My lead level protection

[Kent Fowler]

I read the lead poll with interest. I've used these for years when I'm welding galvanize or tig stainless, along with my lead smelting. 3M 8212 N95 Respirator Mask
They work well for me, as I didn't have to drink a gallon of milk to keep from getting sick before striking an arc on galvanize. Before I retired,my lead levels on the yearly blood tests were checked and mine were negligible . But then, I also cast and smelt in well ventilated areas. These are kind of pricy depending on where you get them. Grainger is over double what IAlergy is. They may or may not be overkill for lead, but each to his own.

[captaint]

I wear a 3M respirator mask when smelting, also. I tried it once without. The wind was veriable and some of the smoke occasionally blew back in my direction. Made me feel really rotten, but after I chucked, I felt better. I don't take chances any more. Wear that mask !!! Mike

[robpete]

I wear a mask for almost everything....even sorting wheel weights. Call me paranoid, i guess. I don't wan't to leave anything to chance.

[Huntducks]

I don't wear a thing i'm a 65 year old retired plumber who leaded thousands of joints burnt out same under houses and my lead level's are fine.

How many of you that wear the masks smoke i'm sure thats a lot better.

[sabrecross03]

My lead levels were somewhat high- 42 and now I do not shoot indoors, I handle cases, tumbling, casting, lubing, and loading with disposable latex gloves. I also wear a 3m respirator when handling tumbling media or casting. My lead level has come down to 11, which took around four months.

[Case Stuffer]

I don't wear a thing i'm a 65 year old retired plumber who leaded thousands of joints burnt out same under houses and my lead level's are fine.

How many of you that wear the masks smoke i'm sure thats a lot better.

Some of us old timers just will never learn.

I turn 68 in a couple of months , have handled every wheel weight,Lino slug, piece of lead I have every smeltered and then againg while casting ,yet again while reloading ,checking and then loading into guns. Years ago I smeltered thousands of pound at 100 lbs. plus per batch sometimes for several days in a row. Spent many hours shooting at indoor ranges back in the late 70 early 80s when ventiliaion was really poor, managed an indoor range for a couple of years and cleaned out the traps numerious times and that was the only times I wore a cheap dust filter mask or gloves. Well I do wear gloves while casting but they come off to handle / check boolits.

My tumbling media gets discharged when it gets very worn out and by then it is dark grey to black and I am very sure it is loaded with lead from tumbling finished rounds and from prime and case resisdue. Yes I have read that I am being foolish . Never had lead levels checked and have no plans to do so.

Oh ,I stopped smoking aornd 20 years ago an stsrted chewing instead. County where I worked then adopted a no smoking policy in business or withing 50 feet of the buildings. County where I lived for 26 years got to developed and I could no longer shot in my backyard so I moved further out in the sticks.

[robpete]

here's the 3M filter that I use with a half mask: http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3...684239254&rt=d

[jdam169]

I too use a 3m respirator while melting/casting. I used the masks when I painted cars and couldn't smell the paint and no dirty boogers. When I started melting ww into ingots the smoke would make my head spin and stomach feel funny and this was outdoors. Tried the 3m mask and all was well. I also wear disposable latex gloves when reloading. I try to reduce the amount of exposure I have to toxic substances.

[Wayne Smith]

Some of us old timers just will never learn.

I turn 68 in a couple of months , have handled every wheel weight,Lino slug, piece of lead I have every smeltered and then againg while casting ,yet again while reloading ,checking and then loading into guns. Years ago I smeltered thousands of pound at 100 lbs. plus per batch sometimes for several days in a row. Spent many hours shooting at indoor ranges back in the late 70 early 80s when ventiliaion was really poor, managed an indoor range for a couple of years and cleaned out the traps numerious times and that was the only times I wore a cheap dust filter mask or gloves. Well I do wear gloves while casting but they come off to handle / check boolits.

My tumbling media gets discharged when it gets very worn out and by then it is dark grey to black and I am very sure it is loaded with lead from tumbling finished rounds and from prime and case resisdue. Yes I have read that I am being foolish . Never had lead levels checked and have no plans to do so.

Oh ,I stopped smoking aornd 20 years ago an stsrted chewing instead. County where I worked then adopted a no smoking policy in business or withing 50 feet of the buildings. County where I lived for 26 years got to developed and I could no longer shot in my backyard so I moved further out in the sticks.

I notice you haven't told us your lead levels! Not that I expect them to be high, but that is the implied subject of the thread. No need for protection if no danger, and lead levels are how we measure our exposure.

[MtGun44]

LOL!

Make sure you wear a tinfoil hat with that mask.

Just to be safe.


A filter mask is totally appropriate for stopping zinc fumes, caused
when burning zinc at VERY high temps, well over 6000F. Lead does
not BURN at all in casting and the amount vaporized at casting temps
is almost immeasurably small. Partial pressure is in the 10^-7 mm of
Hg range. That is a fraction made by 1 over 10,000,000 of a millimeter
of pressure, where atmospheric pressure is 760 mm. Essentially zero
pressure caused by evaporating lead, meaning essentially zero evaporating
lead. If you were applying a welding torch to lead, at 6000+F, that would
cause a lot of lead vapor in the air. We do not do that, and it does not
happen.

Lead in the air at an indoor range from lead in primers and boolits hitting
steel is a very real risk. Casting with any decent ventilation at all is not.

Bill

[btroj]

I worry far more about ingesting lead oxide from handling ingots and such.

Good hygiene is the key. I do avoid breathing the fumes from stuff burning in the lead as I smelt. Burning junk isn't good in my lungs.

Lead fumes? Not a problem. Particulates in the smoke from smelting? That is different

[MtGun44]

Particles in the smoke from smelting is a reasonable issue. Lead dust MAY be a
reasonable issue, but not from breathing it in metallic form, maybe in oxide form,
not certain. I am all for being safe, but I have to laugh when folks don't bother
to research it and just start "protecting themselves".

Not talking about reasonable precautions, like care with tumbler dust - lead is
in the primers, may be some residue in the tumbler dust. The one that keeps
coming up is "lead vapors" which is nonsense.

Lead in industry does not require masks for people exposed 8 hrs a day, but the DO
prohibit smoking, drinking or eating anything until they leave the production floor
and wash their hands. OSHA is inflexible and if workers are found with dangerous
lead levels things have to be done to stop it. This is normal practice (at least it was
10-12 yrs ago, I have not recently spent the time to update) in industry.

Bill