Smelting jacketed range scrap help

[BMac]

I have an opportunity to trade ammo for jacketed range scrap from an indoor range.
Question, how do i smelt out the lead from a TMJ round?

[shadowcaster]

If they are still solid then you will need to smash or cut them to let the lead out. If they use steel traps, then the jacket will be already broken so no problem there.

Shad

[robpete]

Just fire it all in a pot(I use a Harbor Freight cast iron dutch oven over a bayou turkey fryer burner) and crank the heat. The jackets and lead will start to separate around 550F. Stir it all around and the jackets and crud will rise to the top. Scoop out the jackets and set them aside(they can be sold for scrap). Then flux and pour into your favorite ingot molds!

**As Shad said, all of the above mentioned is assuming the scrap was retrieved from a range with a steel trap**

[btroj]

TMJ rounds are generally either plated or a standard FMJ with a thin disk of metal covering the open back end. In either case the lead easily escapes from the jacket once it melts.

I never hammer, cut, or otherwise mutilate and jacketed bullets yet I seem to get only empty jackets when I am done.

[dkf]

Sometimes I get intact jacketed or TMJ bullets in range scrap. I usually just cut them in half with a electrical cutter, sometimes I smash them.

[BMac]

This range uses ground up tire chunks, so the jackets are more than likely intact.
No sure if I'm getting over my head.

[btroj]

Not over your head, over thinking it.

Put them in pot, heat them til lead melts, flux, skim jackets, pour ingots. Done

[shadowcaster]

This range uses ground up tire chunks, so the jackets are more than likely intact.
No sure if I'm getting over my head.

Getting scrap is great, but the concern I would have is trading loaded ammo for it. I only load for myself and would not want any liability for ammo that I passed on to someone else.

Shad

[AlaskanGuy]

I did a write up about making ingots, check it out here

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?219043-For-noob-s-A-basic-lead-ingot-setup-for-Range-bullet-scrap

[freebullet]

If ya get it hot enough the jackets split & redneck gold comes out. Problem solved.

As fer tradin loaded rounds that'd be alota liability/possibly illegal.

[mdi]

Perhaps I' doing a "Chicken Little" here but I like to cut through the jacket with my dikes (doesn't take much, just enough to relieve any pressure that might build up)...

[btroj]

I refuse to sort through multiple 5 gallon buckets of scrap one bullet at a time. My scrap is all collected by me, by hand, at no cost. The extra time, effort, and energy it would take to individually handle the bullets isn't worth while.

Like I said, I don't hammer or cut jackets and I just don't see or feel full jackets of lead when I skim jackets. It just doesn't happen in my experience.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've smelted jacketed range scrap a couple times.
I don't pre-sort or pre-cut or pre-smash with hammer.
After the first smelting, I do get a few where the lead doesn't melt out of the TMJ.
after I skim off the jackets, I sort those HEAVY ones out and after they cool down, they get the HAMMER treatment and remelted...sometimes it turns out they are steel core bullets.
Jon

[BMac]

Great advice everyone, thank you.

[Nose Dive]

BMac.... I get range scrap from my range... have to 'mine' it out....dig and sift...dig and sift.... I get alot of 'trash and dirt'...so....with free lead comes free problems.... my path to glory is....

1. dig up stuff and sift out as much dirt as I can...put in buckets
2. take it all home
3. spread the 'stuff' out on the drive way and wash with 'sprinkle' jet hand water sprinkeler to wash off dirt and corruption....
4. let stand over night to drain and dry...
5. sweep up heavies and put all in smelt pot over a scoop of saw dust....
6. Start fire at low setting and let slowly warm up.....stir occasionally...
7. let fire come up and slowly melt lead...it will be smoking big time..so stir and watch
8. bring fire up more and more...and then begin to sift out copper and trash....
9. NEVER>>>NEVER ADD ANYTHING TO THE SMELT POT...no more 'heavies' at all EVER...only more saw dust from time to time...
10. keep fluxing with saw dust and stirring and sifting... get the **** out and dump outside the smelt pot... DO NOT ADD ANY MORE range scrap to the pot...it may have water...water is STEAM and STEAM is bad news...you pot will blow up!
11...now that the smelt is melted....sift out the ****...get it ...all of it and stir from the sides and bottom.....
12... now that the pot is hot...the non melted items gone.... FLUX ONCE AGAIN with saw dust.... stir...stir...stir.....
13... once it has stopped smoking...you are ready to pour ingots.... yep...start dipping and pouring...
14...once the pot is empty...then pull the fire....refill with dry scrap and corruption...put in some saw dust...and once again...begin to heat up SLOWLY...SLOWLY SLOWLY.... go back to item number ONE...and begin all over again....

NEVER..>NEVER add COLD scrap to the pot once the heat is on...NEVER...STUPID MISTAKE will cost you an eye,,,a house.... Fill the cold pot full if you wish....but then go slow...flux..stir...flux...

Follow this and GO SLOW and you should be just fine... This is what I do. And...Letting the scrap sit over night on a drive way with an incline is very important...if it rains...sweep up scrap...put in bucket and wait until next week end to smelt...and then...go to step ONE and begin all over again...

Nose DIve

[bobthenailer]

Save those jackets ! i got $2.50 lb last year at the scrap yard as there around 90 to 95% copper . i ended up with $137.50 for my 55 lbs of jackets.

[remy3424]

I had a bunch of jackets that contained more than copper, the magnet at the scrap yard started grabbing them..had to take them home and resort them...my tip...drag a magnet through them before taking them to the recycler.

[CastingFool]

I found out pistol and rifle primers are made out of brass. I'm saving all my spent primers now. Of course, it'll take a whole bunch to make up a pound, but a little money back from scrapping brass is better than no money.