How Much Is Too Much For Wheel Weights

[Oldbrowngun]

I was into casting about 5 years back. After calling around to a ton of tire shops I only found one willing to sell me wheel weights. He didnt know a price so I offered 30$ a bucket. He was happy, and I was happy to have a source. I was melting down around 120lbs of lead in a 5 gallon bucket. Fast forward to now, im back into casting, I bought some buckets from the same source, gave him 30$ a bucket, only now, there is a lot less lead in these buckets. Im only yeilding around 72lbs of lead, I even see theres some sort of new annoying plastic wheel weight. My question is, am I overpaying at 30$ for 72lbs of lead yield? Or should I just be happy to have a source and continue to pay the same price?

[MyFlatline]

Shops around here want $150 per bucket, that includes the cigarette but and zinc. If you can come out under a buck a pound you are doing well in my book. I will gladly pay $1 per pound for COWW..

[Oldbrowngun]

Wow, 150$ per bucket!? Yes, this stuff has the cigarette butts, the valve stems, zinc, steel, and those annoying new plastic ones that melt. Surprising to see in just a few years how much less a bucket of wheel weights is yielding in lead. The stuff is disappearing fast.

[dragon813gt]

Any amount is to much for me. I was willing to deal w/ the sorting, fluxing(a lot) and casting into ingots when I could get them for free. I will gladly pay for clean alloy. My time is worth more than anything else at the moment. I won’t exchange any amount of money for raw wheel weights.

[trapper9260]

I would not pay for any WW for the reasons that is stated. Too much zinc now and not worth it to get now.I rather get soft lead at the junk yard with less waste. That is me.If there was some WW to be given I would take it. But will not pay for it.

[Oldbrowngun]

I am willing to do the work. The cost savings over buying lead at over 1$ a pound out weighs anything else. The smelting process fills one of my off days and I still enjoy it. As far as sorting, the most I do is take out the valve stems that burn forever. The rest i just don't overheat and skim off the top anything that doesn't melt. Cost is a huge factor for me, as the primary reason I cast is for the huge savings. I shoot a lot.

[Grmps]

I am willing to do the work. The cost savings over buying lead at over 1$ a pound out weighs anything else. The smelting process fills one of my off days and I still enjoy it. As far as sorting, the most I do is take out the valve stems that burn forever. The rest i just don't overheat and skim off the top anything that doesn't melt. Cost is a huge factor for me, as the primary reason I cast is for the huge savings. I shoot a lot.


One thing to be careful of, you need to have 3 or 4 inches of lead in the bottom of the casting pot so you don't overheat the zinc trying to get the bottom up too melting temperature.

It depends on where you live as to how much useable lead you will get out of a 5-gallon bucket of wheel weights.

$30 is a good price for a bucket, depending on the yield from that store $50 for 70 # is reasonable.



You can buy Recycled Melted Bullet Alloy ~ 55 lbs (4 pcs) Ingots with Freight Included $99.00 $1.71 per LBS from ROTOMETALS

[cajun shooter]

I gave up on finding ww lead over 6 years ago as most all of the tire shops in the Baton Rouge area had their companies join a recycle agreement. The animal protectors had a hand in the deal as too many animals were dying from eating all those lead ww's that fell off vehicles. I still can't recall the last time I saw a critter munching down on a big old juicey truck ww.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

How Much Is Too Much For Wheel Weights
SNIP...

My question is, am I overpaying at 30$ for 72lbs of lead yield? Or should I just be happy to have a source and continue to pay the same price?
You are getting close to my limit...
60¢ per lb (usable alloy content) of COWW in the raw is my limit.
I will pay the extra 40¢ per lb to get clean alloy and NOT have to smelt them dirty things.

[jlag19]

I, too, am tiring of the buckets that I am getting from tire shops. I pay $20 per 5 gallon bucket, but half or more of the bucket is zinc and steel. I think it is getting to the tipping point of just buying the clean lead, paying the shipping cost and not having to separate the zinc/steel from the lead wheel weights.

[redhawk0]

Anything under $1.00 a pound is pretty good...consider yourself lucky you have a source. As for the "new" wheelweights...read up on the various new WWs that are now being used in the Lead and Lead Alloy forum. You have to watch out for Zinc in the mix. That will ruin your entire batch if you mix some of that in.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?57-Lead-and-Lead-Alloys

redhawk

[lightman]

It depends on several things. Mostly how bad do you need lead and how available lead is in your area. Lead is extremely hard to find in some states while its more available in others. Your prices are not too bad as long as you are willing to do the work and enjoy it. Just keep in mind that you can buy ingots here on the swapping and selling section for a dollar a pound + shipping, ready to cast with. Also watch for isotope containers. They are made from a good alloy to cast with and have nearly zero waste. Use that as a benchmark to compare your prices and labor with. I recently bought a bunch of sorted wheel weights for .40 cents a pound. I sorted them again and found a few zinc and iron weights but not many. No doubt someone else could sort them again and find a few more.

[GhostHawk]

In the last 2 years I have bought 150 lbs of COWW smelted, in muffin ingots, in 5 gal bucket, delivered to my door. Paid a dollar a pound and felt like a real winner.

For wheel weights in a bucket my max would probably be 45 or 50 cents per pound of available lead.
Rest goes for the fuel and time. I do thin my COWW with equal amounts of soft lead or range scrap. Also at or near a dollar a pound. Still it is cheaper than buying big chunks of #2 I think.

I think it will come to each of us just what we are willing to do, go through to keep casting.
I don't see me smelting wheel weights anymore. Not when I can buy them reasonable.
Or unless I came across a big stash of them I was able to aquire pretty reasonable.

Each of us will have our own set of variables that determines what we will or won't do.

[bangerjim]

I quit messing with dirty of WW’s over 3 years ago. Way too much Zn, Fe, and carp in there to bother with. I can get clean pure and alloys from my local scrap yards for $1/#, so why would I waste hours standing over a stinking re-melting pot of smoldering rubber, garbage and non-Pb weights.

If you can get you WW’s for around 60 cents/#, that may be you sweet spot. Anything more is getting pretty expensive, looking at the hauling, gasoine, vnecile cost, re-melting fuel, time involved and total mess and stink.

My time is worth more, so I pay $1/# gladly for what I get.

And I know of no one on here that “saves” money casting & loading thier own!!!!!! It’s a hobby. I could buy FMJ’s a lot cheaper. By the time I price in all the bits & bobbles needed to cast, I are NOT saving any money!

Good luck with you future with WW’s.

Bangerjim

[mold maker]

Jim, I've saved a small fortune on exercise equipment I didn't have to buy to satisfy my Dr. All he ever advised me to do was loose weight and take these pills. I figure I lost about 20# a ton working up all that lead. Now my major concern is a bad back.

[Jtarm]

I gave up on finding ww lead over 6 years ago as most all of the tire shops in the Baton Rouge area had their companies join a recycle agreement. The animal protectors had a hand in the deal as too many animals were dying from eating all those lead ww's that fell off vehicles. I still can't recall the last time I saw a critter munching down on a big old juicey truck ww.

If it was nutria, let em have all they want.

[Mr_Sheesh]

If it's Nutria, let them have 230 grain or 145 grain or whatever chunks of lead at 800FPS or so, if they won't chow down voluntarily.

[Lloyd Smale]

never bought it. But if I did id be willing to go a buck a lb for smelted ingots. MAYBE 50cents a lb for raw ww in buckets.

[Hardcast416taylor]

For over 40 years all my WW`s have been free to get. Firstly it was from a Marathon service station/garage that a friend was manager of. Then came my good friend that owned a Chevy car dealership that free weights came from. I finally stopped taking the free weights from the dealer as they were going more and more to non lead weights in the pails. I at present have 5 over flowing 5 gal. pails of hand sorted all lead weights that need smelting, also 3 other partial pails that need sorting. Since my health has been going South I really doubt I`ll need to look for any more weights. I probably have a total of a ton or more of various type leads that are both smelted into ingots or are waiting to be done. Seeing as how long lead weights were used on vechicles and the `forgotten` stores of them I really doubt there will be a total absense of them to come for quite some time.Robert

[crandall crank]

I just paid 12 donuts for three buckets of WW. Have gotten many other buckets previously, without the donuts. If I come early in the day, the donuts are a hit with everyone in the shop.

[jmort]

Since I have no access to lead alloy, COWW or otherwise, I buy certified alloy from foundries. I agree with the posts that time involved makes it a no-go. With the Zinc percentage going up, and continuing to go up, not worth my time. I would rather be picking up aluminum cans on the side of the road and sponging for rum. If I come across something at a scrap yard at a fair price I will smelt it. Otherwise, the certified foundry ingots go right into the Pro Melt.

[David2011]

Shops around here want $150 per bucket, that includes the cigarette but and zinc. If you can come out under a buck a pound you are doing well in my book. I will gladly pay $1 per pound for COWW..

About 8-9 years ago some joker at a tire store in Longview TX offered me his 2/3 full 5 gallon buckets that obviously had trash, chaw and zinc fir $180/bucket. He didn't understand the jargon of clean lead (much more valuable) and considered dirty WW to be the same as clean lead. I hope he still has them.

It's been a while since I had to obtain WW. Friends drop them off and I have a good collection right now. If I have to buy more I'll seek radiology containers and pre-cast WW ingots. I prefer WW to 92-6-2 alloy as I have other metal to make the alloys I want.

Anything more than $20-$30/bucket is too much considering the junk in them now.

[Bigbore5]

I just paid $100 for 800 pounds of wheel weights. Ended up with 518 pounds coww, 167 pounds soww. Took alot of time but since covid crap started I have had plenty of that. I am happy with the haul and have found another 8 buckets full for $20 a piece.

[Conditor22]

Beginners luck :) :bigsmyl2: for $20 a bucket, everyone on here would be all over them Nice score.

[Tonto]

I got a set of new tires for our van, old tires were purchased three years ago and at that time I took home 6- 2/3 buckets of mixed weights. That load yielded about 180 pounds of clean metal with one pot load ruined by a zinc weight I missed while sorting. This time I took home 4 -2/3 buckets and will start sorting soon. I will pay close attention to the zinc too, keep them seperate and keep them for some as yet undefined project. So it cost me $600+ for four buckets fo mixed wheel weights with four tires thrown in. I think I'll get 100-125 pounds yield. I don't really need to alloy, I shoot into a trap but I still enjoy the smelting and the feeling I am recycling.

[tinsnips]

I get WW free from one of my customers. I jump to keep all the plumbing, heating,cooling and refrigeration running at there stores . I get paid on time,free WW they get right now service works great for both of us.

[wjhendo]

I've been paying $30-$40 per 5 gal bucket of WW's. The last bucket I bought was $30 and the SOWW and COWW combined from that bucket didn't even fill a 1gal milk jug. A few zinc weights but by far they were mostly iron. That was some expensive lead and probably the last WW's I will buy.

[Walstr]

I agree, with 9mm or 38's, but "plinking" with my 45 cal variety from ACP to 45-70, I'm happy to scrounge & adjust the alloy.
P.S. I look for Pewter as my tin source, and that is getting $$ too.

[gundownunder]

It would be useful for you to find out what the recycle yards in your area are paying the tyre shop for their scrap. Here in west Oz, last time I checked, the price was $80 for a 44 gallon drum. I'm willing to go double that because COWW + 2% tin, is perfect alloy for my needs. When other scrap users, like fishing sinker makers, drive up the price, I won't buy it.
Because of all the junk in the mix I need to hand sort to get straight COWW. As I'm sorting it by hand I sort the rest into batches as well, zinc, stick on lead, steel, junk. Get enough stick on lead in the mix, and you can make back all the bucks you paid by selling the stick on in buckets.
WARNING. Manual sorting the junk is the one job in bullet making that mandates a respirator. My pb blood tests confirmed it years ago.

[Agarbers]

The tire shops I have asked either already has someone taking them or they reuse them. I used to balance tires as a teenager and we never reused weights so that's odd to me and asking for a weight to fly off. I got a handful of a few WWs for my trouble of stopping but it seems like it just isn't worth the effort. A scrap yard I went to claimed they didn't resell lead to the public. I pick up what I can at local ranges and generally get 20-30 pounds each time.

[GoldieMI]

I pay .50/lb for reclaimed bullets from our indoor private range. the bullet traps funnel them into the 5 gallon buckets..so you know you are getting only bullets and jackets.
cheapest- no...but nice clean lead for the most part after smelting and skimming the jackets off.

[farmbif]

ive found more than 300 lbs of good clip on wheel weights along major highway exit ramps, ramps that go straight up to an overpass have been best as are exit ramps where there are major truck stops. I remember one exit ramp in Georgia that is a figure 8 made out of concrete I found about 60 lbs in the cracks of the concrete. having more time than money its an easy way to gather good alloy and get a break from driving while traveling. finding scrap yards that will sell to you are getting harder and harder to find. last good scrapyard I found I was able to get a 55 gallon drum about 3/4 full for $0.20lb, I think they screwed up and sold it to me for what they were paying for it. in the barrel were wheel weights, pure roofing lead and several pounds of 50/50 bar solder.
if I ever get low on stores and can't find more easily I think I'll put my nickles together and buy good clean alloy from rotometals.

[lightman]

ive found more than 300 lbs of good clip on wheel weights along major highway exit ramps, ramps that go straight up to an overpass have been best as are exit ramps where there are major truck stops. I remember one exit ramp in Georgia that is a figure 8 made out of concrete I found about 60 lbs in the cracks of the concrete. having more time than money its an easy way to gather good alloy and get a break from driving while traveling. finding scrap yards that will sell to you are getting harder and harder to find. last good scrapyard I found I was able to get a 55 gallon drum about 3/4 full for $0.20lb, I think they screwed up and sold it to me for what they were paying for it. in the barrel were wheel weights, pure roofing lead and several pounds of 50/50 bar solder.
if I ever get low on stores and can't find more easily I think I'll put my nickles together and buy good clean alloy from rotometals.

This has gotten to be a game with me and a buddy. He retired from farming a couple of years ago but has continued to help his boys, mostly by running parts for them. Some of these runs are out of town and even out of state if their need is great enough. Being retired, I often ride with him. If time allows he makes a lot of the exits along the way. We picked up almost a 5 gallon bucket of weights in 2020 along with several tools and 3 or 4 pins that hold the receiver hitch into the receiver on trailer hitches. I have a magnet on a stick and I snare a lot of them out of the window without getting out in traffic.

[SeabeeMan]

A pack of donuts and $20 is my normal limit. Figure in the propane for my bottom pour melter and time, and it just isn't worth it. I spent years building up a stock pile right as the zinc weights were starting to infiltrate the supply, then a day or 2 melting everything into ingots. Given the amount of useless zinc and other crud in the mix these days, I think I'd just buy clean alloy. Plenty of guys on here willing to share and there is often stuff in the Swappin' and Sellin' forum.

[Cucumbermonkey]

The place around here is $10 a bucket. Last batch was 2-3 buckets or 2 and 1 partial IIRC, and when all was said and done I had about 140lbs of lead ingots. I save the zinc, apparently it can be used, but I havent looked into it much at this point.
My most recent batch was 3 buckets, I havent smelted it into ingots yet, but I suspect it's going to yield about 160lbs.

[gbrown]

I guess I am one of the fortunate ones. Years ago, my father brought home lead from jobs closed out. He had about 200 lb. of pure lead which I inherited. Just sat in the garage for years. When I got back into casting, met people who gifted me buckets of wheelweights. Ran across a few more at tire stores here and there. Smelted it all down. Have a friend who has about 500 lb of monotype I can have, as needed. My roofer gifted me about 100 lb of "stacks". Another fellow gifted me about 30 feet of 4 inch pure lead drain pipe. Never had to pay a penny for my stash. I don't need to cast, I need to shoot more. I ain't bragging, I'm fortunate as said. You just have to think outside the box and explore every avenue you can think of. I've spent many hours going to tire shops anywhere I could find them. If you know roofers, talk to them. My neighbor had roof damage from Laura. I found out the roofing company is mine (for 3 roofs). You think I might talk to them when they show up?

[Sam Sackett]

I am still finding free wheel weights. I go out making my rounds once a month or so. The last trip I wound up with two 5 gallon buckets full. Once sorted out, they were about 30% stick on, 25% clip on and the rest steel and zinc. As long as I don't have to pay for them, except for a box of donuts here and there, I'll keep scrounging.

Sam Sackett

[pottergreg]

I just went through a full 5 gallon bucket of "wheel weights", after culling out the steel and zinc (took me about 4 hours), I got about 35 pounds of lead. The recycling center near me charges .75 cents per pound for lead, WW are barely worth fooling with IMHO.

[Epidote]

The tire shops I have asked either already has someone taking them or they reuse them. I used to balance tires as a teenager and we never reused weights so that's odd to me and asking for a weight to fly off. I got a handful of a few WWs for my trouble of stopping but it seems like it just isn't worth the effort. A scrap yard I went to claimed they didn't resell lead to the public. I pick up what I can at local ranges and generally get 20-30 pounds each time.

I worked for a while at a non-chain tire store when I was in college in the 1970s. The owner was a cheapskate, and I quit when he instructed me to install tube-type tires on a 240-Z but without the tubes. He wouldn't buy new wheel weights. We had to clean up the take-offs a little bit and bend the clips to stay on. When we didn't have the right size, we had to use a clipper to make the right size out of bigger ones. The clippings and some hopeless used weights got tossed. I wish I had those now.

I never expected my first real post here to be on used wheelweights. But I'm fixin' to smelt 5 gallons that my late brother gave me. All I need is some 6.5 mm 150 grain dies and a bunch of other things. . .:veryconfu