Gunned Linotype Spacers - YMMV

[RogerDat]

I had only one easy way to sort the thin flat spacers that came with some linotype. Did they bend easily and without snapping in half, or when bent did they snap in two. In short was the flexibility "soft" bendable or "hard" snaps.

After sorting 60 lbs. into two buckets I had 20 lbs. of "soft" and 40 lbs. of "hard". I melted each batch into ingots, fluxed with sawdust and wax. Noticed right away that both batches seemed to cast with a smoother surface than plain. On cooling both had enough hardness to clink rather than thunk when banged against each other.

Took them to the scrap yard the results were:
Hard and brittle gunned as Linotype 12 Sb, 4 Sn. 12/4/84
But what I had been calling "soft" because it would bend without breaking was measured at 13 Sb, 2 Sn yep 13/2/85.

I did not use a hardness tester so my definition of "hard" or "soft" was not related to BHN but only too the ability to bend without breaking. This characteristic was clearly different, in the form of spacer strips I could bend the stuff that gunned 13/2/85 double, unbend it and give it a twist, easily.

Since the batch was 20 lbs. and the ratios don't work for contamination of plain lead with some linotype that slipped in only thing I can think of is as an alloy the Sb/Sn in linotype ratios is more brittle than the Sb without the Sn to alloy with. At least in the form of thin strips of metal.

So nothing for the plain soft lead stash, 20 lbs. of mild antimonial lead instead. I was ok with the results, just not what I expected. Another unexpected finding was the sample from a 5.5 lb. batch of mixed and unlabeled solder turned out to gun as 60% Sn. I have a feeling that an especially shiny rats nest of wire solder that was part of the batch might have been nearly pure tin. With the rest being between 30 and 50 percent tin.

So on the spacers no way to apply what I had to what you might have or find (Your Mileage May Vary) but it is worth doing some investigation of any linotype spacers to see what you have.

[fryboy]

thanks !

i do find it odd that the lower tin amount with higher Sb would bend easier than the lower Sb higher Sn alloy would , usually for me tin adds to the malleability and flexibility [shrugz]

[bhn22]

Melt some of the soft spacers down and recast them and retest the hardness.

[country gent]

Pick up a Starrett or general automatic center upnch and set it to strike light. Punch one on a solid surface and make note of the "ding" it makes then the other. If you have some pure lead punch it too. A button head allen screw can be used instead of the punch point to make it less aggressizve too. This will give a quick easy idea of whats what. The automatic center punch gives a very consistant hit and diffrent hardnesses will have bigger or smaller imprints due to hardness toughness. You might want to cut it with some pure lead if you have it as that much atimony isnt needed.

[bangerjim]

You have found what I have seen for years............lino spacers are NO lino and you can totally NOT rely on a consistent hardness/alloy. Many shops made their own spacers and many times used "depleted" lino rather than messing around trying to refresh it. It can be anything.

I have PRINTING PRESS type SPACING strips (what they should be called) ranging from ~10 al the way to 22+. You just do not know, so BUYER BEWARE of any people on evilbay selling "lino spacers" unless the have a picture of the x-ray gun screen!

Thanks for the info!!

bangerjim

[RogerDat]

You never know. These were in a larger batch of Linotype and foundry type I purchased. I pulled them out when I went through it since they were unknown lead. I would not pay linotype prices for anything that did not have letters down one side unless it was from a member here with a good reputation. When I sold a bit of that batch of linotype it was 100% with letters cast in edge so there would not be any doubts about product. Might not be 100% foundry percentages to the alloy but it was 100% linotype.

I was surprised and did not expect the results the scanning gun provided. Guy tried it a second time, in a different spot. Same reading. I really thought I was keeping soft plain lead spacers out of my hard printers lead spacers.

It is harder than needed, even though some bullets in the lyman Cast Bullet Handbook list linotype as what their test bullet was cast from for some of the loads. I use this stuff as a sweetener to improve other lead, as an ingredient to make Lymans #2 or Hardball out of. But mostly just a way to get some extra goodness into WW lead.

I expect the hardness will change with time but I'm not really concerned with that as much as I am concerned with the alloy content so I can mix it with some accuracy to make the 12 - 16 BHN stuff I want to shoot.

[tygar]

I take all those thin strips & melt them together to get one consistent composition. Then test for BHN & if I think I need to I'll shoot them to see comp. I find they run a pretty consistent 17BHN when combined. Have had batches as hi as 20 BHN but never much lower than 17.

[RogerDat]

I take all those thin strips & melt them together to get one consistent composition. Then test for BHN & if I think I need to I'll shoot them to see comp. I find they run a pretty consistent 17BHN when combined. Have had batches as hi as 20 BHN but never much lower than 17.

Those BHN numbers sound consistent with what I would expect from my specific spacer strip mix of 40 lbs. at 4/12/84 combined with 20 lbs. 2/13/85. That mix according to the alloy calculator would yield 3.33/12.33/84.3 so predicted BHN very near the 19 of linotype.

I like them better separated so I have 13% Sb alloy which I can add in to raise antimony percentage without adding much tin. But I can see where just combining them into one big batch would be a good option. It was a fair amount of extra work to sit there and bend each one in order to separate, half my reason for doing it rather than the big batch was just so I could take get the two type gunned independently to see what was there.

[runfiverun]

I'm not so surprised that the low Tin alloy was more malleable.
antimony is added to lead to get it to extrude easier and smoother when making pipe and came for stained glass windows.

think about how that toughness and ability to flex works for you in a cast boolit situation where you are gonna take that cast slug and pound it into a smaller hole with 40-k of pressure behind it.
the easy to flow alloy is going to react one way.

the won't bend without breaking Tin bearing alloy is going to react another way under the same set of circumstances.

one alloy would of course work better with a near groove diameter easy start situation, and the other in an oversized need hardness to grab hold of rifling right now situation.