Lead is where you find it!

[Janoosh]

OK, this is really about WW. I live in a semi- rural area but for years lived in urban and suburban areas. These big and small cities and town all had street sweepers. Now, when I walk down the street, like some of you, I scan for WW. The street sweepers MUST be picking up the ones we don't find. What happens to ALL that sand/WW/ debris they pick up? I couldn't find a dumping place in my local area. And way too much politics in my town to even inquire at the Town maintenence garage. $TIPS$ are definately out of the question after this past years court cases. Suggestions from all. There's gotta be WW there! I'm hopin it's not a lost cause...... I'm hopin for a treasure hunt!

[SlowSmokeN]

Wow, that will be a treasure hunt. You can always slowly follow one of the cleaners and see where they empty out at.

I have given up the hunt for WW and now looking for other sources. Each area is different but here I can't find nothing but zink and steel WW. You may want to try your local scrap yard and see if they have cheap lead for sale.

[letsmeltlead2693]

Here's a pic of the wheelweights I got for free. I got 21.8 pounds in 2 hours by pulling these off of vehicles in a salvage yard.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/thum_223664f416f45cf869.jpg (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/vbimghost.php?do=displayimg&imgid=4034)

[Janoosh]

Great find at the salvage yard. I run my own business so following the sweeper is chancy at best as I'm usually at work. Good idea though. There are highway maintenence yards nearby, but closed on weekends. Not desperate....... Yet! I have some friends in the auto repair industry and some friends are plumbers, so I'm not desperate..... Yet! Made friends with a demolition contractor.... Gave him some venison and asked about lead pans from bathrooms. Also asked about lead roofing material. I know I can buy a better/purer, more refined product, but sometimes the joy is in the hunt. A treasure hunt. LoL

[letsmeltlead2693]

When I was at pull-a-part yesterday, I met a plumber, and we gave him our number to call use if he has any lead to give use. He said he had 100s of pounds at his house. I hope this works and becomes a new source for free plumbing lead.

[Bill*]

[QUOTE=letsmeltlead2693] I got 21.8 pounds in 2 hours by pulling these off of vehicles in a salvage yard.

You can get even more than that by doing it at your local shopping center :shock: just kidding

[waynem34]

I've had the chance to walk out in the road just behind our street sweepers and they dont pick anything up heavier than a bubblegum wrapper.

[beagle]

I've looked in several Walmart parking lots around their maintenance section and the ones that use sweepers around here get everything and leave stainless steel flat stock around from broken fibers from the brushes and that makes for good stock for small tools on the bench.

I've often thought about where the sweepers dump their loads. Lot of potential there as well but I've never followed up on it. Car washes seem to be food as well./beagle

[Freightman]

When I was at pull-a-part yesterday, I met a plumber, and we gave him our number to call use if he has any lead to give use. He said he had 100s of pounds at his house. I hope this works and becomes a new source for free plumbing lead.
Do not get to excited about this, I met a man a while back that said he had 1000# of lead at his house and he would call me when he dug it out. I said I will come and help you! no I will call. Been over a year still no call.

[Longwood]

Do not get to excited about this, I met a man a while back that said he had 1000# of lead at his house and he would call me when he dug it out. I said I will come and help you! no I will call. Been over a year still no call.

I know a guy like that. He has so much junk on 2 1/2 acres that the county made him put a no can see fence around it.
The fence is made from old garage and house doors. It looks as bad as the junk piles.
He won't let people on his place because he does not want them to see his "Treasure".
AKA not worth carrying off for free, much less paying anything for.
He even has stacks of boxes full of empty Hi-C cans.

[Janoosh]

That's the way Letsmeltlead 2693, and Bill*, that always gets me into trouble. "But Lady, I found this stuck to your rim and was just trying to save you from a flat tire!". Hoarders. Every town's gottem. And they don't let nothin go! In the next few months, here on the East coast, will be the best time to search for and harvest "Free Range WW". I find that they tend to gather at potholes during warming spells. "Mating season?"

[turtlezx]

WW are really attached tight and very few fall off going down the road.
you dont find them very often

[Revolver]

WW are really attached tight and very few fall off going down the road.
you dont find them very often

I found some site once that claimed 2000 tons of lead wheel weights fall off cars each year in the US. I wonder how they came up with that figure... seems high.

16,000,000 vehicles would each have to lose one 4 oz wheel weight.

I guess that might be reasonable.

[Philngruvy]

WW are really attached tight and very few fall off going down the road.
you dont find them very often

Well, not to be argumentative, but, my last road trip netted me over 12 lbs. of lead wheel weights just from the end of the exit ramps on the interstate. Some of them were huge truck weights.;)

[beagle]

When #2 son was trucking, I'd pick him up at the end of his run and I'd always check the trailer tires for weights. Got quite a few that way.

Don't know as I'd go through the Walmart parking lot though. There's some strange people on the site "People of Walmart"./beagle

[letsmeltlead2693]

Sometimes when I am with my dad, I look out the window and see lead WW on the side of the road, so I tell him to stop and if we are on a back road he stops and lets me get out to pick it up. One time, I saw a WW on a main road, so on our way back home, he parking in a parking lot near by and I walk to get the WW, and I found about 11 WW in less than 70 feet. They each weighed an average of 1 or 2oz. Still good. I have also went walking and found decent size WW on the side of the road. I used to go walking just for the lead on the side of the road, but now it is not safe enough to go walking without worrying. The last time I went walking for WW was 5 or 6 months ago. Once my dad and I walked on our street and the street behind us and in less than 20 min we found 12 WW. Looking for lead WW on the side of the road is fun if you can find a decent amount every time...

[mold maker]

Back in the 60's that was my only source of lead. The new interstate with its cement and joints shook them loose and they dropped at the off ramp. That kept me shooting for years.
I can't pick up weights while looking between my legs for approaching traffic any more. Some drivers will aim at you just for fun.

[Ruger1949]

I used to shoot competition while in the Navy for 21 years. One very interesting thing I remember while stationed at Norfolk, Va. was seeing a beach covered with bullets. We shot high power matches at Damn Neck, Va. where we also shot .45 1911 matches. After the match was over one Saturday and the range was closed my team captain got a couple of buckets out of his truck and said come on we're going bullet picking. We went out to the beach and wow bullets were everywhere. We quickly filled the 5 gallon buckets. It was a chore getting them back to the truck, one at a time. I'm sure that beach is cleaned up now but I still remember Boolits Beach.