is smooth and flat when the lead hardens and cools.
2. When the lead is cold, put the ball bearing between the two lead surfaces and squeeze this "sandwich" in the vise until the ball is driven partly into both surfaces (just enough to make a fair sized dent, but not past the middle of the ball).
3. Remove the sandwich and measure the two dent diameters. First measure the known pure lead dent and write down this number. Then measure the dent diameter in the unknown lead sample and write it down. Square both numbers (multiply times themselves). Then divide the resulting square of the unknown lead dent diameter into the square of the known pure lead dent diameter. This could be written as (L times L) divided by (X times X) where L is the pure Lead dent diameter, and X is the unknown lead dent diameter.
4. The answer should be a number of 1 or greater. If it is a fraction, or less than 1 in value, you have inverted the two dents and divided the wrong way. In that case, try again. When you get an answer that is 1 or greater, multiply it by 5. This is the actual Brinnell Hardness Number of the unknown sample.
The reason that you will always get a number of 1 or greater is that the ball will always go further into soft material (pure lead) than it will into hard material (any alloy of lead with tin, bismuth, antimony, etc.). Therefore, the diameter of the dent will always be smaller in the unknown sample, if it is harder than pure lead, or the same as the known pure sample, if it is also pure lead. When you divide a smaller number into a larger one, you always get something greater than one for an answer. Brinnell numbers are all greater than one. You must multiply the answer by 5 because this is the adjusting constant for pure lead, which is Bhn 5 hardness.
This method is as accurate as your sample purity and your ability to read the diameter of the dent. A smooth surface is necessary so you can get a clean diameter to measure. A rough surface will throw off the answer because you may not get a true diameter to measure, if one side of the lead surface is higher or wavy. But in general, this is as accurate a method as any that uses tools which cost less than $500. A reading with an accuracy of only Bhn plus or minus 0.5 will be more than sufficient for purposes of swaging. When the Bhn number actually increases from 5 to 10, or doubles, the pressure goes up by a factor of four, or the square of the increase in hardness. A number of 5-6 Bhn is close enough to be called pure for swaging purposes. A number of 10-12 is close enough to be considered about "medium" hardness or suitable for -S dies. A number of 18-20 is hard enough to be considered strictly for the -H type hydraulic dies even if used in the CSP-2 hand press.
HD

 

[Bubba45]

Thats the same outfit I use.Bought one as soon as LBT had them :thumbsup: All my buddies are always bringin samples by to get tested.

 

[Keppy]

Bob
I had a friend that I use to shoot with that had a simaliar way of testing. He was happy with it and it worked for him. He would have some lead that he had mixed up to cast bullets and he'd bring it over to test. He was always pretty close of what he thought it was. Even this can vary some.

 

[Keppy]

Thats the same outfit I use.Bought one as soon as LBT had them :thumbsup: All my buddies are always bringin samples by to get tested.

It works well Huh :thumbsup:

 

[pa woods roamer]

Jeez, what happened to the old tried and true Fingernail scratch test?????

 

[Stumpkiller]

LOL! That's what I use. If you can scratch it with your thumbnail it is OK. If I'm desperate I may spend quite a time and effort getting it to test "OK"

I also sort my balls by weight, rejecting light ones back into the lead supply and mix ingot lots when casting. This averages out the lead supply pretty well.

 

[Bubba45]

You betcha it works great :thumbsup: It helps me keep the lead , wheelweight and linotype seperated plus helps alloying the 1-20 and the #2 pistol mix.

 

[George Holton]

To each his own,or whatever works for you Merry Christmas VOB