Getting wheelweights

[jonk]

Just curious....

I get my wheelweights at a local garage. They've had our business for over 60 years, my great grandpa started going there. They do general car repair, including some tire work. However, as such they do not create a great deal of used wheelweight surplus. I can get about 50 pounds perhaps once every 4 months.

This ALMOST keeps me in lead; not quite. I may have to start visiting other garages. So just wondering, how you all broach this topic. I can just picture the conversation going one of two ways.

1. "Hi there, can I help you?"
Me: "Yeah, do you have any old wheelweights lying around?"
Them: "Old wheelweights? Why?"
Me: "I do a lot of lead casting."
Them: "What for?"
Me: "Sinkers, bullets, the occasional jighead."
Them: "Get out of here. I hate guns, and I'll be damned if you are going to use us to make bullets. Damned right wing nut jobs."

2. Same discussion, up to, "what for,"
Them: "We sell all our scrap lead to a recycler at X per pound. Sorry." Or perhaps, "But if you pay us more we'll sell it to you."

I can also imagine that if I were to buy something or have work done at their establishment, they might be more, ah, open to giving up some weights. I'd feel a bit awkward going in somewhere and asking for wheelweights if not a customer.

So how do you approach these people?

[No_1]

OR:
Them: Can I help you?
Me: Hi, how's it going? I am doing a project with some kids and was looking for some old wheelweights.
Them: What you going to use them for?
Me: We melt them down and cast things out of them.
Them: What kind of things?
Me: Sinkers and stuff they can peddle for pocket change to help their other projects...

Usually they give in by then. If they hem and haw I usually offer to make a "charitable contirbution" to their coffee fund of about $5-$10 depending on what the bucket(s) look like.
Usually they seem to just worry if you are taking their bucket(s). When I get ready to make my rounds I toss the handtruck to move the buckets and a few buckets (the buckets have my first name and cell # on them) into the truck and trade them out. They usually call when the bucket gets full.

Try not to make a fool of yourself when they give them to you because a bucket full of WW's weighs more than most people can pick up / carry far. I would hate to see your next post explaining how you need to wear socks all the time since that is where your "guts" have relocated themselves to...

Robert


Just curious....

I get my wheelweights at a local garage. They've had our business for over 60 years, my great grandpa started going there. They do general car repair, including some tire work. However, as such they do not create a great deal of used wheelweight surplus. I can get about 50 pounds perhaps once every 4 months.

This ALMOST keeps me in lead; not quite. I may have to start visiting other garages. So just wondering, how you all broach this topic. I can just picture the conversation going one of two ways.

1. "Hi there, can I help you?"
Me: "Yeah, do you have any old wheelweights lying around?"
Them: "Old wheelweights? Why?"
Me: "I do a lot of lead casting."
Them: "What for?"
Me: "Sinkers, bullets, the occasional jighead."
Them: "Get out of here. I hate guns, and I'll be damned if you are going to use us to make bullets. Damned right wing nut jobs."

2. Same discussion, up to, "what for,"
Them: "We sell all our scrap lead to a recycler at X per pound. Sorry." Or perhaps, "But if you pay us more we'll sell it to you."

I can also imagine that if I were to buy something or have work done at their establishment, they might be more, ah, open to giving up some weights. I'd feel a bit awkward going in somewhere and asking for wheelweights if not a customer.

So how do you approach these people?

[jonk]

Well I wouldn't want to lie to them either...

Good point about weight; if a 5 gal. bucket, about half a bucket full is all I can usually manage.

[alamogunr]

Well I wouldn't want to lie to them either...

Good point about weight; if a 5 gal. bucket, about half a bucket full is all I can usually manage.

The last 6-8 inches is the hardest. I made a small platform out of scrap wood and use it to make the transfer from ground to truck in two steps. Sometimes the young men working the tire bays like to show how strong they are and do it for me (don't want the "old" man to hurt himself). I worry about them hurting their backs though.
John

[500bfrman]

I usually tell them exactly what I'm going to do with them. If they don't want to give them to me for that reason or another, I just move on to the next place. There's lots of tire shops around.

[John Boy]

Jon, don't forget to stop in at the local dentists. They use lead shields for each X-Ray picture that is taken. Usually have a problem getting rid of them.

My hygienist gives me a 30-40# bag of them every 6 months when I have an appointment. Have 3 other doctors as a source too.

The shields are darn near pure lead

[Bass Ackward]

Jonk,

There is another side to this problem. Instead of trying to increase your stash of WW, use this opportunity to increase your arsenal and get you a smaller caliber gun that is cheaper to shoot. Your lead goes farther!

Maybe SWMBO might buy that excuse too if you throw in Christmas and shead a tear. Cause we men never cry.

[beagle]

Now, I've found this technique successful at Wally World. Hit the shop at about 3:00 on Friday afternoon. Talk to the mechanics on the floor as they're usually trying to clean up teh place for the week and close down for the day even though they stay open on weekends and at night. Usually $10 buys a bucket and they'll help you load it to get it out of sight quick as the money goes for beer and pizza after work for the guys on the floor. They don't care what you're using them for.

Hot weather seems to work better as the forman is usually sitting in under the air.

Get the management involved and you get all this politically correct BS and I really don't care if I'm politically correct or not, I just want to cast bullets./beagle

[felix]

It helps to know the "owner" of the whole store/department, and if he knows you are reliable with your mouth, he will offer up all he has just to get rid of them from the sight of the epa auditing folks. At least Corky and I have this arrangement with a local tire store. 50 bucks into the store's beer fund seems to be perfect once or twice a year. 1500 pounds minimum per haul is usual. ... felix

[sundog]

Speaking of that, Felix, I still have some days to burn up. Still have some work to do around the place like finishing the porch that just got closed in, and couple other things. But, the last haul will get smelted down, and we have .22s to shot, YET. sundog

[mooman76]

Next time PETA is having a meeting in town, there should be a parking lot full of WW,s.

[Wayne Smith]

Next time PETA is having a meeting in town, there should be a parking lot full of WW,s.

Now there's an idea - their headquarters is right here in Norfolk! PETA = People Embarassing The Tidewater Area!

[Topper]

I really lucked out, at least for the time being.
Found a shop where one of the employee's love to shot a caliber I cast for.
Keep him supplied with boolets and pickup a free 5 gallon bucket every other week.
So, next time your tire shopping, chew that fat before buying ;)