lead pipes?

[holsterguy]

Most all the ww that I've gotten in the past were given to me at no cost. Today I had to pay for some I got from a local auto recycler. 60 bucks for 145 pounds. I told him the biggest problem was that it's probably mostly steel and/or zinc. He said if it didn't work out he would "make it right" and he had some really soft stuff. I told him one of the guys in back showed me some pipe looking stuff around 4" dia. that had like a woven wire mesh molded into the walls of the pipe. Anybody know what it is? Sounded like he has a couple thousand pounds.

[Pipefitter]

It sounds like old drain pipe, should be nearly pure lead, the joints may have a fair amount of tin in them. I have a bucket or two of the same stuff in the garage that came out of a house my dad re-plumbed a few years back, just haven't had the time to smelt yet.

[Went2kck]

I smelted down about 180 lbs last weekend of the plumbers lead pipe. should be pure lead seams really soft. I have some COWW to harden them up. I also purchased some super hard lead from roto metals. I should be good for awhile.

[holsterguy]

Yea. Should have asked. Guy out in the yard said it was lead too. Looking at the end of the "pipe" it reminded me of the old radiator hoses with the reinforcing molded into the rubber. As far as I know the only thing these guys deal in is car and truck parts. It's the largest auto yard in the area.

[runfiverun]

the reinforcing is throwing me off.
they usually only internally reinforce stuff that is under suction so it doesn't collapse.
if it's chemical pipe it may have up to 3% antimony in it, because of how it's extruded.
if it's shot with an XRF gun the antimony content will show up, but it won't make itself noticeable otherwise until you cast it.

I'd get a bunch of the pipe and work with it either way because even though it's an unknown it's a lot of the same unknown.
once you figure out how to manipulate it you have the same big ol pile of the same.

[RogerDat]

^ +1
"big ol pile of the same" lead is always a win. It is the 5# chunks of this and 3# of that and 1# of the other that are a PITA to work with.

[typz2slo]

I did XRF analysis for another member here on a piece of pipe he sent me and it came out to 96.36% pb and 3.64% sb. He was thinking it was pure pb so it was a nice surprise for him. Not all lead pipe is created equal.

[Outpost75]

3% antimonial lead is fairly common for post-WW2 extruded gas or water pipe, have used lots of if, treat like wheelweights, add 1 pound of 95/5 Sn/Sb solder to each 50-lb. heat to make ingots.