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XD40SW
03-24-2012, 11:15 PM
There is an old pine tree stump up at the local shooting spot. I know it has at least 500lbs of lead in it, probably more. I was thinking about bringing it home, then put a big steel bowl in my bonfire pit and start burning. Should have a nice puddle at the bottom. Anyone ever tried recovering lead out of wood?
clodhopper
03-24-2012, 11:25 PM
Chances are you could just burn the stump and dig around in the cooled ashes to get the lead later.
I put dross in my fire pit to reclaim lead.
The wood fire is self fluxing.
Mooseman
03-24-2012, 11:48 PM
Tip...a cut down 55 gal drum will work and catch all the lead in the bottom.
Ash can be blown off with a leaf blower or shopvac outlet.
Coffeecup
03-25-2012, 12:44 AM
Tip...a cut down 55 gal drum will work and catch all the lead in the bottom.
Ash can be blown off with a leaf blower or shopvac outlet.

In the immortal words of H. Simpson, "D'OH!!" I've done the "burn the wood to salvage lead" bit a couple times and never thought of that.
fatelk
03-25-2012, 01:19 AM
I had a big cedar stump I shot into for years. I know there had to be a lot of lead in it and it needed to go, so I burned it. It burned hot and smoldered for a long time, but I couldn't find any lead at all in the ashes. There were smoldering root holes that seemed to go down 10 feet in the ground. I assume that's where all the lead went.
XD40SW
03-25-2012, 02:40 AM
There were smoldering root holes that seemed to go down 10 feet in the ground. I assume that's where all the lead went.

I would imagine so. I have seen where entomologists will pour molten lead into an underground ants nest, to make make a cast model of the structure. Then they dig around it and blow all the soil away.
stubshaft
03-25-2012, 04:29 AM
You don't need the bowl. Just burn the wood over cleared ground and pick it up afterwards, it will not penetrate into the dirt.
a.squibload
03-28-2012, 03:06 AM
There is an old pine tree stump up at the local shooting spot. I know it has at least 500lbs of lead in it, probably more. I was thinking about bringing it home, ...

I got an image of you carrying this 500 lb stump to your truck...:-P
runfiverun
03-28-2012, 07:25 AM
just toss it in the bed and burn it.
i can't imagine how big a 500 lb stump is.