Is today a Lead score or not?

[kens]

I got 34lbs of fishing sinkers, 8oz egg sinkers. They look like old lead sinkers.
They seem hard though, at least harder than sheet lead. Anybody know of egg sinker lead?

I also made a deal with this same scrap dealer. He has a barrel of scrap range lead, I offered to smelt them down, and split the copper with him. All of this seems to be soft core lead.

Is this good deal?

[RogerDat]

It is possible your 34 lbs. of sinkers is from someone that cast sinkers, the way we cast boolits. Might even have used WW's that would be harder than plain.

If your getting the lead and he is getting back the clean copper as "payment" to my mind that is a very nice deal. Sounds like free lead if that is the deal. Hard not to like free lead.

[kens]

It is possible your 34 lbs. of sinkers is from someone that cast sinkers, the way we cast boolits. Might even have used WW's that would be harder than plain.

If your getting the lead and he is getting back the clean copper as "payment" to my mind that is a very nice deal. Sounds like free lead if that is the deal. Hard not to like free lead.

Yes, thats it.
However, I pleaded my case that I must spend my time, my trouble , and my propane to secure HIS copper.

[RogerDat]

A valid point you get free lead but he gets clean copper which has a higher value than lead/copper mix. It will take more work and time to get that lead than from clean lead scrap but I still think as an overall deal it's pretty good. Still qualifies as free lead in my book since it takes work, time and propane to get any lead into ingots.

[kens]

Well, you have to smelt down something, WW's, lead pipe, 'er something to get into ingots.
Besides that, I am splitting the copper with him.
I just wonder if I can get the jackets clean enough to qualify as the best price copper.
If, it is not perfectly clean copper, it goes as dirty copper.

[slim1836]

I couldn't get my jackets clean enough to qualify as #1 copper.

If you figure it out, let me know.

Slim

[kens]

I couldn't get my jackets clean enough to qualify as #1 copper.

If you figure it out, let me know.

Slim

What was your smelting tecknique?

[Jeffrey]

Scrap yards will use ANY excuse to call #1 copper #2. They don't have to give you as good of a price on it. I've seen scrap yards use many tricks to avoid paying full price for scrap: scales that when empty are reading light, calling cast aluminum extruded aluminum (lower price paid). Show me an honest scrapyard and I'll show you an honest politician.

[Gun_nut83]

Scrap yards will use ANY excuse to call #1 copper #2. They don't have to give you as good of a price on it. I've seen scrap yards use many tricks to avoid paying full price for scrap: scales that when empty are reading light, calling cast aluminum extruded aluminum (lower price paid). Show me an honest scrapyard and I'll show you an honest politician.

That is too funny but the truth! For a while I was getting damaged flex cable(it's a wrapped copper core cable specially designed for welding, different sizes at different lengths to have the amps needed at the gun when doing high rise welding). Anyway when I'd get these cables I'd let them pile up until I had about 6-8 of them and the I'd spend 2 days slicing them from end to end and pulling the rubber and paper insolation off of the twisted bunched cable wire inside.... and all I would EVER get from my local scrapyard is #2 copper price, but I'd take in about 140-200 lbs at a time. Hehehehe! Back then at $3-4 per lb I was making a killing.

[slim1836]

What was your smelting tecknique?

I used a turkey fryer with a metal wok on top of it. Fluxed and scraped off dross after removing jackets as I was after the lead and not so much the jackets. Jackets still had some lead scrap on it, even after running them through twice.

Slim

[kens]

I used a turkey fryer with a metal wok on top of it. Fluxed and scraped off dross after removing jackets as I was after the lead and not so much the jackets. Jackets still had some lead scrap on it, even after running them through twice.

Slim

I been wondering. Since I am going for the lead instead of the copper, my desires are easily obtainable.
However, I am splitting the copper with the guy. How can I use a technique/process that yields cleanest copper for the price?
I first tried smelting in a common propane pot, and that seemed OK.
But, I am looking for 'better than OK'
Can I wash the jackets in a acid or something? To make them cleaner?
Is there any other process?

[remy3424]

I rebuilt my backstop last year, got 22 pounds of lead, took the jackets to the recycler and there was metallic stuff in the bunch??....took them back home (or regular steel price) and used a magnet to put out all it could find. I do get a bunch of everything shot at my range, so it was hard to pin point where the steel jackets or cores came from. One of the local recyclers won't pay clean copper price if the copper has been burned to remove the insulation. Never have seen any aluminium except for the cheapest extruded stuff when it gets to the recycler.

[dikman]

Short of being able to re-melt the copper, I can't see how you're going to get it clean enough to qualify as "#1" (which is presumably smelted copper?).

[rmatchell]

It wouldn't be hard to melt down the jackets then flux them. I have an extra A10 silicon carbide crucible that I would trade off if you wanted to go that route.

[MaryB]

I don't think the lead would flux out, you would be making a lead copper alloy

[rmatchell]

the lead would alloy but the few times I melted jackets I found alot more than lead in the dross. A little borax goes a long way to get clean ingots.

[WILCO]

However, I pleaded my case that I must spend my time, my trouble , and my propane to secure HIS copper.

I wouldn't bother. Too many other sources of readily available lead.

[Steve Steven]

I rebuilt my backstop last year, got 22 pounds of lead, took the jackets to the recycler and there was metallic stuff in the bunch??....took them back home (or regular steel price) and used a magnet to put out all it could find. I do get a bunch of everything shot at my range, so it was hard to pin point where the steel jackets or cores came from. One of the local recyclers won't pay clean copper price if the copper has been burned to remove the insulation. Never have seen any aluminium except for the cheapest extruded stuff when it gets to the recycler.

My experience with government .45ACP was the jackets were steel with a copper wash over them.

Steve

[fastfire]

To get all the lead of the jackets use a weed burner, I can easily get the jackets red hot with the weed burner.

[Netherwolf]

I've always use a liberal amount of candle wax while fluxing. The lead seems to roll off the jackets with very little or no lead remaining. I'm not saying you'll get #1 copper prices (like someone else said, the scrappers ALWAYS have an excuse not to pay fair prices) but you'll end up with more lead in your pot using candle wax during fluxing.
Netherwolf