Identifying Pewter

[bigcountry]

So, I have 15lbs of pewter Christmas ornaments. I want to use the stuff. Is most all pewter consistently 92% tin? I have never poured any pewter or anything with copper content. Is that a worry?

[farmbif]

I've always gone by if its soft bendable pewter and or has hallmarks on it I'll add a little to clip on wheel weights when I'm smelting, maybe a couple or few ounces per 10 pounds or so. tin and pewter are worth a whole lot more than lead unless you buy it out of the lead bin at the scrap yard. it only takes a little to help fill out the edges of a mold.
there are some real experts here on the site that know a whole lot more than me about it, but that's just what I do and.

[kevin c]

My understanding is that modern food service pewter (mugs, plates, bowls, etc.) is lead free and 92.5% or better in tin content, but that pewter for other objects (candlesticks, picture frames and other decorative items) may have less tin, and, if old, often had a significant lead content.

Here's a quick review: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pewter

ETA: copper and antimony are present in modern food service pewter in single digit percentages. Added to casting alloy at the typical 1-2%, we're talking about amounts of Cu and Sb at a few parts per ten thousand, which I think unlikely to make a noticeable difference in the characteristics of the final alloy. Non food service pewter, I'm not so sure about. As a guess, the most likely high content metal besides tin would be antimony, which might harden the alloy some if present in the pewter used in double digit concentrations.

[Conditor22]

A little copper is good, it increases elasticity and hold boolit together at higher rpms/velocities

hate to say this but some "pewter christmast ornaments" are actually pewter colored .

all pewter is soft (ish) and usually marked pewter, Zinn,---

pewter can be many different alloys usually 80-92% tin and the remainder lead, they often add other alloys to harden it or ???

melt it and see where it melts,
Pewter has a low melting point, around 170–230 °C (338–446 °F), depending on the exact mixture of metals.

I use it for "sweetening the pot" while acting (IF I don't get good fillout and don't want to raise the temperature (hight melt temperature give you smaller boolits)

I throw .5 oz pewter in the mix, try it again then add more if needed.

I'm not OCD so I use pewter for alloying at the same ratio that is called for for tin.

[jsizemore]

That little bit of copper in the pewter won't cause any problems pouring ingots. Babbit can have a much higher copper content and pours just fine.

[CastingFool]

I melt 10 lbs of clip on wheelweights with 10 lbs of plumber's lead, roofing lead or pipe, all soft lead, and add 6.5 oz of pewter, or approximately 2%. Works just fine for my needs. I treat the pewter as if it was pure tin

[Land Owner]

At the top of this Forum is a Sticky Pewter Pictures and Hallmarks. It contains a plethora of this site's pewter and tin knowledge.

[Hanzy4200]

I've always using the bendability test. Or, run the tip of your knife over it gently. Just try a small amount. Where did you find them, if you don't mind?

[kevin c]

Most common metals will scratch or gouge pewter. A house key made of brass or aluminum will do it. When I was serious about pewter hunting, I'd carry a small flat piece of known pewter, snipped from a mug or plate, to test with on the spot. If the item in question and the test pewter wouldn't mark each other, I figured the hardness was the same. If the item scratched the test piece, I figured it was harder than pewter ought to be.

https://www.tedpella.com/company_html/hardness.htm

[bigcountry]

At the top of this Forum is a Sticky Pewter Pictures and Hallmarks. It contains a plethora of this site's pewter and tin knowledge.

I went thru that, but it was a bunch of pictures of pewter items. Lots vintage. These were custom made christmas ornaments from 2011.

[bigcountry]

Think I will cast out some of the pure pewter and see if it casts, and then let cool and measure hardness. According to the calcultors it should be pretty hard.

[Land Owner]

These were custom made christmas ornaments from 2011.

Ah-ha! New information not in the OP. Can the maker of these ornaments be questioned in regard to their content? Would be a good place to start anyway...