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Thread: How much in a 5 gallon bucket?

  1. #1
    Boolit Buddy
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    How much in a 5 gallon bucket?

    How much weight in a 5 gallon bucket? Im having a hard time finding some one that wants to give me wheel weights. So i guess im forced to buy them. I have a guy offering me 30 bucks for a 5 gallon bucket full. He says they take them to the scrap yard, so i assume that is what they are giving him for it. Thanks

  2. #2
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    call the scrap yard and ask them what they are paying, odds are it's a LOT less than $30

    The last few Full 5 gal buckets I wt'd came in at 150 to 180 lbs,

  3. #3
    Boolit Buddy
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    I looked at a local scrap yards web site and it said they were paying .20 a pound

  4. #4
    Boolit Buddy putteral's Avatar
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    I would grab it at that price. If it is full it will be well over 100Lbs. Probably closer to 125-150 range. I have been paying up to .40 a pound for wheel weights from a recycler here although I found a 40# pail for $5 the other day.

  5. #5
    Boolit Buddy
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    I just did the math and it looks like they are selling it for what they are getting for it. I think i need to start stocking up on it, just for the fact it looks like they may switch over to zinc weights nation wide. Twenty cents a pound is alot cheaper than buying lead from midway or something on top of shipping.

  6. #6
    Boolit Master snaggdit's Avatar
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    Remember, though, a full bucket does weigh 130-180lbs depending on lots of small or large weights. BUT you will have loss due to garbage, zinc/steel and mainly clips. You can usually expect to get between 75-85% in actual WW alloy. If I end up with 100#+ from a full bucket I think I did good. Still, $.30 a lb is not bad I guess if you can't find them free. I pay for half of what I scrounge, too. I try to limit it to $20 a bucket, though. Just an arbitrary price I try to stick to. My cost per boolit is so minimal either way what does $.10 a lb really matter?
    "To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. " - Thomas Jefferson

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  7. #7
    Boolit Master
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    I haven't called any of the local yards around here but about 2 months ago I was quoted from 25 to 40 cents per pound for WW and pure lead. One yard in San Antonio want 45 cents for WW and 55 for pure lead IIRC.
    I think they were paying from 6 to 15 cents per pound for the stuff....Wes
    The problem in America today is, there are to many fools making to many rules that don't apply to themselves. Now just wait until the new pres. takes office and see what happens!!!!!

  8. #8
    Boolit Buddy
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    may? it's only a matter of when not if. I've been buying as much as i can get. going rate around here is $20 a bucket. some fill them up more than others. One shop was selling them at $15 a bucket and I had a hard time timing it right before the "other" guy got to them. Finally got a pail from him and gave him a $20 and told him that is the going rate. I'm now his new bff!

  9. #9
    Boolit Master
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    Yep, the bucket will be full and heavy, but, as stated, you'll have to toss the zinc and steel weights, valves and stems, candy wrappers, cigarette butts, tire stickers, lug nuts, the odd bolt or two, etc. There will be the almost-pure-lead stick-on weights, too, which you may or may not want.

    Culled, and the clips skimmed during the smelting process, you might realize 80-pounds. But, it's more than what you had before.

  10. #10
    Boolit Buddy
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    I dont get what is so bad about the stick on weights. As long as it isnt zinc, whats the big deal?

  11. #11
    Boolit Master
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    Absolutely nothing. Last week, I smelted 76 ingots from them. Smelting is a rather malodorous and very messy process, though.

  12. #12
    Boolit Master snaggdit's Avatar
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    Many sort them out separate to use for slugging or ML applications. You can also just toss them in but as many have pointed out, it is impossible to get them back out later while it is easy to separate before smelting. It's nice to have the ability to mix up various alloys, hence pure, WW, Lino, etc.. I always sort them, but count it toward the total yield of course!
    "To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. " - Thomas Jefferson

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  13. #13
    Boolit Bub stillwell's Avatar
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    i just bought a 5 gal bucket for $25. seemed fair to me

  14. #14
    Boolit Master uncle joe's Avatar
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    scrap yard +

    I have a friend that works at the scrap yard in sales, (or buys) depending on which side your on. He said he can't sell wheel weights because of the alloy mixture. The people he sells to would like to have pure lead rather than led antimony mix. Therefore the scrap yard may be a good place to buy WW if the local tire guys are asking to much. My sales guy buys them from folks sometimes just to help them out but he really can't re sell them.
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  15. #15
    Boolit Master snaggdit's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by uncle joe View Post
    My sales guy buys them from folks sometimes just to help them out but he really can't re sell them.
    Lets see one of us get the guy at the yard to agree he might as well sell them to us cheap cause he has no other market for them when we are trying to buy some...
    "To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. " - Thomas Jefferson

    "Mankind will in time discover that unbridled majorities are as tyrannical and cruel as unlimited despots." - John Adams

  16. #16
    Boolit Master Lead Fred's Avatar
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    before I got so much I can never use in my lifetime. My friend had a wrecking yard. I went thru the yard pulling them off of cars before they scrapped them. I have a 55 gallon drum full.

    A lot of wrecking yards around here will let you pull them, then they can tell the EPA they are lead free. (they contain thier batteries already)

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master
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    The volume of zinc weights increase every bucket full. A 5 gal bucket is all I can do to lift into a vehicle.

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  18. #18
    Boolit Buddy
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    I'd say that's pretty reasonable. I've been melting down range lead, and wheel weights are so much easier to deal with. Snag all you can get your hands on. I'm having trouble finding weights free or otherwise.

  19. #19
    Boolit Bub
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    tire store up here I get my w/w from gets $20 a 5 gal pail.but I did buy 'em a pizza also last month. goin up tommorow,if i have an extra twenty i'll stop in.

  20. #20
    Boolit Grand Master fredj338's Avatar
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    Good price. As noted, that is well over 100#. I get 3gal buckets from my source & they weigh in @ 100#-110# full. Lots of tape wts (pure lead, weighs more) & about 10% garbage. Subtract another 10% for clips, tape, crud melted off & that is about what you get in alloy. I sort mine first & smelt tape wts. sep. for LHP or 50/50 for general purpose handgun bullets. Straight WW are great for magnums. Buy all you can get, the supply will shorten.

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BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
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