Would you buy Wheelweight at $0.30 / lb?

[BK7saum]

I just sold 105# of wheelweight clips and saw that the scrap yard had about 2/3 of a drum of weights. Their sale price is $0.30 a lb. I'm stil getting free wheelweights, maybe 2-300 lb a year or more. I don't really need the extra as I shoot into my own private berm and can recover a good percentage of what i shoot.

At what point do you quit buying wheelweights?

Brad

[dragon813gt]

No, my time is worth to much money. Even though I can still get them for free I don't deal w/ them anymore.

[Bzcraig]

Given your circumstances, I think you've reached the point of not fooling around with it anymore.

[BK7saum]

Thanks for your responses. You are echoing my feelings on the subject. I don't mind sorting the wheelweights when they are free, but at this point I just can't see myself spending 30 cents a lb to sort them. I could probably sort them before purchase and get mostly lead, but since I don't need them, I just don't see spending money on them.

Brad

[runfiverun]

you quit when you think am I gonna look back in 10 years and say 'I'm glad I never bought that other 500 lbs of ww's'
and the answer is cause they are still giving them to me, and making more every day.

[DaveyDug]

Sorted wheel weights? Yeah, at $.30/lb I'd jump all over that. Unsorted? Probably not.

[mold maker]

Casters who depend on free WWs will be like the dinosaur in a few years. If you haven't already noticed the lead WWs are getting scares at any price.
The, "I get mine for free", attitude is just fooling yourself for the really near future.
Yes I did find another source,( for Donuts) but it is only good for a bucket every 3 months, and that is reducing all the time..
Those who are ready to, just buy alloy, or pay for the raw materials, have way deeper pockets than I.
Those who say the sorting isn't worth the time and energy, also don't have to live out of my shallow pockets.
The difference being I have constantly collected more than I used, for over 50 years, and can comfortably cast the rest of my life, without running out. I still add every one I can get, because who ever winds up with all my molds will need it. The value can only go up, while the availability disappears.
So those of you with the deep pockets, are doing me a favor, by leaving them for me, and my successors.
I heartily thank you.

[Bored1]

Yep. Sure would. Be happy about it too! Not long ago, had no where to get any, and can't see paying the $ for someone else to do the work for me. To each his own tho!

[RogerDat]

Free is nice but even at 50% yield 30 cents a pound for WW's is lead at 60 cents a pound net price, last time I looked $1 to $2 was the going price. So saving about 1/2 the price at the worst case. Heck if you have the cash and place to store them I doubt looking back you will regret having picked it up.

That said I have slowed down on getting WW's since I have a pretty good stash I just don't make the rounds as often anymore. But have not stopped either.

[slim1836]

I still pick up wheel weights when I find them, accept them from others when I can.

I have yet to buy any and hope I never do. At my age (62) I just may have enough already but still look for them.

Slim

[scottfire1957]

If I needed them, yes. If I wanted them, yes.

Even if you don't need them, you could buy them, ingotize them, (or not) and sell for 50 cents/# to those that DO need them.

[Tailhunter]

Stopped and asked a.tire dealer today about wheel weights, a 5 gal. bucket was 100 dollars. Tried another place, 80 bucks. These were small retailers. I can't believe people are paying these prices.

[jsizemore]

Add the weight of free to paid weights, then figure your per lb price. Ingotize all of it and figure your final price/lb. Maybe that will make it easier to swallow. If you already have a big stash and your free weights are keeping pass with your use, then let somebody else have a shot at Eldorado.

[David2011]

Last time I tried to buy COWW the tire store guy forgot why I was standing there waiting on an answer from him. I had bought from him before. He needed to check on the price and quoted me $175.00 for a bucket and a half of unsorted including all of the garbage they put in the pails. I thanked him and pointed out that he was above clean lead prices for WW and that COWW was going for $0.19/lb at the time. In return I received a blank stare. Never went back. Lead seems to keep finding its way to my house anyway. The last was over 5 gallons of Linotype still in type form. I'll accept WW and other lead alloys but seldom look for them any more.

David

[bangerjim]

I don't even mess with WW's anymore......even when they are free. Too much sorting, stink, mess and hassle.

[mgread]

The last time I buy WW I got 5 - 5 gal for $125 total. You getting rob at 80 to 100 put 5 gal

[triggerhappy243]

I would, and if you get some extra, i could swing bye and pick them up.

[LAGS]

I would pay $0.30 a pound for WW.
If I add that to what I get for free and average the cost, it comes out to half or less per pound.
But with the availability of WW, I like to pick up what I can NOW before there is the day when they are all Zinc or FE.
I am not a Hoarder, but I have friends that dont have the time or connections to get WW at any price.
I get plenty of Free Lead from my job, but even with the sorting and seperating, the COWW's make fine casting material.
I dont have to add solder or tin or anything else, We can just smelt and cast away.
The SOWW's in the mix go into the smelter to be alloyed into something better or reserved for my Shotgun Slugs or Buckshot, or even Muzzle loaders.
Zinc WW I find other uses for them so they dont go to waste.

All this cost, and labor is still way cheaper than buying ot making " J" bullets.
Cut costs when you can, but don't expect your Hobby to be Cost Free.
You want to play, you have to pay.
Casting just means , you pay less.
And in many cases, you get better bullets than you can buy.
Scrap yards around me PAY $.010 per pound for scrap lead, then sell it for $1.00 per pound.
I have connections, and can get it for $0.40 per pound and get to select what I want.
I will Buy when I see that they have something Good, but then spend the money at Roto metals or other suppliers to get the stuff to make it harded if needed.
But I end up with Lino, Mono or even WW mix at a far cheaper cost then scrounging for hit and miss Free WW

[Nose Dive]

Hmmm.. If you WANT THE WW's... and got the money... Cool...buy them.

However.... might give you some ideas....

1. tire shops... if you can 'get into' the shop... ask for some... be ready with "some"
a. Beer
b. breakfast burritos
c. deer sausage
e. (new one for me) Pizza

I look for 'home grown' tire shops... but...best 'score shop' i ever hit was a WALMART...never know

I have scored 1,000 lbs of WW's by asking nicely...showing the beer... getting off the property quickly with my booty...

Nose Dive

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kindly pick two.

PS: [pizza trick works best around lunch time] ND

[Bagdadjoe]

I bought about a ton of lino a few years back for .12 a lb. Considering the price now, I definitely would buy ww's for .30 and just stash them for an investment. Won't get cheaper. Just stash them where you know you won't have to keep moving them...that takes the fun out of it.

[GlocksareGood]

I bought 3 tons at around that price 2+ years ago. It was all hand sorted and for the most part 95%+ wheel weights. Would do it again in a heart beat.

[Love Life]

No, my time is worth to much money. Even though I can still get them for free I don't deal w/ them anymore.

^^^^This.

I probably wouldn't take them if they were free unless they offered to load them up in my truck and unload them for me at my house.

[brassrat]

I never melted a WW

[garym1a2]

Only if they where the truck size and no zinc/steel ones.

[Vinne]

30 cents a pound?? You bet...things are so bad down here that I even got to picking them up in a parking lot!!

[brtelec]

I can certainly understand the "time is too valuable" mentality. If you are working a week in and week out job it would be tough to dedicate one of your days off to sorting and smelting WW. For me, I work one month on and one month off, so at .30 a pound I am happy to have them. Time I have.

[truckerdave397]

I buy sorted COWW at work for $0.50 per pound. I do not really new them, I am just a hoarder. Just ask my wife.

[Retumbo]

yes..

[hickfu]

I would buy at .30lb all day long... then turn around and sell them at a good profit.
I have enough lead alloy already that I will never run out before I leave this life.

[rondog]

I have 6 .30 cal ammo cans full of 1lb w/w ingots, and at the rate I cast boolits that should last me a looong time. But I'm not averse to gathering more ww's for future use, so I'd consider it. I need to get out and sniff around for sources.

Most likely is I'd probably just buy ready alloy from Rotometals and be done with it. I'm not a high volume caster or shooter, I make and stash far more ammo than I shoot.

I also have a lot of boolits I bought from Zcast that I'll probably melt down and recast. I don't really like bevel based bullets and they're kinda banged up from storage anyway.

[ProfGAB101]

I was once offered a pile 7ft high and 16ft diameter all lead degreased WW for $0.03/lb

I would have to weigh out and haul the entire lot in 2 weeks. It was a wheel weight company that the owner sold out and retired. He needed to close down the leased building and shipped off the furnace and auto pour auto release mold carrier system to the new business owner, but at the time it just made more sense for the new owner to have fresh lead delivered from local sources rather than pay freight from here.

This was back in 94 and I had all my money tied up in AR's :(

[BwBrown]

I do my own, my family's and some friends oil changes on the lift in my hobby garage.
I swap my used oil (to be used in a waste oil heater) to a mechanic friend for his take off wheel weights.
Sorting them through, the steel and zinc weights are relegated to my tire balancing machine - the lead weights are melted down for casting.
Solves several problems and meets several needs. No money changes hands except the gas to make the five mile round trip.

One such wheel weight bullet downed a New Brunswick black bear in September. Gave my friend a roast, it keeps going round and round.

[RogerDat]

I do my own, my family's and some friends oil changes on the lift in my hobby garage.
I swap my used oil (to be used in a waste oil heater) to a mechanic friend for his take off wheel weights.
Sorting them through, the steel and zinc weights are relegated to my tire balancing machine - the lead weights are melted down for casting.
Solves several problems and meets several needs. No money changes hands except the gas to make the five mile round trip.

One such wheel weight bullet downed a New Brunswick black bear in September. Gave my friend a roast, it keeps going round and round.

The highest form of recycling is reuse. In short what we do with scrap lead and our brass (or range pickup of other folks brass) or shot gun hulls. My mom & dad made a decent living yet mom would still save and reuse good pieces of aluminum foil rather than throw them out. Dad would strip bolts, nuts, brackets or good wood off of things being thrown out for reuse. Still have a coffee table his dad made from leg brackets off of one table and the cherry top off an old dresser with busted drawers. They grew up in the depression and waste was just not something they did.

I like to think they would both approve of my lead ingot recycling stash & my collection of clean brass. Ok being honest mom would think my reloading bench was a mess, dad would think it looked like it saw plenty frequent use :-)

Sort of went off on a rabbit trail there but the reuse aspect does appeal to my nature of thrift and attitude of "what can I do with this? Hmmm".

[white eagle]

If you use ww a good source is nice to have
need em buy em
I have reached my level of enough and quit looking

[RogerDat]

If you use ww a good source is nice to have
need em buy em
I have reached my level of enough and quit looking

Totally. Some find them cost effective source of lead. Others a waste of time. Go with what works.
For me they are the cheapest source of lead and still fairly available. Had enough, then bought a batch of printers lead, now I need more WW's to cut it with. <sigh> like powder & primers. Buy more powder, which leaves me short on primers. Vicious cycle.