Scrap Yard Score - Please help ID

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

I found these at the scrap yard. Did I get lucky?

The has "highspeed" and "heavy duty" stamped into it, as well as "universal babbit registered" in the corner.

I looked up merit babbit and rotometals has it listed as 73-75% Lead / 9-10% tin / 15-17% antimony. So is it merit babbit, or is merit just the foundry name?

Thanks in advance everyone.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Also, if those numbers are right, how much lead should should I alloy it with to get something close to WW? I was thinking 10 parts lead to 1 part of the mystery alloy.

[rockrat]

I am thinking about 6-1 ratio for closer to WW

[bumpo628]

Also, if those numbers are right, how much lead should should I alloy it with to get something close to WW? I was thinking 10 parts lead to 1 part of the mystery alloy.

Assuming the low numbers are correct (9% tin & 15% antimony):
1 lb merit babbitt + 17 lbs pure lead = alloy with 0.50% tin, 0.83% antimony
1 lb merit babbitt + 11 lbs pure lead = alloy with 0.75% tin, 1.25% antimony
1 lb merit babbitt + 8 lbs pure lead = alloy with 1.00% tin, 1.67% antimony
1 lb merit babbitt + 6.25 lbs pure lead = alloy with 1.25% tin, 2.07% antimony
1 lb merit babbitt + 5 lbs pure lead = alloy with 1.5% tin, 2.50% antimony
1 lb merit babbitt + 3.5 lbs pure lead = alloy with 2.00% tin, 3.33% antimony

Which recipe you should use depends on what you're casting.

How hard are the bars? Do they make a ringing sound when banged together or dropped on the concrete?

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

The bars seem a bit harder than WW and definitely let out a LOUD ring when dropped. They also seem heavy for their size so I am fairly sure they aren't a tin based babbitt

[bumpo628]

It looks like merit babbitt is not a brand name, it is a type of babbitt.
Here is another site that uses the same name and they list the properties as (SN10/SB16/PB74).
http://stores.acrosales.com/-strse-Babbitt/Categories.bok

How does the "heavy duty" bar compare to the merit babbitt? Is is cracked in half?

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

How does the "heavy duty" bar compare to the merit babbitt? Is is cracked in half?

The heavy duty bar and the merit babbitt bar are the same, just pictures of both sides. My confusion is that the ingot is clearly marked as Merit Babbitt, but the back is stamped "highspeed," which is a different babbitt, and is also stamped "certified universal babbitt," which is also different from what I've read. I think I'm just going to assume that it is merit, not high-speed or universal, and alloy it with pure lead based on the merit composition.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Also, Bumpo, thanks for the alloy breakdown. Since much of this will feed .38 special revolvers and 45 ACP I think I'll mix it 6.25:1 with lead.

[bumpo628]

No problem. I'd at least try the 8:1 since those are both low pressure rounds. You probably don't need to go over 1% tin.

[runfiverun]

federal is the foundry.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

well, all in all, considering that I paid 55 cents a pound for my lead today, I'd say this babbitt bar was a good find, not to mention that one of the guys at the scrap yard set this aside for me, someone had brought them in as scrap lead.