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Thread: Help Deciding Between Lead Sources?

  1. #21
    Boolit Buddy ikarus1's Avatar
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    Best thing is find a nice source of lead ingots from here...wish I had known that before i sifted the buckets of trash Ive found over the past few years. By the time you factor in cost of propane, etc then our vendors start looking like bargains compared to rotometals etc.

  2. #22
    Boolit Buddy
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    Jun 2008
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    Muskegon, Michigan
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    Welcome and as a suggestion, prime the network. Tell every family member, family and work friend that you are always looking for lead. For the non lead person, I would also suggest telling them what types of leads are out there, roof flashing, lead pipes, used wheel weights and so on. My network has easily produced over a 1,000 over the years. Not something you can plan on for delivery but never know when a phone call will give you a tip or a box just shows up on your front steps. Another source might be the local collector of anything metal or that has wheels all piled up in the back 40 acres. About 18 month ago my network provided me with a phone number that ended up with about 600 pounds of wheel weights and another 30 pounds of solder and such for $30.00. They were happy to to have moved the 4 deteriorating plastic buckets.

  3. #23
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Networking! Yup, put the word out. The more eyes that are looking the better!

  4. #24
    Boolit Buddy
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    Lookup "Bushwack" here, when he has any lead processed its 60#/69 bucks. Bought 3-4 boxes from him in the last year and it comes in muffin ingots from WW or stick on weights. Comes to 1.15 lb shipped. Or RMRbullets sells bullet cores they claim are 12 BHN for about 1.50 lb shipped, depending on how much you buy.

    I got permission to mine a berm at a local PD range, it has a lot of dirt in it but only costs the labor. Most is JHP's so there is alot of copper scrap which I will sell for 1.30 lb. 4 trips of 5-6 buckets of scrap and have 6 buckets of scrap rt now to sort with a magnet before turning in. it will pay for the turkey fryer, dutch oven and propane costs.

  5. #25
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    I say get it anywhere and anyway you can afford. Store some away and work it as you can. Buy some from some vendors here.
    It will not go bad in YOUR garage or storage
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  6. #26
    Boolit Master



    Crash_Corrigan's Avatar
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    I wonder if I could get permission to mine the berm at my local PD's range. They use 9 MM's, .40 S&W's and .45 ACP's and as I was a LEO for 24 years it might get me some traction..........It might be worth the effort, time and gas.

    My stash is dwindling down some. I moved last year and it was quite a chore to move my stash. Piled up it is 2 feet high, four feet wide and two feet deep. It is all in ingot form and has little air between the ingots. I also have another 600 lbs in 10 packages that I got from members of this forum for reasonable prices.

    I just want enuf to satisfy me needs and not to leave too much for my heirs to dispose of. It's tough to guess when that dirt nap is coming but at 76 I hafta think ahead.
    Pax Nobiscum Dan (Crash) Corrigan

    Currently casting, reloading and shooting: 223 Rem, 6.5x55 Sweede, 30 Carbine, 30-06 Springfield, 30-30 WCF, 303 Brit., 7.62x39, 7.92x57 Mauser, .32 Long, 32 H&R Mag, 327 Fed Mag, 380 ACP. 9x19, 38 Spcl, 357 Mag, 38-55 Win, 41 Mag, 44 Spcl., 44 Mag, 45 Colt, 45 ACP, 454 Casull, 457 RB for ROA and 50-90 Sharps. Shooting .22 LR & 12 Gauge seldom and buying ammo for same.

  7. #27
    Boolit Grand Master

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    The LE Community is a Brotherhood that usually sticks together. I would bet that you can get permission to mine that range. And yeah, moving a stash is a pain but most of us are more worried about running out than we are for whoever has to deal with what we have left over!

  8. #28
    Boolit Grand Master fredj338's Avatar
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    Dial up some local plumbers & contractor, roofing guys mostly. A lot of old buildings are still running lead shower pans, lead pipes, lead roof flashing, all useful for bullet casting. Older dentist offices have lead foils saved from x-ray machines. Even if they converted to digital, they are likely to have the foils, mine did, about 40# worth. Check out stained glass manuf or classes. The came is almost pure lead. Any old print shops still around the area? A great source for lino. Farm/warehouse euip places may have ballast lead. Boat shops may have keel & diving lead. Check the local radiator shops for drippings, mostly tin. Scrap is where you can find or scrounge it.
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  9. #29
    Boolit Master

    Plate plinker's Avatar
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    YES YES AND YES BUY BUY BUY. Just get started and it will all come together eventually. I would start with ingot first to get the hang of casting with good alloy. After you get the knack of casting venture into smelting and all that as well.

  10. #30
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    I agree with many of the others. Get some clean processed COWW (clip-on wheel weights) or range scrap from a vendor here.
    This will give you the best material to learn with. Then explore your options with the scrap yard, range scrap and ??
    See if the scrap yard has any linotype.
    My 2 ¢'s worth

  11. #31
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    RogerDat's Avatar
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    I'm another vote for buy from the vendors here. Solid people to do business with, competitive market, and you can get whatever alloy of lead you could want. Removes one variable from the process and honestly a lot of the country can't beat the cost of WW ingots here buying the WW's and smelting them down themselves.

    Meanwhile do the scrap yard, dig through the bin. Learn to identify the different forms that lead will take. What do these different alloys look like? Solder bar worth $5 a pound that you buy at scrap lead price, or printers lead worth $2 a pound also bought as scrap lead. Lead pipe which is soft lead, or x-ray wall liner that is almost pure lead. You might have to dig but that is where you can get some good deals, when you find the nuggets amongst the debris and buy it for debris prices.

    Bring a box of donuts to the scrap yard, Thursday is good if people are short of cash since Friday is payday, or Saturday because the food truck doesn't come through. Heck if they let you dig through the bin or help you haul out a nice chunk show up next Saturday with a $5 pizza to say thanks.

    If they let you set up a folding chair and sort WW's you just need a diagonal cutter or dike to test for zinc vs. lead. Nip the side of the WW's with the wire cutter and if it's lead it will clearly dent in or take a cut into the metal. Zinc is way too hard to make an impression. I find using a tray with sides sitting on my lap works really well. Scoop of weights sitting in my lap on the tray, pick nip, toss in good or bad bucket. Little wasted motion. Refill tray with another scoop, repeat. Can do about half of a 5 gallon bucket in a little over an hour. If you find a scrap yard that will give you that privilege be very nice to them. You can stack up 3/4 full buckets 3 or 4 high at home, when you get time and inclination start smelting.

    Plumbers, remodelers, any old house under construction. Friends, neighbors, boat yard (keels) thrift stores or garage sales for pewter (tin) if you can get it around $3 a pound. Just remember lead was the plastic of its day, used in many ways. Lots of different forms. From covering wires to body work before Bondo. Babbitt from back when people melted and poured own bearings. If you see Babbitt grab it! Great stuff. You never know what will show up in the scrap yard as "lead".
    Scrap.... because all the really pithy and emphatic four letter words were taken and we had to describe this source of casting material somehow so we added an "S" to what non casters and wives call what we collect.

    Kind of hard to claim to love America while one is hating half the Americans that disagree with you. One nation indivisible requires work.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check