New to the craft, question about scrounging for lead

[dolfinwriter]

Just wondering if any masters of the craft have gone to auto salvage yards to get WWs. It would seem they would remove then by the bucket load, in addition to those still on cars in their yards, and probably laying and buried EVERYWHERE in their yards.

Is there some equivalent kind of place for sailboats that would have either removed lead ballasting, or it would still be in place in hundreds of scrapped sailboats from wrecks or hurricanes or you name it.

[scottfire1957]

I have actually thought of going to a salvage yard to pull ww, but ended up not needing to.

Up to you, can't hurt to go ask.

[JSnover]

I've done it. Feast or famine. Sometimes you can score big, sometimes not so much. If you find a place that doesn't mind you scrounging their rims for lead, make sure you play by their rules, so they'll let you come back. If they don't ask you to pay, do the right thing and buy them coffee or something.

[LAGS]

From what I found dealing with Auto salvage yards, they don't even want to mess with WW because there is no real money in it for them for the time they put into collection them, or letting you colect them for yourself.
But if you get to know them or know someone that works there, weights can be had, and at a not tooo bad of price.
Even if they have 1000 cars in their yard, that is about 5000 wheels, and they are not to easily accessable to get even 2 weights average per tire.
The average tire ballances with about 3 oz of weight.
So that is a potential of say 2000 lb of WW, and how much time will it take to move all the wheels and cars to collect them all.
They all are not just sitting out in the open.

[Nose Dive]

Got Beer?
I have scored at salvage yards. One guy told me to fill my bucket and he'd talk about price once my bucket was full. Not too bad, and did get the bucket for $20 bucks.

I have two or three 'home boy' tire shops here in South Texas. When my daughter lived down here, I carried her with me, (She speaks Spanish), and I always did very well. I did however always take some:

1. Beer
2. home made deer sausage
3. breakfast tacos, or sausage biscuits..

A few years back, she moved away...but,,,the fellas now know me, and we do business with smiles, hand shakes, and one of the three above items.

I was at a SAM's in Indiana once....getting tires....asked the quy if he had any.... I left with three buckets full!!... He did get a case of beer however.

So... be nice...ask.... try several places... Tire Shops have been the best for me for WW's.

Nose Dive

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kinldy pick two.

[Pipefitter]

Around here tires are the first thing to go at the salvage yards so not much if any luck at finding WW there.

[lightman]

I would expect it to be hit or miss, about like tire stores. Its a good idea and one more place to look. If you do score, try doing something to secure it for yourself. Coffee, snacks, beer, pizza, all will help you be remembered. While there, keep an eye out for old dirt track race cars that often have counterweights. Also look for any old machine tools that may have counterweights. A big pile of old rims and a pair of wheelweight pliers might yield a good score.

[JSnover]

Is there some equivalent kind of place for sailboats that would have either removed lead ballasting, or it would still be in place in hundreds of scrapped sailboats from wrecks or hurricanes or you name it.
If there is a scrap yard or metal recycling company near you, try them. They're likely to have larger quantities of known composition; shielding, ballast, babbitt, etc. You'll have to pay but you'll get more and you'll know what it is.
Auto salvage yards might let you harvest terminals from old batteries but don't even think about using the lead plates inside. Leave that to the professionals.

[RogerDat]

Big chain tire stores don't sell to individuals, they have corporate contracts. Go to the independent tire stores. Many will already have someone collecting them, trust me you are not the first caster to come through with a bucket and bathroom scale. Offer scrap yard price plus a few cents, maybe a nickel per lb. over what local yards would pay for that bucket of lead. Calling the local scrap yard and knowing what they would pay and offering a "premium" price can often make the deal. Don't be too disappointed if they already have a worker or friend that gets them. Make a note of those places and check back, people move, or change jobs so things change.

Scrap yards some sell to public and some don't. Sometimes it is a matter of being under county or township or city jurisdiction that determines their willingness to sell you lead. So pay attention to what boundaries you might be able to cross, but ask at all of them in reasonable distance. Sometimes it just boils down to what the owner decides they want to do.

The bit about some treats or beverages for the folks is spot on. A lot of this stuff is based on relationships. Being the guy that returns a favor with a favor matters. Being polite and respecting that they have a business to run also matters. If Saturday morning is a busy time don't bug them then, or be there first thing to a "regular" source and bring the donuts.

Some people have salvaged the lead ballast from sailboat keels sometimes in exchange for dismantling or hauling away the rest of the sailboat. Some folks have gone to auto salvage yards and salvaged WW's but both of these tend to be a trade off of time vs. money. If money is tight and you can find a local source or two for WW's or scrap that is cheap good. If time to do the running around and smelting/cleaning of scrap is harder to come by you might be better off just purchasing WW ingots in the swapping and selling forum. Generally a very good price when you factor in your time & gas running around trying to score WW's then your time, equipment and propane making them into clean usable ingots.

[David2011]

Be sure to test sailboat keels with a magnet and muriatic acid to check for iron and zinc. Not all keels are lead.

David