Range Lead sifter

[rancher1913]

I want to build a screen about 4 foot wide that attaches to my trackhoe but instead of rolling towards you like the bucket does, it rolls away and has a hydraulic vibrator so it sifts the berm and drops the dirt right back where it came from as you work your way up the berm.

[Clovis]

Standard archaeological rocking sifting screens should work very well. You can easily build your own or purchase one online.

[kevin c]

Standard archaeological rocking sifting screens should work very well. You can easily build your own or purchase one online.

An archeologist friend of mine suggested buying what she uses. While probably better made than what I could cobble together, they're a bit pricey at sometimes a hundred dollars or more (for the rocker version). That's a lot to spend for something you're using to try and save money.

[shooting on a shoestring]

OP, I’ll take a run at your questions.
1. Yes. Interested in all things related to shooting, loading, casting and getting lead.
2. Size? It would need to be small or light enough for an old guy to find it in the shed, load it in the pickup, unload it after shooting a couple of hours, drag it to the berm, use it for 30 minutes, drag it back to the pickup, load it, get home and unload it. Hmm, I’d guess 10 pounds is about the limit. I’m tired just typing about it...
3. How much dirt to process? Hmm old guy, bad back, arthritic hands using it after a shooting session, not much! Probably a dozen or so turns of an Ames No. 2 Pony which is about two Homer buckets worth.
4. Self shoveling? No. That would immediately make it too big, expensive for a retired guys hobby.
5. Environmental? Berm dirt has lots of “vaporized” lead. Sifting it will get it airborne. Stand upwind. Also I’ll guess there’s a line to cross into mining. Mines are heavily regulated. Prolly should know what the basic elements of law are on what constitutes mining.
Best of luck. Dad used to say “Bet on luck over skill. It’s more consistent”.

[Tatume]

Look here for some good designs.

https://aeoscreen.com/

[Outer Rondacker]

I mined dirt/clay with a 18"x24" 2x3 box with 1/4 screen on it. Had to push the dirt and clay though with my hand. I had on gloves. It was slow. Then I learned if I take 8" off the top a day and move the dirt forward as to not re-sift it the dirt had time to dry in the sun. Making it much easier to sift. I spent 40 hours doing this over the course of a week. I ended up with 5 five gal buckets of range scrap after re-sifting at home and removing most the small rocks. I will tell you my body screamed at me all week long.

[nate72]

Thank you,
I watched some videos of the machines harvesting the lead from a trap/skeet range, they are good at not letting you see how there machines are running, but I did notice that they get a lot of shot out of there.

[nate72]

We are currently building both a shaker table and a trammel to compare which one operates better, both are going to be able to fit in an suv still so that is is portable.

[nate72]

Thank you, I didn't think of having it dump into a wheelbarrow, we were worried about how to prevent it from dumping a huge pile of dirt in on place.

[nate72]

I know cal ranch sells a small sluice box, but doesn't it use a lot of water, or do you think it would work to recirculate it?

[nate72]

I am going to have to look up a gyratory crusher because I do not know what those are.

[Handloader109]

I guess the first time through I'll sift all the rocks out of my berm. Then It'll be easy for the next go round

[jdfoxinc]

I can cast a large amount of 1" zinc balls to ad to my trommel so it also acts like a ball mill while sifting the clay at my other range.

[McFred]

In the case of wet-sieving, 1 cup of baking soda in a 5 gallon bucket full of loose clay/soil, topped off with water, mixed and let set overnight will turn the contents into a very runny soup that will go through a 1/4" screen about as fast as you can pour it in. I learned that while taking a university archaeology course.

2¢

[Mr_Sheesh]

A gyratory crusher is like those cone & sieve deals we used to use to turn fruit into fruit paste, I cannot remember the name of those. Cone inside the outside cone is moved in a small circle at the top, so that material in between the two surfaces is alternately "Crunched" and released to smash it up. Any site showing a rock processing plant will have pics but finding one that shows the inner workings is something I'd rather do once I get sleep; A jaw crusher is the same principle and gives you the same basic results, just different details.

[dikman]

In my experience one of the conditions of digging a berm is that the material must be returned to the berm after the lead is extracted. That can be a trifle difficult if you're using a water sluicing arrangement.

[wv109323]

My thoughts would be a unit for the hobbiest and not a professional,unit. I would make a drum with ends and 1/4 mesh as the sides. One end could be open to shovel the dirt into. The other end would need a door to retrieve the lead. The drum could be rotated by hand or motor. The drum would need the provision to be rotated level and at a slight incline. Depending on the dirt material the drum could be rotated level to remove dirt and then be inclined so that the lead material would accumulate at the bottom of the inclined drum. There the door could be opened and the lead removed. With sandy material the drum could remain inclined as rhe sand would immediately fall through the screen. I would think a volume of 2-3 shovel full of dirt would be right.
One could experiment with a chute at the bottom end so that the lead would fall out into a bucket without removing by hand. I would have a wood floor under the drum so ease the removing of the dirt would be easier.

[fivefang]

Nate 72, that all depends, how mobile does it need to be, how old are you?, how quick are you to leave the area, I'm 84 no one hurries me, but both rotators are shot, so , a `10 x18" box with 1/4" cloth is fine for me, just my 2Cent's , Fivefang

[jdfoxinc]

got my trommel built. now to "range test" it.

[Alan in Vermont]

I'm going to be cleaning out the indoor range at my club. The sand in the catch area is ground into powder from years of use and needs to be replaced if we decide to keep the range in use. I did a little non-scientific testing and found the "sand" to be loaded with fragmented bullets. Sifting it through 1/4" hardware cloth left the sand with slightly over 50%, by weight, of reclaimable lead. It is now an issue of trying to get at least some of that lead separated from the sand. Given a huge propane budget and plenty of time I could run the whole mess through the smelting pot but that ain't gonna happen.

Obvious thing is to try to a finer sifter. This weekend I built one. 1/8" hardware cloth is available, but not locally, and it is made of such fine wire as to have little strength. A search of McMaster-Carr Supply Co. turned up a huge selection of steel wire mesh options. (M-C has a huge inventory, and while not low priced they get it out FAST. I ordered from them again yesterday [Saturday] and it has been shipped an should be here tomorrow[Monday] I settled on a mesh with .120" openings and .047" wire size, available in a section 12" x 24". BINGO!!


I have been meaning to, and forgetting to, pick up some 5/4 pine for a frame. Luck smiled on me last week and laid 5 sections of 5/4 x 12 Southern Yellow Pine, about 30" long, in my hands. I built a frame and have material for another, smaller one, that will be used to try to segregate about 50# of mixed lead shot.



As soon as I can find time I will sift another batch and see how much lead gets left behind using the finer screen.