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Thread: Melting points of Lead and Alloys

  1. #1
    Boolit Master

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    Melting points of Lead and Alloys

    Thought I had this stuff printed somewhere, but can't seem to find it. Can someone tell me the melting points in degrees Fahrenheit for pure lead, 30 to 1, common ww's, and linotype? It doesn't have to be precise, and I know alloys vary a lot. This time I'll write it on the casting cabinet wall................
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  2. #2
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    Temps in F

    Pure Lead 621
    Monotype 512
    LinoType 462
    WW 560 (Per MSDS sheet)
    10:1 563
    20:1 590
    30:1 600
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  3. #3
    Boolit Master

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    Perfect! Thank you.
    "The possession of arms is the distinction between a freeman and a slave."
    James Burgh, Political Disquisitions, 1774

  4. #4
    Boolit Master bearcove's Avatar
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    Make it a sticky! I'll be wondering the same thing some day and won't have it at hand

  5. #5
    Boolit Bub curt48mauser's Avatar
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    Answered my question

    This was a quick answer to what I needed to know. I had been melting and casting ingots from ww and doing just fine. Then I went to the stick on tape weights and could hardly get them to melt for anything. Looks like I need another 60' to get them to melt right.

    Thanks,
    Curt

  6. #6
    Boolit Master 7of7's Avatar
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    I found this chart in looking around...


    Here is the link to the page for reference:
    http://www.tpub.com/content/neets/14...s/14176_74.htm

  7. #7
    Boolit Man kentuckycajun's Avatar
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    Found this here: http://www.weights-and-measures.com/index.html


    -38° = mercury (metal)
    236° = sulpher (metal)
    350° - 450° = babbitt metals (metal)
    423° = selenium (metal)
    450° = tin (metal)
    520° = bismuth (metal)
    610° = cadmium (metal)
    621° = lead (metal)
    715° - 720° = zinc die casting alloy (metal)
    786° = zinc (metal)
    1166° = antimony (metal)
    1204° = magnesium (metal)
    1218° = cast aluminum & drawn aluminum (metal)
    1562° = barium (metal)
    1692° = manganese bronze & phosphor bronze & tobin bronze (metal)
    1700° - 1850° = cast red brass & cast yellow brass & drawn brass (metal)
    1762° = silver (metal)
    1945° = gold (metal)
    1981° = cast copper & drawn copper (metal)
    2000° = white cast iron (metal)
    2100° - 2350° = grey cast iron (metal)
    2237° = manganese (metal)
    2400° - 2700° = stainless steel (metal)
    2400° - 2750° = carbon steel (metal)
    2570° = hard steel (metal)
    2588° = silicon (metal)
    2600° - 2750° = cast steel (metal)
    2646° = nickel (metal)
    2690° = mild steel (metal)
    2696° = cobalt (metal)
    2700° - 2750° = wrought iron (metal)
    2750° = chromium (metal)
    2768° = pure iron (metal)
    2820° = palladium (metal)
    3090° = zirconium (metal)
    3182° = vanadium (metal)
    3191° = platinum (metal)
    3272° = beryllium (metal)
    4352° = uranium (metal)
    4532° = molybdenum (metal)
    5252° = tantalum (metal)
    5432° = tungsten (metal)
    6332° = carbon (metal)
    563° = solder (9 parts wt. lead & 1 part wt. tin) (metal)
    529° = solder (8 parts wt. lead & 2 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    504° = solder (7 parts wt. lead & 3 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    464° = solder (6 parts wt. lead & 4 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    428° = solder (5 parts wt. lead & 5 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    374° = solder (4 parts wt. lead & 6 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    365° = solder (3 parts wt. lead & 7 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    392° = solder (2 parts wt. lead & 8 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    421° = solder (1 part wt. lead & 9 parts wt. tin) (metal)
    205° = solder (32.0% wt. lead & 15.5% wt. tin & 52.5% bismuth) (metal)
    214° = solder (25.8% wt. lead & 19.8% wt. tin & 54.4% bismuth) (metal)
    257° = solder (25.0% wt. lead & 15.0% wt. tin & 60.0% bismuth) (metal)
    262° = solder (43.0% wt. lead & 14.0% wt. tin & 43.0% bismuth) (metal)
    293° = solder (33.3% wt. lead & 33.3% wt. tin & 33.3% bismuth) (metal)
    298° = solder (10.7% wt. lead & 23.1% wt. tin & 66.2% bismuth) (metal)
    322° = solder (50.0% wt. lead & 33.0% wt. tin & 17.0% bismuth) (metal)
    358° = solder (35.8% wt. lead & 52.1% wt. tin & 12.1% bismuth) (metal)
    360° = solder (20.0% wt. lead & 60.0% wt. tin & 20.0% bismuth) (metal)
    453° = solder (71.0% wt. lead & 9.0% wt. tin & 20.0% bismuth) (metal)
    1904° = solder (9 parts wt. copper & 1 part wt. zinc) (metal)
    1823° = solder (8 parts wt. copper & 2 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1706° = solder (7 parts wt. copper & 3 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1652° = solder (6 parts wt. copper & 4 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1616° = solder (5 parts wt. copper & 5 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1508° = solder (4 parts wt. copper & 6 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1436° = solder (3 parts wt. copper & 7 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1292° = solder (2 parts wt. copper & 8 parts wt. zinc) (metal)
    1076° = solder (1 part wt. copper & 9 parts wt. zinc) (metal)

    per wiljen's post, WW melt @ 560 - so I take it that's approx 9:1 mix lead/tin? (as highlighted in green)
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  8. #8
    Boolit Master
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    If there is also antimony in the tin/lead alloy the melting points are all different. Antimony is to tin/lead as salt is to ice/water. it only takes a small percentage to make big differences too.
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  9. #9
    Boolit Bub
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    A chart showing the effect of tin on temperature is pretty much useless for two reasons. First, there is no reason for more than very small percentage of tin, if any at all, and such mall amounts have little effect. Second, the important additive is antimony, not tin. Much bigger percentages of antimony are needed, and antimony reduces melting tempertature much more than does tin, so the effect is much greater.

  10. #10
    Boolit Master
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    Talking

    Actually the tin lead chart can be useful if you end up with a bunch of solder bars with out markings or pieces, it will give you an idea what the percentages might be when you melt it. I was given about 60 lbs. of 63/37 solder and that is how I determined what it was, and now that I know I will be able to alloy it with confidence. It will not hurt to save it in a folder marked Lead Alloy's and melting Temperatures.

  11. #11
    Boolit Master

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    So does anyone know the melting point of Lyman #2 alloy?
    - MikeS

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  12. #12
    Boolit Bub
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    Stick ons

    I thought the stick on wheel weights were softer than clip on!

  13. #13
    Boolit Master
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    I got this info from kentuckycajun's post above. When it is arranged like this, you can see the affect tin has on the melting point of lead. It drops, then goes back up. The low point is at the eutectic - 63% tin, 37% lead. This information can be used to find the tin percentage of an unknown bar of solder.

    621° = lead
    563° = solder (10% tin & 90% lead)
    529° = solder (20% tin & 80% lead)
    504° = solder (30% tin & 70% lead)
    464° = solder (40% tin & 60% lead)
    428° = solder (50% tin & 50% lead)
    374° = solder (60% tin & 40% lead)
    362° = solder (63% tin & 37% lead) (eutectic)
    365° = solder (70% tin & 30% lead)
    392° = solder (80% tin & 20% lead)
    421° = solder (90% tin & 10% lead)
    450° = tin
    Last edited by bumpo628; 08-11-2011 at 11:55 AM.
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  14. #14
    Boolit Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by Diegokid View Post
    I thought the stick on wheel weights were softer than clip on!
    Usually they are. Traditionally stick on weights were made from pure lead while the clip on type were a lead/antimony/tin alloy (which with the addition of more tin makes a great boolit alloy). However more and more zinc weights of both clip on and stick on variety are showing up as so many states try to 'go green' by eliminating lead from everything!

    What the reasoning for getting rid of lead from tire weights I don't understand, what, do they think babies are going to come along and chomp on a tire weight they find on the side of the road?
    - MikeS

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  15. #15
    Boolit Grand Master 303Guy's Avatar
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    What the reasoning for getting rid of lead from tire weights I don't understand, what, do they think babies are going to come along and chomp on a tire weight they find on the side of the road?
    It's to stop them from ingesting lead when they get run over! OK that was sick - sorry! But you get the idea that there's no actual logic behind it.
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  16. #16
    Boolit Buddy
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    I know it's an old thread, but the rationale behind dumping lead wheelweights is what happens to them when they

    fall off

    on the road.

    Runover repeatedly = pulverization = chemical reactions = non-elemental compounds that can become biologically active, uptake by vertibrates, and all kinds of hurt the kids and the little birds harm.

    Same for getting swept by stormwater into the low-lying wet parts of our great land.

    I have absolutely no idea whether any science actually quantifies this as a level of harm that would be reduced by switching to zinc wheelweights. Zinc is not exactly friendly to living things, either.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master Wal''s Avatar
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    Can't imagine a wheel weight ever being pulverized on any H'Way, casters can spot them a mile off.


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  18. #18
    Boolit Master



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    Quote Originally Posted by Grump View Post
    I know it's an old thread, but the rationale behind dumping lead wheelweights is what happens to them when they

    fall off

    on the road.

    Runover repeatedly = pulverization = chemical reactions = non-elemental compounds that can become biologically active, uptake by vertibrates, and all kinds of hurt the kids and the little birds harm.

    Same for getting swept by stormwater into the low-lying wet parts of our great land.

    I have absolutely no idea whether any science actually quantifies this as a level of harm that would be reduced by switching to zinc wheelweights. Zinc is not exactly friendly to living things, either.
    For all the hue and cry about lead contamination, Where is the necessary testing to determine the amount of lead ingestion by humans. On Tuesday, I asked the VA to check my blood for lead contamination, and I was told there is no such test in their computers. Go figure....

  19. #19
    Boolit Bub nodda duma's Avatar
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    Good reference

  20. #20
    Boolit Bub
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    can you use rosin core solder?

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

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
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check