Melted some ww today...

[math]

and i was a little depressed with how much iron and ZN weights there was in there :( Well i got some 47kg out of 1 and a 0.5 25L buckets and i only had 500sek (about 55$) in it so it wasn´t all that bad i think. What do you all think ? And i learned that it is probably not a good idea leaving the buckets alongside my fathers garage too collekt rain whilst you go abroad for a tour in Afghanistan, man were they rusted ;)

Happy shooting all
Math

[Cowboy_Dan]

A little over US$1 per kg is pretty good in my book. My last batch came to just under $1 per pound (.454 kg) when I removed the zinc and steel.

[sigep1764]

That's right at 66% and I've gotten buckets that were far worse.

[BenW]

I think I got about 30% in the Atlanta area. Unless I knew what yield I could expect, I would't be willing to pay more than about $0.25 / pound for unsorted wheel weights.

Main problem I have is getting hard lead. Only about 25% of the lead I got was clip on. 75% was stick on. The bright side is it forced me to expirment with very soft alloys. I have learned that most of the time [with pistols] you don't need that hard of an alloy.

Good job with that find. The thrill of finding cheap lead, tempered only with the chore of sorting.

-Ben

[math]

Ok from what i hear i did reasonable good then. I must say i had some problem getting the heat up and keeping it up. I think i need too adjust my smelting teknik, ideas are most welcomed ! :) My setup today was a stainless pot a 1500L propan burner that i could not get straight under the pot,could be that i lost a fair amount of heat by using a angeled burner ?
Math

[BenW]

Are there any flames along the side of the pot? If so, that's wasted heat. If the burner is angled, but is still centered under the pot it should still be fine.

Try putting lots of sawdust on top of the melt. It'll flux and insulate the alloy like a blanket. Also try making a foil heat shield around the burner to allow air in but keeps the heat from radiating out (look at small back-packing camp stoves. They have heat shields).

-Ben

[lightman]

Glad you are back from Afghanistan and able to melt lead! I'm not sure what differences one would see between Sweden and the US with whats available, but lots of guys here use a Turkey fryer and a cut off propane tank, or a large dutch oven. Google Cajun cooker or Bayou classic to see a few examples. A few like me even use a homemade burner and stand. I can melt 400# in about 20 minutes, but it drains the propane tank really quick. Also, look at a few of the stickies for a few ideas and see what other members are using!

The yield from wheel weights varies from place to place. My last batch was very good, but others are reporting yields low enough that they are leaving wheel weights for other sources. Good Luck in your search for lead.

[math]

Thanks for the kind remarks :) I`m sorry to say were not big on frying turkeys here i Sweden so finding a cheep fryer is a longshot. Just saw that my stainless pot had come apart at the bottom, so i think i need to find me a sturdier vessel for melting in and a improved wind shelter. Any thoughts on what material that vould be best, stainless or ordinary steel ?
Math

[Blacktail 8541]

A thicker standard steel works very good as It helps conduct and retain heat. Cold rolled steel pipe with the end sealed with a welded plate is what I use. For A heat source and stand I bought a 150,000 BTU bronze burner and mounted it inside a sand rail rim that I modified. The only cost for the whole set up was the burner. The rest was sourced from scrap piles. Allows me to process about 350 lbs of finished melt in an hour.

[blackthorn]

A pot can be made from an old 20 pound propane cylinder. Screw out the valve, fill the tank with water, use a zip-cut tool to cut a larger hole in the top of the tank. Next, dump out the water, lay the tank on its side and cut around the circumference close to the "shoulder" on the tank. A makeshift burner can be made using a Tiger torch, a 45 degree steel, galvanized or cast pluming elbow and 4 cement building blocks. Place the elbow on the ground, held in place by the 4 blocks. Set the tank over the hole in the middle of the blocks and place the tiger torch in the lower end of the elbow. Fill (or whatever) the pot with scrap, light the torch and away you go. Be prepared to dip the melted metal out of the tank---you for sure will not lift it to pour! Have fun!

[BenW]

If you have access, I'd lean toward stainless. Much easier to keep to clean.

[math]

Thanks for all input :) I guess it comes down too what sort of material i find first then ;) I`m sort of contenplating making a square one out of 5mm checker plate, square so it will fit my currant stand :) But thats a little more job so i guess i go looking for some suitable pipe to hack a pice of :)
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[Hardcast416taylor]

A friend of mine bought a 10" long piece of 10" diameter weldable pipe from a scrap yard. He then had a 5/16" thick steel bottom welded on of plate steel by a professional welder. He has been smelting lead weights in this homemade pot for the last 12 years on a heavy duty homemade tripod and using several high output propane torches for heat.Robert