Is pewter ok to use as source of tin or are there other ingredients that will damage the casting properties of the lead alloy?
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Is pewter ok to use as source of tin or are there other ingredients that will damage the casting properties of the lead alloy?
Yes pewter is a great source of tin. Read the following link about pewter hallmarks so you can be sure of what you have.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...-and-hallmarks
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...ts-tin-content
Modern dietary pewter is 90-94% tin plus antimony and a maybe a smidge of copper. Nothing to hurt boolets, rather, desirable as antimony is the additive which makes water quenched boolets harder. Lead, Antimony and Tin (Pb, Sb, Sn) is the ternary alloy discussed in the LASC articles linked below. Great read for novices. Copper in such small quantities-1% of 1% or less, isn't very much. probably not noticeable to the casual caster
In searching for pewter, you can depend on hallmarked items. I have seen it alleged that Selangor (sp?) is nearly 100% tin. Don't overlook Quadra Plate items, they are silver over a tin alloy base.
When I am in doubt I take a knife to it right there in the store. (when they aren't looking) Pewter carves almost as easy as lead.
Newer pewter is a great source of Sn......if you can find it. Old pewter can be of lesser content in Sn. After 15+ years of looking in junk stores around here, all I have found are valuable antique pewter items that are worth many MANY times the small cost of Sn. Those are in my collections of antiques! I buy solder and pure Sn from junk yards all the time. It's nice to find 40 one# bars of foundry Sn........for a buck a pound!!!!!!!!!
Royal Selangor uses a 97% tin alloy.
http://imashooter2.com/pewter/hall103.jpg
One of these is my latest purchase from Good Will. It was $0.78. It is in perfect shape (except for the place I shaved a bit off to make sure it was pewter.) I am using it for a catch all bowl on my desk. I won't melt it until/unless I have to. (These things sell for over $100 in places.) Would you melt it? I am listing the cheapest one I found for comparison:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/KIRK-STIEFF-...YAAOSwuxFYsvzG
Oh it comes in at 11.5 oz troy. So 1 lb of good high tin content pewter for $0.78. Just gotta look a lot. That Goodwill is notorious for having very high prices too. I just got lucky.
I'd melt it without hesitation. Just because someone wants $20 and up for it doesn't mean that's what it's worth. I buy those for $3-4 each. That means I'm paying $3-4 instead of $18+ for a lb of tin. Kirk Stieff is still making those with a lb of tin and a whole bunch of markup.
I am new to casting so I am hitting all of the thrift stores in the area looking for pewter
Found a bowl last week.
How do you guys process your pewter? do you smelt into ingots? Is it the same process as smelting lead?
Just like lead. I pour coin sized ingots, and mark them with the weight for future use. Ingots are usually in the 1-3 ounce range.
When I was selling pewter on here regularly, I melted dozens of those.Quote:
Originally Posted by Traffer
A Lyman dipper will pour 1.5 - 2.5 ounce ingots depending on the fill. I use a Potter mold, but mini muffin tins, the bottom of drink cans, or any other small container will work.Quote:
Originally Posted by MAGA
http://www.imashooter2.com/sell/pew6s.jpg
I use a bunch of measuring spoons, screwed to a piece of 2x, for my pewter. They come out at two to three ounces.