Reuse

[mrblue]

So i thought i had read some where that i could use recovered / deformed lead i dig out of the range with the fmj's still attached. Is this possible and does the lead melt out and i fish out the jackets. Fill in a new guy please.

[MtGun44]

Works fine. Done it for years.

Bill

[runfiverun]

use a lid.

[nhrifle]

Worked fine for me. Be careful tho, some of them will have moisture in them and if you drop them into the melt they will pop. I usually just put them into a pot and then light a flame under the pot. As it warms up, the moisture will be driven out.

[NoZombies]

To be clear, the way to use the lead is to reclaim it by melting it out of the jackets. skim off the jackets and sell them as scrap copper, and have a handy source of lead.

[Jim]

And like Nhrifle said, fill the pot, light the fire, smelt it all down, skim the trash/jackets, cast it into ingots and you're done.

DON'T add to the pot while the metal is molten! That ain't cool and you WON'T dig it!

[375RUGER]

DON'T add to the pot while the metal is molten! That ain't cool and you WON'T dig it!

especially when there is a live round in there that somebody tossed into the berm. It only takes about 1/2 a second for it to get hot enough to go off.

[Wolfer]

A while back I came up with a lot of plated bullets. If they were skinned at all they worked fine. If not some would be melted but hold their shape. I started making sure they were damaged when I put em in.

[7Acres]

I recently read the quality of the lead for FMJ isn't what it used to be. Any undesirable alloy quality issues to worry about when processing range scrap for cast boolits?

[YunGun]

I'm pretty new to both casting & reloading so I'm certainly no authority, but I cast & reload for a 40 S&W & a 30-30, & all of my casting has been done with range scrap lead & I haven't encountered any difficulties. I have no idea what BHN my alloy's running; it's pretty soft, but I haven't noticed any leading so far, but I'm really not pushin 'em too hard either... Granted, my demands are very low at this point, but I've generally been pretty pleased with the results I'm getting so far.

I pick up all my range scrap by hand so I don't worry too much about live ammo being mixed in, but as previously stated start with a cold pot, pour in some range scrap & let it heat up to drive off any moisture that is present. A lid is definitely recommended to help contain any errant splashes, especially if you do add anything else to the pot once the lead has melted.... Flux with some sawdust to help pull out impurities while skimming out the jackets, dirt, rocks & other crud. Flux it again once you get all the trash out, & then pour it into ingot molds of whatever style you prefer... I liberated an extra 12-cavity cupcake pan from the wife (be sure to get approval first! :-D) & it seems to work just fine. Read some horror stories about zinc contaminated melt, but haven't run into any problems yet.

[shadygrady]

send that zinc to me for lead

[MtGun44]

FMJs may have pretty soft alloy, but I have had good results with proper technique, boolit design, fit and lube with 8 BHN in
the magnums at full power. The issue would be soft alloy, but this is usually not a factor if you do things correctly - most
important is to not let the case size down the boolit as you seat it. Not a problem with hard boolits, but can be with soft.
Seat one and pull it to verify that you are getting the correct diam (groove +.001 or .002 or throat diam for revolvers)
actually delivered to the barrel.

Bill

[hardy]

A while back I came up with a lot of plated bullets. If they were skinned at all they worked fine. If not some would be melted but hold their shape. I started making sure they were damaged when I put em in.

Hi, just to reiterate,if you have any total metal jacket(TMJ) or full metal jacket (FMJ) make sure they are split open.Sidecutters work or some smash,em with a hammer.If,n you dont one day one of those little beauties WILL spit hot lead at you.Preparation is the key word,be safe.Mike

[Shiloh]

The lead melts out and the jackets float to the top of the melt.

Shiloh

[alamogunr]

Hi, just to reiterate,if you have any total metal jacket(TMJ) or full metal jacket (FMJ) make sure they are split open.Sidecutters work or some smash,em with a hammer.If,n you dont one day one of those little beauties WILL spit hot lead at you.Preparation is the key word,be safe.Mike

I've melted down quite a bit of range scrap that I picked up by hand from the berms. Most is jacketed and an appreciable amount is FMJ. I usually just squeeze them with a pair of Channellocks to break the jacket. I've missed a few and all I have ever seen is a relatively weak spurt of molten lead that remains withing the confines of my pot(12" dia.). The first time I saw this, I stumbled backward about 4 ft, hoping that the molten lead couldn't reach that far. No worries.

[Shiloh]

The important thing if adding new range scrap to the melt, is make sure it is dry.

Shiloh

[btroj]

All my range scrap is stored in my garage so it stays dry. I only add it to an empty pot which may be cold or hot depending on whether it is my first pot or not. I just get all the lead out before I add more, pot need not be cold, it just wouldn't have molten lead in it when adding more scrap.
I have not had any FMJ blow up, spit lead, or any of that. I just stand back and keep away when the melt is starting. I have never done anything to break open FMj bullets either. None are truly a full metal jacket. They either are open on the base of the have a thin copper sheet to close the base. The plated ones have a thin enough jacket that the lead easily comes out. I am not going to sort thru a couple 5 gallon buckets heaping full of bullets to cut them open. No way, no need.

Like anything in casting, use your brain and it will be fine and safe.