range lead pickup

[pakmc]

I picked up about 150 lb.s of lead off the range where i shoot(they are glad to get rid of it!) I'm melting it down in my Lee 20# bottom pour pot. I'm lucky to get 50% lead out of what I'm pouring into the pot. I using candles, flux from lowes, and some white powder from midway for fluxing. Actually I might not be getting but about 35-40 % lead. and there is more trash then lead. Is anyone else trying this?? is it worth the time and money for free lead?(Yes, it's free), and yes, brass and lead powder is what I'm throwing away!(or getting ready too) I can buy scrap lead locally for 85-90 cents a lb.. what say you ("O" , this is not a trick question, anyone on the site should be able to answer.
Pat (south of Houston.)

[btroj]

Get a turkey fryer and a cast iron Dutch oven. I get 80 percent or better, more like 85, recovery from mine. A casting pot is a lousy way to smelt lead like that.

I pick mine up by hand so I don't have trash, rocks, or lots of dirt in it.

[Walter Laich]

I was getting about 2/3 of the starting weight as usable lead. Was using the lee 20# pot also

Walt (north of Houston)

[Crazyrcflier]

I did about 1 2/3 5 gallon buckets full today, still have 1 1/3 buckets left. I don't know the recovery rate, but I do save the jackets to sell to the scrap yard. The turkey fryer and Dutch oven is the way to go, I can melt about 6 quarts of lead and have room for fluxing and stirring. I already had the fryer base and propane. Just had to buy the Dutch oven, $40 on amazon.

[frkelly74]

Do not neglect to save the jacket material to take to the scrapper. Check it with a magnet first to take out the steel and you should be able to sell it. I was getting #2 dirty copper price for it once I got the guy at the scrap yard edicated, before we moved from Michigan. And I agree that you shouldn't dirty up your casting pot with uncleaned lead. It just makes more work to clean it out when it get plugged up.

[pakmc]

It looks like I need to get into a turkey fryer because I've got a bunch of free lead if I can process it and there are plenty of copper(?) jackets for sale later

[GoBig]

I have about 1000 pounds of indoor range scrap that I'm processing. How does one separate the jackets from all the sand, dirt and assorted other solid junk?

[Geezer in NH]

I have about 1000 pounds of indoor range scrap that I'm processing. How does one separate the jackets from all the sand, dirt and assorted other solid junk?
The old saying is S##t floats

[RED333]

As far as I know everything that you might pick off the range will smelt out and float.
Just DO NOT and I mean do not put cold stuff in to hot lead, I know this has been covered before.
A stray rock, live round, lump of wet dirt or mud and you day will go bad FAST.

[Roundball]

I can go pick up lead off of a local range. My question is that if I mix in jacketed bullets is not the core unalloyed lead? When I pick up spend bullets it is necessary to look for grease groves. This way it don't have to deal with jackets floating around. It's mystery metal enough without the risk of having too soft an alloy. Also, some of the jackets are made of steel and can be picked up with a magnet. Go with an iron dutch oven on the turkey roaster. You'll jam up your bottom pour pot.

[GoBig]

The old saying is S##t floats

Yes, and it floats with all the other S##t. I've already processed about 400 pounds worth and am well versed in that, I'm just inquiring about how to separate the valuable jackets from the worthless junk. I'm guessing a strainer of some kind, but a lot of the jacket fragments will fall through.

[duckey]

Free is free! What is your time worth? I smelted 61 lbs of range scrap and got 33 lbs of lead. I paid $25 for the 61 lbs. I have made a small screen to take to my local outdoor range to get some free lead. I would recommend a slotted spatula for skimming the copper jackets off.

[frkelly74]

First I try to skim the metal frags separate from most of the other dirt. Then I usually go over and through the metallic trash with a magnet to get the steel out and then try to sift out most of the dirt that is left. I have not found an easy way.

[Roundball]

I use welder gloves and a large handled kitchen spoon to skim off the junk and bullet jackets. Using a dutch oven gives you plenty of room to skim unlike most lead pots.

[Love Life]

I have access to a large amount of range lead, and have smelted it before. I drilled holes in a deep ladle. When hot and melted, the jackets float. I give it a really good stir at that point to ensure no jackets or stuff is hanging out at the bottom.

Using my wide and deep ladle with holes in it I scoop up a ladle full of jackets (ensure ladle is hot as your alloy) and give it a really good shake (be safe and shake hard enough to agitate, but not fling lead all over the place) and bump against the side of the smelting pot. This gets about 90% of the alloy out of the jackets and drains out of the ladle. I then dump the jackets into my rubbage pot to be recycled.

That being said, I don't do it often. I prefer to by clean lead ingots where someone else has done all the work.