Lead source for round balls

[Docgp]

Decided to try Rotometals and order some of their pig lead to cast round balls. Thought I would post it here in case some were contemplating it.

I got their E'mail for 10% off for fathers day and ordered 3 of the pig lead orders. It says 52-55lbs and it is packed in a flat rate box!! (Yes, the UPS man really wasn't happy with me!!). There are 4 large chunks of lead that are too big to fit into my melting pot, so I spent the evening melting them down and casting 1 lb ingots in my Lyman mold.

You can see the results of one box of pig lead. There are 52 one pound bars, and probably 3 or 4 more still molten in the pot. The four chunks that come in a box are also there, one in the pot and three on the tailgate.

With the discount and free shipping it came out about 1.69 per pound. I have seen it better and I have seen it worse. Just thought some roundball casters might be interested.

Doc

 

[Billnpatti]

$1.69 per pound seems a bit steep to me. I think it would be better to check with roofers, plumbers and contractors in your area. These folks run across scrap lead in their business all the time and would most likely give you a much better price than $1.69 per pound.

One time when I was a younger man with more snap in my garters, I went to a free public range and told the manager that the berm looked like it needed some attention and that if it was okay with him, I'd bring a shovel and fix it up for him. Naturally, he said I could do that. It was a LOT of work but in the process, I recovered a bunch of lead. Sure it was dirty and there were a lot of pieces of copper jacketing in it but all I had to do was lay it out on my driveway and spray it with a hose to remove the dirt and then melt it in my batch pot to flux it and remove all of the jacket metal (it floats to the top when the lead melts) It wasn't pure lead but it was soft enough for me and I made a LOT of round balls from it. I'm a bit old for that kind of lead recovery now but in the day, it was a great way to get a bunch of lead for FREE and it helped the manager of the range. Now I get my free lead from my son who brings me the used lead shipping containers that radio isotopes are shipped in. No, they are not radioactive.

 

[Tom Compton]

Yep. Roofing contractors especially after a hail storm. I bought 100 lbs of lead pipe from a scrap metal dealer a couple of years ago - $0.65 a pound iirc.

 

[ZUG]

With Roto Metals you KNOW what you are getting. I've dealt with them for modern bullet making material. I got enough pure lead and am friends with a roofer if I need more.

 

[wicket]

I had my roof replaced last fall and asked the roofer to save the chimney flashing for me, it melted down into 18 pounds of soft lead.

 

[hanshi]

I had managed to pick up lead at a metal recyclers really cheap and got quite a bit for free as well. I also got several roof flashings, too. A friend in construction constantly runs across large quantities of lead and gets as much as he wants; he also got me several hundred pounds of it. I think the most I ever paid for lead was $1.00 a pound.

 

[fleener]

I got to ask, as I see quite a few people doing it, why cast them down into 1lb ingots? Why not just fill your pot with what you want and cast from that?

Seems like extra work for nothing.

If it was dirty lead, I can understand that.

I have 25 lb strips and just cut off what I want to put in the pot.

Fleener

 

[Docgp]

Fleener,

The big ingots would not even come close to fitting into my little production pot. Yes, it is extra work, but this way I can drop a few lbs at a time. Helps me keep the lead temp more steady also. When I do smaller batches, I prefer to get most of the slag off from a larger pot also. Try to keep my little pot cleaner. That is just my pet peeve.

Doc

 

[Flintlock]

I hit the local scrap yard, they let me go threw the lead and pick out what I want. I too like to pour 1lb. ignots, they are easier to use and keep the temp even and when I'm casting at a demonstration the 1 pounders are easy to break or cut up into my little ladle.

 

[Don Steele]

Over the years, I have been able to acquire my lead from a wide variety of sources. Like most of us, NONE of it was anything like pure, clean metal.
As a result, I learned (very early on...and of course...the hard way) to first conduct a "smelting" operation using a Coleman stove and cast iron pot in which the newly acquired lead is melted and cleaned thoroughly before being poured into clean 1 lb. ingot molds.
The resulting clean ingots are much easier to use, and do not cause all the problems I see some folks report when using the bottom pour Lee pot.

 

[hawkeye2]

I'm 100% in agreement with the two previous posts. I have a 30 pound babbit pot that I melt my range or scrap lead in. I flux and clean it thoroughly and pour ingots. When casting I flux everytime I add more lead and scrape the sides of the furnace from time to time too. I feel it's well worth the slight effort to keep the lead as clean as possible.

 

[b737tvc]

Roth does a nice job. I was happy with mine.

B.T

 

[b737tvc]

How much tin is in it or did you buy 99% lead?

B.T.

 

[Docgp]

As far as I know, the pig lead is pure lead, but don't know that for sure. It seems to scuff with a fingernail, so is reasonably soft.

Doc