Bulk Buy Price??

[.455 Webley]

This same issue comes up here from time to time but my case has a couple extra wrinkles in it. As usual any advice wise council sound anecdotes or clever jokes are welcome.

I called on a Craigslist add selling lead for a good price. (.50 per pound. ) We got to talking and he offers me his dads entire lead stockpile. He has 2400lbs of soft lead ingots plus "Some more stuff that has hot been melted down yet." He is going to take stock of what he has and how much he has to get for it. He mentioned that getting rid of all of it in one shot would get me a healthy discount.

The down side to all of this is the guy is 100 miles away, and a 100 mile return trip with a rather heavy load. I will need to borrow a friends truck or trailer, and after filling his gas tank back up owe him at least a couple cases of beer for the wear and tear on his breaks.

At what point does this become too good a deal to pass up? Is selling some of it here a good way to recoup some of the travel costs and the dent in the family budget for the month? Am i missing some of the potential pitfalls of a bulk buy like this?

I will have a better idea on the total price and the logistics later on this evening. But in the mean time i am open to wild speculation.

Thanks for your time and consideration.
.455

[Mica_Hiebert]

Offer him 500 for all of it and rent a uhaul van for the day

[DerekP Houston]

Well....from what I've seen on this site you could easily recoup the costs by selling at the standard rate of $1 per lb. 2400+ lbs in one go is a hell of a haul though, I honestly don't know if I would have the energy to load it all up at once, drive it back, and the UNLOAD it all to return the truck. 100 miles here in texas is like driving to a friends house though, that's hardly a drive at all.

I would rather rent a uhaul trailer or truck than risk a friends vehicle with that amount of load though, especially if you ended up needing to slam on the brakes. Drive slow!

[Mica_Hiebert]

Buddy of mine borrowed my truck to haul some scrap steel to the recyclers and rear ended a guy, my insurance went up 40 bucks a month for 2 years, needless to say I'm a little more reluctant to loan out a haul rig any more and equally weary about borrowing some one else's.

[.455 Webley]

I think it was old Grandma Webley who first told me "Neither a borrower nor a lender be." i try to live by that. I think taking a U-haul or a few trips over time is going to be the better bet.

[GRUMPA]

I think it was old Grandma Webley who first told me "Neither a borrower nor a lender be." i try to live by that. I think taking a U-haul or a few trips over time is going to be the better bet.

Never a borrower or lender be.....or you may lose both your friend and your money.

I live by that saying myself..

[runfiverun]

2400 on a car trailer is nothing.
I'd take 5 gallon buckets, milk crates and a dolly.

I used to roll 2400 lbs in on Friday night and about 2400 back out again on Sunday night almost every week-end.
take a lot of buckets and crates and look at his stash before piling it all up.
if he has it sorted into different areas I'd keep it sorted and figure out each pile as I went along.

[DerekP Houston]

Never a borrower or lender be.....or you may lose both your friend and your money.

I live by that saying myself..

Sigh I learned that lesson selling my used truck to my neighbor. Took 8 months and pulling teeth to finally get my payment. never seen a grown *** man cry so much about not being able to follow through on a deal he proposed. I would rather have my truck back and not the neighbor.

[.455 Webley]

I think i may take a little fact finding mission out to this guys place and see what i am up against. That way if its a total mess i have not already committed to take all of it. Living by ones word may be honorable, but it can also get a guy in a jam from time to time.

RunFiveRun: Thanks for the real world advice on dealing with this kind of thing. Also What kind of cannons are you casting for that consume 2400lbs of lead in a weekend?

[DerekP Houston]

Webley I'd start with maybe 500 lbs of what is already in ingots, doesn't need a truck and would let you check out the remaining supply and make a decision from there.

[Yodogsandman]

How are you at eyeballing that much lead? Take a scale with you. I met a guy in the next town over with #80 lb of lead to sell. On my scale, it was only a little less than #50 lbs. The sale price changed accordingly. He had never weighed it out, just guessed. Course it could go the other way, too. He might figure an ingot at a pound a piece and they could all actually weigh 2 lbs.

[WFO2]

Man I would figure out a way to get it . The guys are right a trailer decent trailer can handle it . I would unloading my UTV and paying grandkids and friends to load and unload .

[triggerhappy243]

But a 1 ton u-haul van will carry it safely, with out damaging a friends truck or the friendship. What does it cost to rent $40.00? Cheap insurance. And who knows you may get a free bench.

[runfiverun]

gun shows.
a box of 500 boolits weighs about 16 lbs on average.
by the time I run the 40 different boolit styles in and 4-5 boxes of each style it added up quickly.
never mind the plated stuff and the fishing sinkers we handled.

[lightman]

I would find a way to get it if I needed it. That would do you for a long time. But, I do have my own truck and trailer. See if your friend will take you there and stop someplace for lunch. Renting a truck is an idea, I just don't know what the prices are. Big scores like that can be a lot of work but you won't have to scrounge for a long time.

[OS OK]

This ain't the first deal I've read about over in that neck of the woods...wondering if it'll be worth it. I don't think these deals come along so often that you can afford not to take it, especially when the mileage is a measly 100 miles. You could prolly get some members from the general area to go in with you, split costs, split lead...win-win, dontcha think?
I wish that would happen over here even once and a while and...be lucky enough to find it before it was gone.

[Cord]

As time goes on, deals on big lots like this are becoming more and more rare.
If he sold you a portion at .50 per pound (cheap right there) the big lot will be even cheaper!

Consider the time and propane money to melt the 2400lbs. of ready ingots alone.
And with a stash of soft lead like that, there will probably be WW, lino and tin to boot.

I would be all over this one, the days of easy to find lead are passing.
.

[.455 Webley]

Well the guy is on a fishing trip until Tuesday so i have a little time to make up my mind and perhaps find a couple local casters to go in on it with me. Sounds like he needs 900 bucks for it all, worked out per pound that's a good deal even with the transportation headaches factored in. If you know anyone on here in the Duluth MN or Superior WI area who is on here ask them to shoot me a PM please.

[DerekP Houston]

Well the guy is on a fishing trip until Tuesday so i have a little time to make up my mind and perhaps find a couple local casters to go in on it with me. Sounds like he needs 900 bucks for it all, worked out per pound that's a good deal even with the transportation headaches factored in. If you know anyone on here in the Duluth MN or Superior WI area who is on here ask them to shoot me a PM please.

Assuming his weight calculations are correct *and* these are already melted in to ingots that is one heckofa a deal. You could under cut most prices on evilbay and still make enough profit selling half of it to reimburse you for the initial outlay. If it were me I would have it piled in the garage and rolling on it already.

[mold maker]

Get it! Get it all right now. Don't even think about it. At that price, it's like buying gold at 1/3 spot.
Between loading and unloading, the 100 miles is just time, and you'll spend it somewhere. Take some like minded with you and split the labor.