Examples of Zinc Wheelweights

[Uncle Grinch]

We talk so much about contaminating our alloy with those ever more prevalent EPA approved zinc wheelweights, so I decided to post a photo of what I found in my last two batches of wheelweights. A couple are very obvious, but one is really hard to detect. The long traditional looking weight did not melt and was floating on top of my brew.

After pulling it out and letting it cool, I tried to cut it with a pair of linemans pliers. It would barely dent it, but it feels heavier than the other obviously zinc weights. Another actually steel (marked 25 Fe).

Moral of story... pick through your weights and smelt them at a low temp so you can float the bad stuff out.

[FISH4BUGS]

I can't help but wonder - how much zinc in a 50 lb pot of liquid lead will "contaminate" it and make it unusable?
1 weight, 3 weights, 20 weights.....how much?

[Uncle Grinch]

Good question, I wish I knew the answer.

How about it guys!

[birdhunters]

Well I've always heard one bad apple will spoil the barrel.....so I'd think along the lines of one zink might spoil the pot.

[Dye]

I can't help but wonder - how much zinc in a 50 lb pot of liquid lead will "contaminate" it and make it unusable?
1 weight, 3 weights, 20 weights.....how much?

FISH4BUGS
Once the alloy is contaminated with zinc, you will never get all of the zinc out of the alloy. If you are melting
ww and find the sign of zinc ( what felix calls a cow pie). Shut your pot down, let it cool down until it hardens.
Start the burner back up and when it gets to 650-700 flux it with the (Old Potato Trick) but use a small piece of carrot) about the size of a bean) on a gas welding rod bent to hold it. Move it around the bottom of the pot to get an upward current to raise the zinc to the top. skim of the lumps and You should be able to cast a usable bullet but not target quality.
4 lbs of ww and .510 oz zinc will be imposible to cast.

Be carefull Dye

[Uncle Grinch]

I can't help but wonder - how much zinc in a 50 lb pot of liquid lead will "contaminate" it and make it unusable?
1 weight, 3 weights, 20 weights.....how much?

I just ran across the answer to your question.... According to Richard Lee's Modern Reloading, Chapter 10, page 116....
"Zinc is bad! One part of zinc in 10000 parts of lead alloy will ruin its castability"

[mto7464]

I am not sure the one in the lower left corner is zinc. I melt my WW at a low temp and I dipped one of the suspect weights, like yours in the pic, and it melted very quickly. I keep my temp just over melting until I get all the clips out so I know it wasn't too hot. I still tossed the rest out just to be sure.

[sundog]

Put this up once and twice before

http://home.valornet.com/corkyconnell/photos/nogo_wws.jpg

These are NO GO.

[Orygun]

Sundog,
Are you sure those top four are all zinc? I had some today that looked simular, but they did melt at the initial temp. I also took one and hit it with a hammer a few times and it appeared to be the same consistency of regular WW's.

[sundog]

Orygun, they were 'floaters'. sundog

[Orygun]

Ah, okay. The few that I let through didn't seem to 'float', but I did toss some thereafter as I didn't trust them.

Thanks!