Indoor range lead

[mongo]

I was at my range today and smelted the scrap lead from the backstop. The backstop is steel and the spent rounds were collected from the long metal boxes that the rounds end up in. A lot of dust , for lack of a better discription, was among the lead and jackets. Dumped a whole lot in my pot and melted it up. Still being kind of new to casting I have always used wheel weights and a few spent bullets that were lying on top. When the lead was melted I was surprised how much fine grey dust was mixed in with the jackets that were skimmed off. Looked to be about 1/2 of the pot was this dust after the smelt. I am at a loss for what it could be as if it were lead dust, it would re-melt? Ended up with a little over 100 lbs of lead before it got to dark to safely smelt. Thanks, Tommy

[DrB]

I was at my range today and smelted the scrap lead from the backstop. The backstop is steel and the spent rounds were collected from the long metal boxes that the rounds end up in. A lot of dust , for lack of a better discription, was among the lead and jackets. Dumped a whole lot in my pot and melted it up. Still being kind of new to casting I have always used wheel weights and a few spent bullets that were lying on top. When the lead was melted I was surprised how much fine grey dust was mixed in with the jackets that were skimmed off. Looked to be about 1/2 of the pot was this dust after the smelt. I am at a loss for what it could be as if it were lead dust, it would re-melt? Ended up with a little over 100 lbs of lead before it got to dark to safely smelt. Thanks, Tommy

Huh, interesting.

Any idea how dense it was? Like lead oxide or iron dense, or was it like ash?

If it were lead oxides it wouldn't remelt... You might get more of it into your melt by reducing it with flux, but I really am skeptical about reducing as much as you've described?

There are also more non toxic frangibles being shot at some indoor ranges... I wonder if it could be powdered metal from them? There are all kinds of different formulations that have been marketed for range use.

The other thought is could it be from the backstop?

One last thought, could it be miscellaneous floor sweepings dumped in those trays? I had a big lot of police range brass once that was the nastiest stuff to handle I've ever seen. Must have been THOUSANDS off cigarettes worth of ash mixed in with it. Had a tobacco buzz from handling/breathing around it even with gloves on.

[Echo]

Maybe pure Pb? Smashing into the steel backstop could convert it to dust? Maybe? Throw some sawdust into a pot of that dust and take it up.

[Gtek]

May be frangible ammo? Gtek

[imashooter2]

I get the same stuff in mine, but not in the quantity you describe. I figure it to be a little steel, some pulverized jacket bits, but mostly dirt/concrete dust stirred up from shooting that settles on the backstop and slides into the collection bins along with the lead.

ETA: Here's what I start with...

http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/scrap600.jpg

[243winxb]

Could it be antimony for the splatter of 22 LR? Takes a lot of heat to melt antimony. Take a ladle and mix the dust so that you take it under the surface of the melt. See if it blends into the alloy. Thats my guess.

[casterofboolits]

I know the problem as I have taken several tons of lead from my club's indoor range over the years. At times I'm amazed at the amount of dirt in the pot as I smelt it. The dirt alone after smelting about 270 pounds of ingots will fill a large metal coffee can. The jackets skimmed off will also fill the same size can and can be sold..

But! Free lead is free lead!

[imashooter2]

Could it be antimony for the splatter of 22 LR? Takes a lot of heat to melt antimony. Take a ladle and mix the dust so that you take it under the surface of the melt. See if it blends into the alloy. Thats my guess.

I don't think so (from my stuff anyway). Too light and the BHN numbers I get indicate that the alloy still has significant antimony in it. The weight doesn't work out either. If that stuff was antimony, the alloy would have to be 10% plus to start with. Unlikely for range scrap.

[mongo]

The dust was very light and almost fluffy, I started cleaning up around sunset and could see the dust become airborn when disturbed, almost like talc. They have a few groups and the Boy Scout's shooting mostly .22 a couple times a week. The lead I smelted looks good. Has the look of a frosted over window. Cant get any wheel weights any more from the tire stores I was getting them from, The club couldnt get anyone to clean out the backstop, Looks like a win win situation. Thanks for the replys, I guess all is good. Tommy

[snuffy]

Here's some indoor backstop lead I recovered when the range was being rebuilt.

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110016.JPG

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110004.JPG

The solid "log" of lead is from the low velocity side of the range, mostly .22 rimfire lead. The bullets slide down the steel plate to impact-fuse into a solid chunk.

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110005.JPG

Our backstop is a steel plate at 45 degrees, then a sand trap for the bullets to spend their remaining energy in. The lead has to be sifted free from the sand, but some sand always stays with the lead.

This is the smelter, a turkey fryer with an 8 quart dutch oven. This is as full as it could be, but after fluxing and skimming, it was only ¾ full of lead. Paper, wood, bullet jackets and sand make up the rest.

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110015.JPG

I have no guess as to what your powdered dross is.

[mckutzy]

ETA: Here's what I start with...

http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/scrap600.jpg

hey mate, you stole my ladle...:kidding:
where about did you find that and do you know what it was intended for, one response I heard, it was it for pouring Babbitt bearings in old motors and machines.

mongo- dont you just hate that all suited and on a roll and the sun goes down and cant carry on. :groner::groner:

[imashooter2]

I low balled a bunch of good sized iron ladles on eBay until that one came home. That was before RayinNH started selling his tools. A ladle like that could be used for all sorts of things. Pouring Babbitt bearings would certainly be one. Plumbers pouring joints would be another.

[mongo]

hey mate, you stole my ladle...:kidding:
where about did you find that and do you know what it was intended for, one response I heard, it was it for pouring Babbitt bearings in old motors and machines.

mongo- dont you just hate that all suited and on a roll and the sun goes down and cant carry on. :groner::groner:

Was hot and humid. Started with an aprin safety glasses, gloves and a dust mask, Ended the day with gloves and safety glasses, could have kept smelting a bunch of more hours if the days were longer,LOL

[bhn22]

I've gone through a ton of range scrap. Maybe not quite a ton... Anyway, one of the things you'll encounter is unburnt powder that seems to fuse into an inert granule that won't burn. 22 LR is famous for being pretty inefficient at burning the powder in the case. This is usually found a few feet past the firing line, and is swept up with the dirt on the floor. The heat & pressure fuses it into a lightweight granule that looks like rather uniform dirt. Heating it during melting leave you a dirty black/brown layer that skims off pretty easily. I had to have the range owner explain to me what the stuff is, or I'd never have figured out myself. He was the guy that swept the floors, so I figure he knew what he was talking about.