Cutting the Lead

[ColColt]

I'd like to cut this big brick of lead up but not sure what's the best method. Any suggestions will be appreciated. I haven't actually measure it but it's about 4x8" and maybe 2 inches thick...and, plenty heavy. Thought of a big ax but....

http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x220/ColColt/Misc%20Stuff/_DEF3790.jpg

[WILCO]

Sell it and buy some WW's........

[*Paladin*]

For that, I'd just cut with an axe or a hammer and chisel.

[Doc Highwall]

After you determine what it is melt it down into ingots and alloy it later.

[bumpo628]

I would either put it in the pot vertically or start working on it with a hammer & chisel as previously mentioned. Once you get halfway through, you can bend it back and forth until it breaks.

[lwknight]

I would just melt it like it is.

[Dale53]

I have melted solid ingots of alloyed metal that weighed from 65 to 92 lbs. I just put them in my 12" Harbor Freight Cast Iron Dutch Oven and heat with my Turkey/fish Fryer. It doesn't take long to convert it to usable size ingots. My brother and I did 650 lbs of these large ingots in about three hours.

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj80/Dale53/QWinter2009andleadsmelting-1767.jpg

Dale53

[white eagle]

when I cut the lead bricks I use a circular saw
just don't try to cut it all at first
a light cut both sides then deeper until you can break it or it falls apart

[Springfield]

I could do that easy with my turkey fryer and pot. The last piece I did weighed 110 lbs, part of a 1200 lb keel I cut up.

[fecmech]

Skill saw with a carbide blade will go through it like butter. Do it over a tarp so you can catch the chips and wear eye protection. Lead chips hurt a lot worse than pine chips!

[btroj]

Melt it down. The size you mentioned would easily fit in a dutch oven on a turkey fryer.

Brad

[ColColt]

Quite a variety of suggestions here. Unfortunately I don't have a Dutch oven, just an old Lyman 10 pound Model 61 and there's no way you can get that whole thing in it as it weighs about 25 pounds. I feel pretty sure it's pure lead as it's easily scratched with the thumbnail. I can't recall where I got it as it's been a millennium ago. I have taken a hatchet to five pound ingots similar to this but, this will require a different approach. Somewhere around here I've got a good size cast iron pot similar to the Dutch oven shown but deeper-sort of like an old timey slop jar. I don't have a means of heating it at the moment but that turkey/fish fryer looks like the ticket.

[montana_charlie]

I don't have a means of heating it at the moment but that turkey/fish fryer looks like the ticket.
Set the pot on three rocks and build a fire under it.
CM

[ireload]

I used my MAPP torch to cut a block of Linotype lead. I placed the block on cement bricks and torched right at the center. Just make sure you put a metal pan or aluminum foil that's been layered multiple times to catch the molten lead.

[dave roelle]

got a friend with a log splitter ?

[M4bushy]

I had some ww ingots given to me. The old timer used a small block chevy valve cover as a mold :-/ I didn't want to setup the turkey fryer in the middle of the winter from he'll that we are having. I ended up using my air hammer with a 1 1/2 wide chisel to chop it into pieces that would fit into my furnace.

[songdog53]

Before got into really smelting lead and was pouring for muzzle loader i would use hammer and cold chisel to cut it into blocks that would fit my Lee bottom pourer. Lot of hammering but then we casters never count our labor or time into our projects. Besides gives me reason to beat on something.

[CATS]

For a one time use why spend a bunch of cash or tear up a tool or make a pan that you cook in unuseable? Use what you already own. A hammer and a cold chisel sounds like the one time ticket to me. And if you do have to buy a tool, a cold chisel is cheep. Just don't wack your hand!
Let us know what you finally do with it.
CATS

[Doc Highwall]

An old Dutch oven 6-8qt will be used to smelt down and alloy lead into ingot form to fit into your casting pot. I have a 11qt and a 8qt that I use.

[45-70 Ranger]

Got two left, of the many 80# plates I got years ago. They're 1.5" thick, but with a large chisle and my maul, I'll hammer a bit, turn the plate over, and hammer some more. In a while, I'll have 2" strips of the lead ready to melt. And yes, I have a Lee 10# pot to melt in so I know what you have at hand to deal with. But like another member said, it gives one a chance to beat on something!! It takes time, but I measure time in another way that most folks do. If it's good for me and mine, then it's time well spent. If it wastes my time, I'll walk away.

Good luck with your lead plate!

Wade

[zxcvbob]

I had a 50 lb piece of lead someone cast in an iron skillet. It had a piece of rebar stuck in it; maybe they were using it for an anchor.

Easiest way I found to cut it up was with a carpenter's hand saw. Take long strokes so the chips could clear, and don't go too fast.

Ax didn't work very well. Neither did drilling a bunch of 1/2" holes in it and "connecting the dots" with a hammer and chisel.

[atr]

I use a bandsaw with a metal blade

[miestro_jerry]

I have used a cicular saw with a carbide tip blade in the past. Now I put my respirator on, welders helmet, leather and gloves to use my Plasma Cutter. It would cut but in a couple of minutes.
One warning never stand directly over lead if you are going to cut it with any kind of torch.

Jerry

[a.squibload]

Someone here said he uses a circular saw with the blade mounted backwards
so it won't load up. I haven't tried it.

[f350 caster]

When I was a kid and watching my older brothers mess with meltin lead they just whacked the **** out of the big chunks with an ax. Took a bit of time but there was no little chunks of lead flyin around like with a saw. Just my 2 pennies.
matt z

[bigdog454]

Sawzall quick and easy.

[zxcvbob]

Sawzall quick and easy.
Have you actually tried that? (I did. It just gummed-up in the teeth immediately and cut really slow if at all)

[Tom Herman]

+1 on mediocre results with a sawzall... I have nearly a half ton of foot long ingots, and we've demolished exactly one.
The sawzall got gummed up, and "connecting the dots" with a drill was iffy. The bits would typically get stuck. Took forever to cut.
Next purchase will be the fryer and a dutch oven. We'll let the heat do the hard work.
Happy Shootin'!

-Tom

[zxcvbob]

How about an ultra-lowtech approach. Dig a shallow hole in the ground, put the lead in it, and build a wood fire on top of it. When it's burned down, dip the liquid lead out to make ingots. When it cools completely you can go back and dig up the lead you missed, which is hopefully just a couple of pounds and will fit in your lead pot.

[b2riesel]

Heh...you sure that isn't a shield block for a High Flux Isotope Reactor....You get that from Oak Ridge?

[Boolseye]

nice chunk!

[zuke]

How about an ultra-lowtech approach. Dig a shallow hole in the ground, put the lead in it, and build a wood fire on top of it. When it's burned down, dip the liquid lead out to make ingots. When it cools completely you can go back and dig up the lead you missed, which is hopefully just a couple of pounds and will fit in your lead pot.

My thought's kind of.
Start a fire up and then toss it in. It'll melt and flow down. Next day just pick it up.
Or use a 50 cal can, standard or tall and put that in the fire to melt it.

[powderburnerr]

+3 on the sawzall they work very good if you use a demo blade , about 10 teeth to the inch and dont use much pressure. .. whips right through it then.

[Taylor]

melt it.

[bumpo628]

Have you cut this thing yet? If so, update

[ColColt]

Nope-I ain't cut it yet. I've had other reloading projects to keep me busy but it will get melted...maybe a 10 gauge with 00 buck would cut it in half. I have an ax but don't want to dull it. I had a big cast iron pot that looked like a slop jar but can't locate it. May be down by the hog trough. (teasing) I may have asked this before but how much of the lead should be used with Linotype to give me a BHN11-12? I know 50/50 is too hard.

[bumpo628]

I may have asked this before but how much of the lead should be used with Linotype to give me a BHN11-12? I know 50/50 is too hard.

1 lb linotype
3 lbs pure lead
= 4 lbs alloy with 1.00% tin, 3.00% antimony, hardness @ 12

1 lb linotype
4 lbs pure lead
= 5 lbs alloy with 0.80% tin, 2.40% antimony, hardness @ 11

1 lb linotype
5 lbs pure lead
= 6 lbs alloy with 0.67% tin, 2.00% antimony, hardness @ 10.5

1 lb linotype
6 lbs pure lead
= 7 lbs alloy with 0.57% tin, 1.71% antimony, hardness @ 10

The last one is pretty close to clip-on WW.

[shoot-n-lead]

Air chisel works well to cut large pieces of lead.

[truckjohn]

A chain saw will cut lead like it's butter.... They won't gum up like a sawzall will....

Go slow and let the saw cut..... Don't try to force it faster.

Just be sure you are wearing some leathers - the chips can be pretty hot.

Thanks

[ChuckJaxFL]

I had a 30 cal can poured solid to the top with lead.

I cut the can away with a dremel. Then I tried many of the above listed suggestions. What ended up working was a bow saw for pruning. I had to keep spraying the sides w/ WD40 to keep it from seizing.

[MikeS]

I use a bandsaw with a metal blade

I had about 30lbs of wheel weights that I smelted down, and I was going to use this aluminium ladle to make muffin ingots, but the 'alum-alloy' ladle turned out to be tin! So, not having any way of getting it into the muffin pan, I just turned off the gas, and let it harden in the cast iron pot. When it cooled it came right out of the pot (a Harbor Freight dutch oven), and I thought I would use my bandsaw to cut it into quarters, that way I had something I could put in my 10lb Lyman pot, well, I got about 1/3 of the way into the first cut when the blade stopped. It's now stuck on the bandsaw blade. This is a large industrial bandsaw, not a home shop kind of unit, and I'm pretty sure it had a metal cutting blade in it.

Anyone have a good suggestion on how to get the lead ingot off the saw blade?

[a.squibload]

Couple ideas, how expensive is the bandsaw blade?
I was thinking of applying heat to it 'til you melt some clearance to slide the giant ingot away.
Not sure what that would do to the blade temper.

Or use a wedge, or a couple of screws in the slot you cut.

Or just break the blade.

Good luck!

[sargenv]

I just chopped up some linotype pigs with a hatchet and a 2# sledge.. Took about 10 whacks per pig to cut it in half..after I got about 1/3 the way through, it would snap in half.

[truckjohn]

he he he....

The trouble with "Metal" cutting blades is that you melt the lead onto the blade...... Guarantee you wrecked that metal cutting blade cutting lead dry....

Wood and Plastic cutting blades work just fine if you use LOTS of water to cool the cut.... Don't push too hard, etc....

But as I said before... Good sharp chainsaw will cut lead like butter. We cut nearly 80,000 lbs of the stuff a few years ago with a 20" bar stihl chainsaw....

The other thing that works reasonably well is an air chisel or jackhammer.

Thanks

[fecmech]

Metal cutting blades are generally fine toothed, not good for lead as they load up. A basic carbide tipped framing blade ($5.) for a skill saw or the cheap carbide blade that comes with $90 table saws cuts lead just fine.

[ColColt]

I'm thinking about going to Lowe's and getting a 3 inch cold chisel to chop up this 27 pound brick of lead I have. The saw doesn't sound like a good idea in light of the above. I don't' have a chain saw but do have s Skillsaw and Sawsall but for sure no metal blades to cut lead.

[zxcvbob]

It'll go a lot faster with a carpenters hand saw, or even a pruning saw. BTDT.

[jimfix44]

I used a Sawzall and a 12' Wood/coarse toothed blade. I scored the lead chunks as far as i could get. The blade will stick if you saw to fast or stop sawing. I found that if i pulled the saw bladed out of the metal towards me while still running it would come out clean.
I also used a wedge like you use for splitting wood and a 10# sledge to finish seperating the chunks I couldn't saw all the way through.

[doubledown]

I used to much lower tech and more primitive approach . I had two 30 pound blocks of lead that were giving me a hard time . so I brought them out to my 50 yard range and shot them . I was surprised at how tough lead really is . I had to use my 458 lott , I shot four vertical holes in the blocks, then took a hammer and chisel and just cut in between each hole . I rested them against a 12x12 so I was able to catch any lead chunks that blew out the back . it wasn't pretty but it was effective and fun .

[ColColt]

Another thought I had was to load up my 58 cal Zouave with a 90 gr of FFg charge and take that big block out in the woods and I figure about two rounds to the left and right side would section it real good.

[MikeS]

Well, after making sure we had a replacement blade (not like the blade that was on the bandsaw was still any good!) I went ahead and broke the blade, and then I had to break it a second time, so now there is a piece of the blade stuck in the lead. Once I get ahold of a proper ladle I will heat it back up, and make muffin ingots!

[Longwood]

Well, after making sure we had a replacement blade (not like the blade that was on the bandsaw was still any good!) I went ahead and broke the blade, and then I had to break it a second time, so now there is a piece of the blade stuck in the lead. Once I get ahold of a proper ladle I will heat it back up, and make muffin ingots!
My blades cost nearly $50. I would have tried cutting the other side with a propane or acetylene torch until I could bend the piece away from the stuck blade.

[mold maker]

I used to cut any size of lead with a band-saw and a 4 tpi wood blade. The courser the blade the better.
Our saw was a 36" with a 16" throat, so most anything I could lift to the blade was just a few minutes from being 2 pieces.
Now I'm retired and having to do like the rest of you.

[a.squibload]

Good you got it resolved.

Should have got Chuck Norris to stare it in half.