Stained Glass lead score!

[Elbow]

Got a box of lead strips used by a stained glass guy for 5 bucks. About 20 pounds worth, never used or glued to glass. Gonna melt it into ingots. What's it worth per pound? is it pure? Thanks, Craig.

[sparky45]

Good score, but look out for the "lead" Came that contains Zinc. I don't know the composition but it probably won't pose a problem even if it does have Zinc in the mix.

[bangerjim]

If it is new it could be Zn. Test with muriatic acid 1st.

Lead came is normally close to pure. That is what I call it anyway.....relative soft. It is worth whatever Pb goes for around your parts! Why not keep the ingots and cast boolits with them. That is what people around this forum tend to do!

[runfiverun]

lead came used to be pure.
the newer stuff is extruded and contains antimony like most extruded/swaged lead does.

[Hardcast416taylor]

My brothers first wife made stained glass windows for their church and for art fairs, but smaller in size, back in the 1960`s. The came was from a good supplier and was written on the boxes as 100% pure lead. I was given the smaller unusable scraps of it by her that became MZ balls later by me.Robert

[Handloader109]

Please test before you contaminate any other lead. 95%of what I've found has been zinc. Garbage. Lead free came is worth nothing to you as a caster. And most of what is out there now is not lead

[bangerjim]

The came I have found over the years was from VERY old church windows and was pure Pb. The new stuff I have been given by glass stores and hobby shops.......can be anything! Always test with HCl acid for Zn.

I did find about 60# of old brass-covered Pb came the other day in 2-3 foot strips. WOW! GREAT stuff for my antique restoration business. That will NOT be melted down in my lifetime!

Just be on the watch for Zn! Worth ZERO to most of us.

banger

[Cowboy_Dan]

I was talking to the owner of a stained glass repair place the other day, looking to buy his scrap of course. He told me that the strips in the middle of pieces are usually lead while the outside borders are usually zinc. He also showed me 3 months of his scrap, it was only about 2/3 of a cup.

[bangerjim]

Your best bet to find Pb came is at a scrap yard where someone has broken up very old stained glass windows (a shame!). It will NOT be clean straight pieces but usually wadded up in a ball with putty and glass mixed in there. Some I have re-melted even had white lead paint on the edges (OH GOODY!)

I bought about 100# of newer came that WAS pure lead a few months ago. It was from a place that builds lots of modern stain glass windows in the old world style....No Zn.

[S-code]

So I came (lol) across my second batch of Lead Came on CL for sale. The first time a did a bit of study on it. What was in it? And how to Identify Zn. First batch 68lbs. had none. This batch had 1 piece (strip) 3 strips of brass foil channel. Everything (58 lbs) was new never used 5ft lengths. Just it was a birds nest. To fit them in my pot I clipped them with side cutters. Pretty easy. Till I hit the Zn one. Kinda felt like Aluminum. Then remembered the first study. Zn for stain glass. Is more of a Foil that has been formed into channels, I shapes ect.
Came has Bismoth as a part of it content. None to be harmless. Also used in makeup. There is different hardness's. Smaller pieces are more Soft lead. Then you have some that is considered Structural and I am assuming those to have more Antimony in the mix. I could never pin down in a search the exact content of different brands. But thought it strange that most glass workers that use came say you have to stretch it? LOL Bouncy Bullets? Just my 2¢