Lead smelting terminology

[mjwcaster]

So the term ‘smelting’ seems to trigger some casters even worse than the clip/magazine terms.

It seems like you can’t even read a thread about ‘smelting’ range scrap without people yelling that casters do not smelt.

Funny thing is the actual smelting industry seems to refer to the basic process as smelting, differentiating between primary and secondary.

Primary smelting being processing raw ore mined from the ground.
Secondary smelting is recycling previously used lead like batteries.

Ex. http://gravitametals.com/Lead-Smelting.html

You can also find companies that produce smelters just for battery recycling.

I guess if the industry uses the term ‘smelting’ for recovery of used lead it is acceptable for us casters.

After smelting of the basic product then comes refining.

Funny how controversial this subject can be and yet casters seem to have been using industry accepted terminology the whole time.

Time to go refine some lead on my Coleman and then try out my new used Lee 4-20’s.

Next week I hope to do some smelting of range scrap when my new ingot molds arrive, hopefully on a new bigger burner.


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[John McCorkle]

Guess I'm out of the cool kids club and don't know what terminology signals I have the right street cred but smelting seems like a good description.

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[Rightbrained]

I’m a total greenhorn but smelting seems to be the term I would use .

[44Blam]

Well, with range scrap I would think it is smeting because you are extracting lead from all the other dirt, jeckets and crap...

[GregLaROCHE]

Do we cast our boolits in molds or moulds? In this case they’re both right. What difference does it make as long as we get our point across?

[kevin c]

"Refining" or "processing" work for me, though, as GLR said, if I slip up and say smelting, everybody seems to know what I mean.

[robg]

cleaning scrap lead?

[kevin c]

That works too.

[John McCorkle]

Do we cast our boolits in molds or moulds? In this case they’re both right. What difference does it make as long as we get our point across?

Or if you're from here in Louisiana, "meauxlds"

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[mdi]

I got a few flames when I used the term smelting when I first came to castboolits, so I started saying "cleaning". But I think our terminology isn't so precise that "misuse" of one word would make much difference (none) as long as the reader knows what the poster means...

The only terms I don't care for are "pills" and "heads" when talking about bullets/boolits...

[WebMonkey]

he who smelt it, dealt it.

all i'm sayin'.

[454PB]

I call it rendering.

[GregLaROCHE]

How about plain recycling?

[bangerjim]

My term has always been and always will be "re-melting", which is really all we are actually doing. The workers at the REAL lead mines and raw ore processing plants actually do "smelter", through various rather dangerous thermal and chemical processes, the ore to extract the pure Pb. We conveniently only piggyback on their past hard and VERY dangerous work to simply re-melt the Pb and other alloys into cute little muffins and cakes that are then again RE-MELTED in our little casting pots to fill our little molds.

banger

[frkelly74]

I like the term rendering.

[jsizemore]

Do we cast our boolits in molds or moulds? In this case they’re both right. What difference does it make as long as we get our point across?

Exactly. Our ore might have been attached to a wheel or roof or been a water pipe.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I use the terminology and spelling of said words the way I want, I can't be bothered by those who might think it is incorrect. As to the choice of terminology and spelling of said words by others in this casting hobby, that I may not like...I am fine with them, as long as I can understand what is being said.

[dondiego]

I melt down my scrap lead but if you smelt or recycle your scrap, we both end up with ingots.

[imashooter2]

In my old age I’ve stopped paying attention to the shrill screams of the offended.

[Conditor22]

This site coined the word "boolit" so why not "smelting" = rendering lead/lead alloys into ingots