Five gallon bucket of all Truck Weights!

[Defcon-One]

I just got in three five gallon buckets of wheel weights, about 125 lbs. each. Two buckets were the usual stuff, but the third was all large truck weights ranging in size from 8 ounces up to 14 ounces. They are basically small ingots with clips in them.

I know that you guys like proof, so I pulled out a couple of clean ones. Here's a pic:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/178454ff4a30659d2e.jpg

The largest one is exactly 8 inches long! There was no Zinc or Steel in that bucket, it was all Lead
woppers. They tested about the same as regular sized COWWs, they're just much bigger.

My lucky Day!

DC-1

[a.squibload]

Nice score!
Back sore?

[Defcon-One]

Thanks!

I make my wife carry them for me. I figure she brings them home, she might as well carry them.

OK, Just kidding!

My back always hurts. So, I bought a small dolly and use that to move them around. A friend helps me get them out of the SUV and then I just wheel them into the garage. Smelting is what really gets the back going though!

[jlm223]

Heck of a find, I hope to be that lucky some day, were they free?

[Defcon-One]

jlm223:

FREE, nope, I'm not that lucky!

But I hate to say it, only $10.00 per bucket, which is pretty darn lucky!

[GSCSA]

My last two trips to the recycler has yeilded a large amount of truck weights as well.

[Stick_man]

Great score, Defcon. Even if they were all smaller weights, $10/bucket is still a great price. I have had to give $15-20 per bucket of mixed weights over the past couple years now. Sometimes you get lucky. I am still waiting for my time.

[Defcon-One]

Stick_man: $20 per bucket is normal here and I have paid up to $30 per bucket, but my wife has a tire shop friend who came up with these. He got us a good deal!

My best story is the guy who apologized because another guy came in and asked for Zinc wheel weights, he was doing some kind of project or something, maybe cannon balls. The shop owner who usually gives me all of his weights let this guys go through the buckets and take out only the Zinc weights.

He later apologized because he thought I might be upset. I got all lead weights with a few steel weights. Pre-sorted by the other guy for me!

I explained my interest was primarily the lead weights, gave him an extra $20 and thanked him for the help.

I guess I am kind of lucky!

[jcameron996]

I am new to casting and have been trying to accumulate a supply of lead to see if it is available before I spend the money on equipment. So far I have picked up about 50 pounds of wheel weights and lead pipe for free that I have smelted into ingots. Today I made the rounds of local tire shops. One gave me most of a five gallon bucket for free. Two said they sent their weights with their battery supplier and two wanted fifty cents a pound. I haven't weighed it all yet but I probably picked up 150 pounds today for forty dollars. I don't think that I did to bad and I got the bonus of spending the afternoon with my little girl.

[Defcon-One]

J:

Sounds like you are on the right track. Just don't give up. I hear a lot of "No" answers too, but every once in a while I get a big "Yes" like you got today.

One note: It is good to take the daughter along on lead scrounging trips. They are usually fun, like a treasure hunt. But I'd leave her inside the house with mom for the smelting because of the hot lead and the fact that while lead can be bad for adults if not handled right, it is much more dangerous to growing kids since there bodies absorb it much more efficiently. Kids and lead just don't mix.

You should make sure to wash up really well after handling lead and keep it all in an area that she can not get into.

Welcome to the obsession!

[jcameron996]

Thanks Defcon,

I have been smelting in the shop a long way from the house and since I am still figuring out for myself I haven't let anyone else anywhere near. My wife calls every so often to make sure I haven't blown myself up. Hasn't been to hard to convince them to stay away since the temperatures around here lately have been almost hot enough to melt the lead without the turkey fryer.

[cabezaverde]

I have a buddy that owns a tire business specializing in trucks. He just gave me a small bucket, and it looks like it has a lot of zinc weights in it. :(

[a.squibload]

...the temperatures around here lately have been almost hot enough to melt the lead without the turkey fryer.

Yeah, I cast some Saturday, it was a little cooler due to T-storms but I was still
sweatin' boolits!