Range full of lead!

[Freightman]

Went to the range first time since early march due to three operations. We have had record breaking rain over the last four months, the lead is laying on top of the ground about four inches deep on all the ranges four berms full. Wasn't equipped to do any mining today but i am going back tomorrow to skim it off.

[Beagle333]

Yay! Gold, practically poppin' up outta the ground!

[tradbear55]

That sounds sweet, the only range close to me has a line of people trying to gather up lead. You have to get there really early if you want a chance at that stuff.

[bessemer20]

We have had the same problem with the rain here to. The lead is also laying thick and no one else seems to want it so I've gotten 4 or 5 5gal buckets full so far and more to go.

[Silverseas]

I have managed to mine and clean 800 lbs from my local pistol range. Soft stuff, <8 BHN according to Lee.
Our backstop is a slanted, heavy steel plate, but on the front face is hung rubber conveyor belt panels. Bullets tear this up depositing rubber and fiber debris along with the lead and copper jackets. In addition the used belting has been piled inside, creating layers of debris and belting which makes it very difficult to harvest and messy to clean.
At the very back, at the bottom of the incline steel the faster bullets are lodged in a dense and largely clean mass that can be pried out with some determination and patience.
Eventually I believe the range manager will arrange for a commercial crew to clean it all out. Before then I hope to get more dug.
As soft as this lead is I have limited my casting and loading to lower speed rounds for my .45 1911 and 38 special for now. When I first tried high velocity .357s with it I had severe leading that filled the rifling grooves. Two ingots of Rotometal Superhard await addition to my pot.

[Echo]

A hint I've heard is to use a strong saline solution in water (use ice cream freezer salt), dump the range stuff in, and the rubber will float while the spent boolits will sink. Skim off the rubber, dump in more range stuff, repeat.

[mac1911]

They don't allow mining of our range of lead. Although volunteer to clean up rake and repair wash out you can get a lot of lead. I have a,modified steel rake. Basically I lined the inside portion of the teeth with 1/4" screen. While i rake the screen collect a lot of the bullets from the surface.
I also modified a clam rake the same way. Works very well on loose Sandy back stops.

[Mitch]

get to work Frank you been on break long enough lol

[skeettx]

Frank, Frank, Frank, I ADDED lead to those ranges this morning, JUST for you






Mike

[Digger]

Maybe a tip here as I use one of those wire wheels to pick up brass with , very handy tool for us scroungers !
In between shoots as this morning I was the only person there for a few minutes .. I used the brass wheel to pick up boolets ! ...
Now it will not grab every one you see but it will grab the bigger 45's and some 30's if they are standing out by themselves for the most part .
Especially after the rainstorms as they tend to stand out as the op described earlier .ll
Comes in handy when you don't have the time to actually kneel down and grab every one you see but works good for casual scrounging ... especially on the flat in between berms , when you have the range to yourself for a few minutes anyway.

[sparkeyu]

to separate the rubber from the lead I dump them on a tarp and use a leaf blower to blow the rubber away

[kaptain kartridge]

Our range has a screw to remove the accumulated lead, and they put it into a 555gal drum. I took 2 5gal pails about 1/2 full (can't pick up full one ) I now have 391 ingots on my bench and these buckets will add many more to the pile

[gunoil]

Member Websterz built a lead seperator on a boat trailer out in ok city. ok.

[62chevy]

That sounds sweet, the only range close to me has a line of people trying to gather up lead. You have to get there really early if you want a chance at that stuff.

I can imagine with you being at the tip of West Virginia and Ohio on one side and PA on the other. Where I shoot there might be one or two others there but have yet seen anyone else collect lead.

[Eddie789]

I have an unmanned range about 45 minutes away from me. I am going to build a sifter box and try my hand at some this weekend. I hope to gather as much as i can. I am new to the bullet casting scene and need as much as i can get!!

[richhodg66]

I have an unmanned range about 45 minutes away from me. I am going to build a sifter box and try my hand at some this weekend. I hope to gather as much as i can. I am new to the bullet casting scene and need as much as i can get!!

Would that be Pigeon Hill north of St Joe? Used to shoot there when stationed at Leavenworth is I could get there when the crowds weren't around. I did scrounge lead, but not like my regular range now. There are a lot of brass scroungers at Pigeon Hill and the range is real crowded on weekends, try to get there during the week during normal work hours and you'll be alright.

I like using range salvage and do it quite a bit. Where I mine is mostly FMJ pistol bullets so pretty soft, but it only takes a little bit of lino to make them good enough for most things.

[mold maker]

In a little over 2 years I mined over 2 tons of lead from 3 ranges. That was before it was popular, and the ranges had lead so thick, I had to literally PICK it apart. It would be as much as 7 inches thick, in a mass.
It's still out there for those not opposed to hard work. But there is no free lunch. It is just plain hard, heavy, dirty work.
There are now lots of shooters quietly using zinc boolits. Because of the naysayers discouragement, there is little positive discussion, but it is happening. Our ranges will soon be contaminated like WWs. We had better either figure how to remove,,,,,, or use the results.

[Eddie789]

Would that be Pigeon Hill north of St Joe? Used to shoot there when stationed at Leavenworth is I could get there when the crowds weren't around. I did scrounge lead, but not like my regular range now. There are a lot of brass scroungers at Pigeon Hill and the range is real crowded on weekends, try to get there during the week during normal work hours and you'll be alright.

I like using range salvage and do it quite a bit. Where I mine is mostly FMJ pistol bullets so pretty soft, but it only takes a little bit of lino to make them good enough for most things.

Yes sir you got it! I have been a handful of times during the week and its not a crowded but its hard to tell when you're gonna beat the crowds. Ill just have to go really early and beat them. Where do you currently shoot? Are you near me?

[Freightman]

Frank, Frank, Frank, I ADDED lead to those ranges this morning, JUST for you






Mike

Mike this is the first time I have been to the range as I been in the hospital off and on since March it is as much exercise as getting the lead

[richhodg66]

Yes sir you got it! I have been a handful of times during the week and its not a crowded but its hard to tell when you're gonna beat the crowds. Ill just have to go really early and beat them. Where do you currently shoot? Are you near me?

I work in Topeka and live around Fort Riley. I am a member of a range in Topeka and one in Randolph Kansas too. While I was at Leavenworth, I shot at Pigeon Hills during the week, not bad. Shot at Parma Woods a few times too, good range, but talk about over regulated.