I hate these things...

[a.squibload]

...they make the bucket too heavy.

Also found a big fine thread nut and a torch tip.
Spent about an hour Friday on the way home, hit some tire shops.
1st place gave me 40lbs and loaned me the bucket.
2nd place gave me 50lbs.
3rd place no balancing, just mechanic-ing.
4th place police dept. picks up monthly for casting.
5th place bought 40lbs for $10. The usual guy comes by every 2 months, buys 4 to 5 buckets for $30/bucket. I might weasel my way into more there but some is better than none.

One guy told me there's copper in the valve stems and I shouldn't throw 'em away, true?
I didn't know.

[fryboy]

actually brass in the stems and while it is a small amount it does add up but is about a aromous undertaking to burn the rubber off
umm i hate that u got those huge ones too plz send them to me so u dont have to mess with them ( i'll even spring for the postage lolz ) erm kidding and serious ( just in case lolz ) seems i'm pretty much beat out on ww's in my area [bummer] i still check from time to time just in case .... i think i need a pretty wife so i could send her in to ask bet i mite have better luck lolz but good score amigo !!

[home in oz]

It was a dry run the last time I went scrounging....

[a.squibload]

.... i think i need a pretty wife so i could send her in to ask bet i mite have better luck lolz but good score amigo !!

+1 on pretty girl, they don't offer to carry 'em to the car for ME.
One place let me use their 4-wheel dolly though.

Thanks, I was pretty happy about it! Ain't that much though.


Home in Oz, that's my usual situation, disappointment! Keep tryin'.

[a.squibload]

Been sorting, lots of steel weights maybe 5lbs. Hardly any zinc.
More stick-ons than I expected, that's OK I wanted some soft stuff.

Found a clipon marked "Honda", I suppose that's only good for metric calibers?

Also played with the sheet lead I got a month ago, cut it into smaller pieces.
Scored a line with a cold chisel and bent back and forth about 6 times.

Hope to be casting again soon, need to slug bores, maybe lee-ment a couple molds too.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Also played with the sheet lead I got a month ago, cut it into smaller pieces.
Scored a line with a cold chisel and bent back and forth about 6 times.

I use a utility knife...Score then re-score, then usually just one bend.
Jon

[a.squibload]

Dang, I wondered about a razor knife, thanks I'll try that. Probably beats swinging a hammer.

I keep thinking of it as "metal", but it's more like really stiff cheese I guess...

[2wheelDuke]

Congrats. I've only hit one shop out of the many in the area, and he says that he sells his WW's already melted. His price sounded much lower than I see WW muffins for on eBay, so I'll give it a try. He took my number down and said he should have at least a hundred pounds for me in a few days, and I stopped in 2 days ago.

[a.squibload]

2wheel:
Sounds like a good source, he probably won't run out! I would almost rather get the raw WWs though,
so you know what's going in the pot. If he's a boolit caster he might know to keep the zinc out, couldn't hurt to ask him.
I guess if he threw in too many zinc WWs he couldn't cast ingots?

When you get a stash built up maybe you could point him this way, don't want to cut into anyone's territory but some folks
don't have the opportunity to scrounge WWs so it might be good to have as many online sources as possible.

I've read here the idea that WWs are not a known alloy due to the many types available, but
they usually are hard enough to make a pretty good boolit. It's all I've ever used. Before reading here I had no idea,
just thought pure lead was for black powder, and WWs were for everything else!

[2wheelDuke]

We'll see what happens and if the guy even comes thru or not. Most of the time I'm in the area where all these tire shops are, I'm on duty. I'm not sure if being in police uniform helps or hurts talking to these tire guys, because some of them seem kinda shady. I've been wanting to hit all these shops up, but I haven't had much downtime at work lately. I only talked to this guy when he approached us to hand out his business cards when we were wrapping up a traffic stop in front of his shop.

Like I said, I know what little I do in this from my old man. He worked at a newspaper for about 30 years, and he learned quite a bit from the guys that made the linotype plates to print the papers. Seems most of what he cast over the years was smelted wheel weights, sometimes massaged with either soft lead or linotype. The consensus on WW lead is that it's "good enough" generally.

I don't think the tire guy is a boolit caster at all, just a businessman and middleman. I'm getting the impression that somebody else is melting this lead for him, but I will ask about the zinc. I'd never really seen many zinc WW's before but have been reading plenty here.

The thought of smelting my own WW's down was my original idea, but the offer of getting them already cleaned for the same price sounded worth a try.

2wheel:
Sounds like a good source, he probably won't run out! I would almost rather get the raw WWs though,
so you know what's going in the pot. If he's a boolit caster he might know to keep the zinc out, couldn't hurt to ask him.
I guess if he threw in too many zinc WWs he couldn't cast ingots?

When you get a stash built up maybe you could point him this way, don't want to cut into anyone's territory but some folks
don't have the opportunity to scrounge WWs so it might be good to have as many online sources as possible.

I've read here the idea that WWs are not a known alloy due to the many types available, but
they usually are hard enough to make a pretty good boolit. It's all I've ever used. Before reading here I had no idea,
just thought pure lead was for black powder, and WWs were for everything else!

[montana_charlie]

i think i need a pretty wife so i could send her in to ask bet i mite have better luck lolz but good score amigo !!

As long as you can induce a pleasant looking female to do the asking...you don't actually have to be married to her.
CM

[a.squibload]

Charlie, dang, pimpin' for WWs?

Duke, just don't get your uniform dirty, somebody will think you've been workin'...
Yeah, ingots for the same price as raw WWs, can't beat that. I almost broke down and bought
some from the good folks here but figured I'd hold out for some cheap stuff. Ever since I started
scroungin' again I'm runnin' about even between pay for and free stuff. Pretty cheap so far.
But they're no fun just sittin' there, need to clear an area, fire up the camp stove and turn some into ingots.

What's better, garden hose or fire extinguisher?

[35isit]

I have had good luck asking for a small amount of wheel weights. Instead of asking for a full bucket, I ask for 25 to 50 pounds at a time. I tell them I just need a few, they seem to readily part with a small amount at a time. I also try to talk to one of the workers and not the boss.

[2wheelDuke]

Charlie, dang, pimpin' for WWs?

Duke, just don't get your uniform dirty, somebody will think you've been workin'...
Yeah, ingots for the same price as raw WWs, can't beat that. I almost broke down and bought
some from the good folks here but figured I'd hold out for some cheap stuff. Ever since I started
scroungin' again I'm runnin' about even between pay for and free stuff. Pretty cheap so far.
But they're no fun just sittin' there, need to clear an area, fire up the camp stove and turn some into ingots.

What's better, garden hose or fire extinguisher?

I rarely come home with a totally clean uniform. I've usually at least got some beggarweeds from hunting around vacant houses. Hell, plenty of houses with people living in them in this city have lawns that bad.

So far the tire guy hasn't come thru for me. I hope he does, but I won't really hold my breath, there's lots of other places I need to try. The tire shop that does our cars may be willing to help me out there. Plus I may buy some online, maybe some isotope lead. I've been picking WW's up when I see them, but that's only got 3 sitting on the workbench.

What sort of fires are you talking about putting out? I'd keep both the hose and the extinguisher close for versatility. Of course you know not to get that water anywhere close to your lead pot, but it can be used to wet things down in the area so they won't burn, or put out little hotspots. If the pot somehow goes up or the burner malfunctions, just get the gas cut and let it burn itself out.

I'm not fireman, but I do get involved with lots of fires to evacuate people and do what I can. I'm usually the first one there because I'm already nearby while the firemen have to stop cooking, or put down the xbox controller, or wake up and get dressed before they're on the way.

[a.squibload]

I was kinda razzin myself about the garage, used to cast in there, it's so full of, uh, STUFF that
I really shouldn't. Hate to have a 600º+ droplet get under something. Have to weld in the driveway. That's not a big deal 'til it comes to the grinding. Don't know why I'm so self-conscious about noise, we have a poor deaf child drives his truck by here several times
every evening with the stereo booming through our walls, sounds like WW3. He's probably a
drug runner, or just forgets things easily and has to go up & down the street...

Getting a little off track here but someday I'll clear a spot in the backyard for casting.