source for pure lead

[dwarner]

Ask your dentist!! I am a practicing dentist and for the last 25 years I have kept myself and a couple of friends adequately supplied with pure lead for our casting needs in the form of waste lead foil from intraoral X-rays. Every small X-ray film packet contains a piece of thin lead foil within the wrapper that is normally discarded as trash during the X-ray developing. This material accumulates very rapidly if it is saved separately from the rest of the wrapper trash. It is not unusual for my small office to generate 15-25 lbs of waste lead each year this way. Because of hazardous waste disposal restrictions in some localities, many dental offices separate these and dispose of them at their own expense. They would love for you to take it off their hands for them. Many offices are switching to digital X-rays, which cuts down on the volume of this kind of waste, but nonetheless many conventionally developed x-rays are still taken.

This is nearly 100% pure lead, easily scratched with your fingernail. It generates practically no slag when melted. You may want to harden it somewhat with plumbers tin for minies or cast slugs (add 5-10% Sn by weight). For you fly-tyers out there, the foil also works good for tying sinking flies.

Ask your dentist if he separates his waste lead foils from his X-ray packets. He may be glad to offload it to you, or he may be willing to start separating it and save it for you. It won't hurt just to ask!

Dick Warner DDS

 

[Birdman]

Got to go with Dick on this one. I had heard of getting lead this way so decided to try n see. Well I ended up with around 13 lbs the first time n have several Dentists that will give me a call when they have a goodly lot to give me. They have been more then happy to part with it and support my efforts to recycle the lead in this way. One actually asked me some questions about the shooting sports and seemed truely n honestly interested. YMHS Birdman

 

[DMURPHY317]

I've been collecting lead foil from my dentist for several years. It is easy to melt down and cast ingots for later use and its a win/win for both of us.

 

[2172]

Thanks for great advice..my guy is expensive as heck, and this'll give me some recovery or, if he refuses to do it, it'll give me an excuse to switch to a guy that I should have gone to in the first place..Hank

 

[riarcher]

My 2 best sources are from roofers and Ebay.
Roofers save the lead flashing for me when asked. Usually end up with 30-50#s within a couple of weeks.
Ebay often has "Pure, Clean lead in ingot castings for about $20 (includes shipping) for 25 to 40 lbs.
Think I saw yesterday 3, 25 lb blocks at $30 for all and if you took all (all 3) shipping was included.
Search "lead" or "pure lead" in the "sporting" section. Lot's of lead being sold cheap for bullets, lures, diving weights, etc.

 

[PaulN/KS]

I found three sticks of the stuff in the spare tire compartment of the wife's car...
Musta put it there a year or so ago and forgot. :hmm:

 

[bbassi]

Hey folks, I was just getting ready to post a new thread, but reading this I think you guys may be able to help me.

When you talk about "pure lead", I don't think it's the same thing that I have. Let me explain. I have a camp in Northern NY where in the late 1700's there were 3 major lead mines. My wife and I have done some research, and among other things, this lead was used to make cannon balls used by naval ships in the war of 1812. (neet huh?)

The lead was hauled and loaded onto bardges in the Indian River and floated down to a make shift smelter that is actually only 50 ft from my cabin. At the time there were roughly 500 Irish Immigrants (indentured servents I think) living on what is now our farm in sod and rock houses that to some extent you can still see today. Anyway, the lead was crushed out of the surrounding rock and washed in the river by hand before smelting. The left over rock and un-salvaged lead still remains in great quantities all over the area.

So, being a MZ nut, I've always wanted to cast some balls or maxies from this "virgin" lead and possibly shoot a deer with one. The problem is I can not seem to get it hot enough to melt out of the surrounding rock. (it's mostly quartz) I have tried everything at my disposal including benzene and propane torches. The lead I have is quite hard and somewhat crystalin. It will even fracture if hit with a hammer. It's my un-educated guess that what we typically call "pure lead" when casting has some other alloys in it that makes it "soft" like tin possibly.

So, sorry for being long winded, but if anyone has any ideas how I can get this stuff melted down, I'd love to hear them. For Pete's sake, the only thing they had in the 1700's was local wood (or possibly coal), and they apperently made TONS of the stuff right on our farm! If anyone thinks I should post this alone please feel free to yell at me too. Anyone can free to PM me too. Thanks ::

 

[Stumpkiller]

Present when the earth was formed, lead is a naturally occurring element. It is usually associated with other minerals, notably zinc, silver and copper. Trace amounts of other elements, including gold, are sometimes found with lead ore. The most common lead ore is galena, or lead sulfide. The ore is mined, concentrated and then smelted in a blast furnace with limestone and coke. It is refined to remove and recover other metals.

Problem is, you have to melt the rock so the lead (or lead sulfide) inside can get out. The lead melts around 650

 

Pure lead is pure lead. No alloy is added to make it softer.

If you want to go to the trouble, you can make a little primitive smelter. I can't put every detail in a short paragraph but the basic premise is to build a small tower (6 feet tall is fine and you can use old chimney flue if available). You need a draft hole in the bottom so the fire will burn up the tube. Throw a layer of charcoal briquettes in the tower, break the rock into 1-2 inch pieces and toss it in - interspersing layers of rock with charcoal until the tower is at least half full or more. Light and let it burn down to nothing. This works better on a hill where there is a natural draft but you might be successful with a small bellows or blower until it gets to cooking. When it's done, there should be lead globs and rock in the tube. You can pick up the metal, melt again and flux - you should then have pure lead.

 

[bbassi]

Thanks Stumpkiller and anvil! I'll definatly try make a smelter this spring up there. I've always just tried direct heat either in a pot or with a torch. I guess I never got the surrounding rock hot enough though. This also gives me an idea that there may be some quantity of left over lead in the base of the old smelter behind our cabin. It has grown over and filled in over the last 200+ years, but who knows, there might be more there already than I could ever use! :thumbsup:

 

CAUTION!!!!!!!!
The fumes from smelting lead are dangerous and should be avoided at all time.

Seen many people do it inside the cellar and garage and it should be done in an open enviroment.

Woody

 

[bbassi]

woodhich, - point well taken and appriciated. I wouldn't think of trying this indoors! Honestly, I've wondered at times if the word got out about our place whether or not the EPA might turn it into a 200+ YO superfund sight! :crackup: :crackup:

Anyway, I'll be opening up camp in a couple of weeks to get ready for spring turkey and walleyes. I hope to try the smelter thing then when no one else is within MILE of camp.

B