Well, I feel like an idiot

[jmkelly60]

So we have an outdoor range here. No staff or anything, not really an official range. Basically just an outdoor area in the woods where everyone goes for target practice. It seems like a perfect place to harvest lead.

The only problem is, it’s pretty rocky soil with rocks about the same size as your average spent bullet. For this reason I haven’t set up a screen rig to filter out the lead. It just seemed like too much work to sort out the rocks from the lead.

It was only just today that I had that forehead slapping moment.

I don’t have to sort it. The melting process will do it for me. Once the lead melts, I can just skim off the rocks. Granted, I don’t relish lugging home a ton of small rocks just to use them as gravel in my driveway, but hey, free lead.

I don’t know why it took me so long to realize that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[b2lee]

I usually start off my day with that statement.

[Conditor22]

Sometimes the simplest answers are the easiest to miss. I would recommend 2 screens, I to sort out the big rocks and one to remove the small stuff.
Build a tripod and rope system to hang the screens from to save on your back.

[b2lee]

you could always get a gold pan and pan off the rocks...and then get into another hobby that sucks up your time

[gpidaho]

Sounds like an invitation to the Tinsel Fairy to me. Gp

[merlin101]

Dirt and rocks will float and skim off but (there's always a but) it takes a LOT longer to heat up and seems to always take a bit of lead with the dirt. What I'd do is hand pick as well as possible the dump a bucket out on a strong sloped surface (like a flat bed utility trailer) and then hose it all off and sort. YEAH YEAH I know people are going to start screaming TINSEL FAIRY but if you use some common sense and use a COLD pot and heat slowly any water will evaporate off long before the lead melts, either that or just let a bucket o lead set in the garage for a few months to dry.

[JBinMN]

Sounds like an invitation to the Tinsel Fairy to me. Gp

Ditto! Many rocks are porous, and even though small, they can contain moisture & explode as well. I am thinking that you may want to rethink this a bit before firing up the hot pot. They would certainly need to be well dried out beforehand I would think. If it were me & I was to consider this, I would make sure they are dry "to the bone", as folks say...

I try to always remember a saying... "Never step over a dollar to pick up a dime." It could apply here...

Sometimes trying to save $$, a person doesn't realize in the long run there is a better way & what they are doing is going to cost them more in the end...

In this case, it may well be better to find another source for your lead before you spend more than you want in time or $$, plus the possible trip to the emergency room, if something bad happens.

Suit yourself though. You can always do what you are saying, but I would seriously give some thought to accumulating your lead in another way that has minimal chance of troubles before attampting this process.

G'Luck! & please be safe!

[dverna]

I would not do it. But hey....get 100 lbs of stuff and try it. I think you will save money buying lead though. Even if your rock to lead ration is 3:1, that is a lot of rocks to heat up and handle....and I am betting it will be closer to 20:1. So 100 lbs of stuff will net you 5 lbs of lead.

I will be building a bullet trap and that makes sense to reclaim lead. Rocks will kill any method I can envision.

Good luck and please report back!

BTW, might be best to fill the smelting pot and slowly bring the heat up....and do not add new rocks as you skim off the heated ones.

[Bazoo]

Rocks can harbor moisture and explode. It aint worth the chance in my opinion. What i'd do, is build a sluice box. You might have to experiment with it to get it right, but i betcha it'd work like a charm.

[Tom W.]

Or put a lid on your pot. But by all means start with a cold pot.

[gwpercle]

Sounds like an invitation to the Tinsel Fairy to me. Gp

Just what I was thinking .
Bringing a case of beer to the boy's at the local tire shop is my method of choice.
Gary

[lightman]

I probably would dump them out on a flat surface and pick out the worst stuff and then melt it in a pot with a heavy cover. I also would start with a cold pot. It seems like a lot of work but it could be a good source of lead if you have no other.

[triggerhappy243]

OK, Here is an idea to get the drooling started. Build your own bullet trap on a utility trailer. tow it to wherever you shoot.

[Stephen Cohen]

If I had to deal with lead that contaminated with rubbish, I would use my large cast pot with inbuilt home made strainer like we see in a fish frying shop, start with cold pot and just lift rubbish out when all melted. I use this method to reclaim lead from jacketed projectiles I scrounge from my range. Takes no time at all for turkey fryer to get lead up to temp. Regards Stephen.

[kevin c]

I agree that rock and dirt in your lead can increase the total BTUs used to melt the metal. It's not just that you're heating waste material, it's also that some of it, especially the fine stuff, insulates the lead, slowing down the melt out from your "ore".

Perhaps vibration could help separate the lead and gravel. If you could shake up the mix enough, the lead slugs ought to settle to the bottom, allowing you to remove the top layer of the lighter coarse gravel. The fine stuff could be screened out or washed away.

This is the technique used by the commercial lead recovery company that mines our berms, only they do it with a monstrous powered mechanical device, complete with conveyor belts, shakers and sifters that will load those huge reinforced crane lifted bags that each hold tons. Of course, for small time players like ourselves, a shaker/rocker tray or even a strong plastic bin might do the trick.

[sundog]

I like range scrap. I use a lot of it, because I have easy access to it. As far as 'trash' is concerned, if it is carbon based, then it is 'flux' during the rendering process, just light it off when it starts to smoke. Skim all the other stuff off, and pour ingots.

[Kraschenbirn]

Or put a lid on your pot. But by all means start with a cold pot.

+1!! Recovered in excess of a half-ton of 'range scrap' (after processing) over several years harvesting our club's old 25-yard pistol berm simply by raking the loose stuff off the face. Sifted/picked out the worst of the trash/rock using a 1/4" hardware cloth screen then melted/skimmed in a large dutch oven over a plumber's burner. Only memorable 'tinsel' incident was probably from moisture trapped in a JHP that failed to expand.

Alas, those days are gone. Two years ago, club rearranged firing lines with all new pistol berms and I estimate it'll take ten years or better before they're worth mining again.


Bill

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

Here's a vote for hand sorting. One benefit is you can sort into cast bullets (hard on average) and jacketed bullets (soft). I also would not want to smelt with a large amount of rock in the pot. It will take forever to heat it all up.