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durango
01-13-2017, 10:21 PM
I have about ten pounds of scrap that has some solder scrap mixed in, but most little pieces are drippings and sprue cutoffs. Is there a way to determine if these little pieces have a tin content worth saving without melting it all together and having it xrayed? Like maybe an acid or other chemical test? Not looking for an exact percentage, just whether or not there is any tin at all in the little pieces.
Thanks, Steve

Lloyd Smale
01-14-2017, 05:43 AM
not that I know about. Short of taking it to a lab its pretty tough to find out.

runfiverun
01-14-2017, 12:27 PM
you could do a specific gravity measurement.

skeettx
01-14-2017, 12:51 PM
I have a friend who is a gold buyer and he has a machine that will tell everything in the lump
Mike

RogerDat
01-14-2017, 08:49 PM
I take "unknown" solder and alloy that I know has some tin but not percentages I cast them as one big batch in small muffin tins as thin coins of about 1/4 inch or less. Then have scrap yard test one coin and label all the coins in the batch with those percentages. Then have a can of sweetener coins I can add to a pot in small quantities of a few ounces each.

There are people on the site that will test a small sample of your alloy for a pound of lead. Or many scrap yards will test lead for you with an XRF gun. Even if you don't know the exact alloy composition over time you will figure out what adding a few of the coins to a pot does for the bullets you cast. Just by trial and error you will come up with a recipe to use the coins.