Contaminants

[publius]

I'm sure this is beating a dead horse but be nice to the newbie. First, how do you get the steel clips off of the wheel weights. second, wheel weights are nasty with all sort of dirt, sand, etc. embedded in the lead. I guess all this trash floats to the top and you just skim it off? Seems like you would be skimming a LOT of junk out.

[Winger Ed.]

Melt & skim,,, outside.

[farmbif]

yes melt and skim outside in a pot dedicated to doing just this. I use cast iron pot but steel works too, aluminum is not a good idea. some of the wheel weights I use were peeled out of asphalt, very nasty,
put em all in a pot heat em up mix in some saw dust. use a good strong slotted spoon from the thrift store and skim all the crud off the top.
lead is heavier than everything else so steel and rocks, sand and all the crud floats on top once melted.
after skimming the crud off the top mix in some bees wax or gulf wax or piece of a candle. if theres more crud on top skim it off. either use a dipper or large strong spoon or pour into ingot molds

[NyFirefighter357]

Flux it good and it all floats, also scrape the sides & bottom.

[publius]

Thanks guys. You must have to skim a helluva lot of trash off.

[Dusty Bannister]

Ah, did anyone suggest that you sort the clip on wheel weights to remove the iron and zinc weights? There is a sticky on what to look for, and there are some simple tests that you can do before you try to melt them down. Please do not melt them in your casting furnace. Do not use an aluminum pot on a turkey or fish fryer either as the aluminum can fail without warning and give you a hot lead foot bath.

[Bazoo]

The steel clips float, and they will cover the top of your pot by a couple inches. Skim the bulk of those first and then flux and stir and skim the dust and debris. Flux with both sawdust and wax together when cleaning wheel weights and, do it twice. Then when it's clean flux again with just wax, scraping the sides and bottom of the pot each time.

[triggerhappy243]

Thanks guys. You must have to skim a helluva lot of trash off.

I use a big magnet to pull the clips out.

[ioon44]

I use a 4" magnet to pull the clips out also.

[FLINTNFIRE]

No wheel weights here anymore worth getting , I used to do a 5 gallon bucket a night , heat pot skim clips flux pour ingots add more weights until it was all done , was not as much junk as I get doing range scrap , used to get roofing lead with lots of tar , and had some old lead drains from a lab that had a lot of dried up nasty in them , Flux and skim .

[Conditor22]

When fluxing make sure you use both sawdust and wax of some kind, I find that wax helps separate the lead form the jackets.

Flux (stir) well!!!

[lightman]

Like the others said, the clips will float. Most of us have a slotted spoon that we use for this. Any dirt or other trash will float to the top also. If you melt in a fairly large pot you might want to look at the larger long handled skimmers that RotoMetals offer. After years of using a spoon I finally bought one and wish I had purchased it sooner.

Oh Yeah, Welcome Aboard.

[publius]

Thanks for the replies. yes I've read about how to eliminate steel and zinc before melting. I'm using a big cast iron pot. There has to be a ton of stuff to skim as dirty as ww are.

[DHDeal]

It is messy, but it is also worth it if you have enough WW's. I usually do a bucket worth at a time and will flux it twice before I pour ingots.

[lightman]

Thanks for the replies. yes I've read about how to eliminate steel and zinc before melting. I'm using a big cast iron pot. There has to be a ton of stuff to skim as dirty as ww are.

Its not as much junk as you might think. Lots of clips for sure but the grease, oil, paint and coatings mostly burn off. But there will be some other stuff to skim.

[john.k]

You want to give your iron pot a good scrape over too.Its surprising that sand and dirt can lurk under the surface of the lead ,and pop up at the moment you think everything is clean.It will also come up in your casting pot ,too.

[GregLaROCHE]

One of the amazing qualities of lead is how easy it is to clean it up.

[country gent]

Bigger wheel weights are easier than the small, more lead per clip. I pull most of the clips out when melted then flux with sawdust wax and skim repeat this 2-3 times. When I was doing this My pot held 350 lbs so a lot of clips and trash. Its not as big a thing *** most think but it needs to be done. Fluxing removes the impurities and blends the good stuff back in. A slotted spoon spatula or in my case a small spade with slots milled in it makes this a lot easier.

[44magLeo]

When I melt COWW's I get about 40-60 % lead by weight. The more big weights the higher the %.
Yes it is dirty work. Depending on the flux used it gets smoky and smells too.
I have several pine trees in my yard. I can collect them by the bucket full. Let them dry well. They kinda smell like Chreistmas trees when used. I also do a bit if carpentry so have lots of sawdust as well.
Leo

[bangerjim]

Ahhhhh.....brings back memories of the "goode olde daze" when I COULD find COWW's and all were Pb. I quit messing with them 3+ years ago when most started being a high % of Zn. It is really a stinky, smoky, messy process. Just be glad steel (and most gunk) floats on molten Pb!

I, as most on here do, flux 3X with wood dust and wax. I prefer beeswax over paraffin because it has a much higher flash point temp and smells GREAT! The final time is just beeswax to reduce the Sn back in.

Good luck on your re-melting adventures with weights! Glad you can still find them.