The end of scrapyard lead????

[Typecaster]

Just got back from my semi-regular visit to the scrapyard, where in the past I've picked up everything from new cases to J-word bullets—not to mention pure lead, solder, WWs, lino, and copper wire (spool ends, but plenty long enough for what I needed). The place was dead, which never was the case on a Monday morning before. Usually it's a busy time as the scavengers sell what they've gleaned over the weekend.

I asked the manager why it was so dead, and why there was hardly any inventory—absolutely zero WWs, lead, etc. The only cases were CCI aluminum ones, so worthless for reloading. The manager said it was "the new rules. Just too many rules."

Apparently about 40 states are regulating scrapyards to try to stem the theft of metals for recycling. According to a NPR report, "In California, there's a new law that requires scrap dealers to take a photo of anyone selling scrap metal and their goods. The sellers also will have to wait three days to get paid. The bill was co-sponsored by Republican Assemblyman Tom Berryhill.

"What we're hoping is that other states can use this as a model so we have uniformity across the country, so they're not going from one state line to the other doing what they're doing from county to county right now," Berryhill says.

It's even stricter for my SoCal recycler—
Effective Dec. 1, or all non-ferrous metal transactions over $20, the scrap dealer must acquire from each customer:
• Copy of valid driver's license or state-issued ID
• Vehicle license number
•A photo of the individual selling the material
•A photo of the material being sold
•Seller's thumbprint
Payment will be mailed to the seller after a 3-day holding period. Mailed payments must be mailed to the address on the ID, or proof/verification must be presented in the form of current utility bill, etc. Payments may not be sent to a P.O. Box address.

So I guess it's the end of (another) era. First it was the movement to eliminate lead-based WWs, and now these regulations are so onerous that the scavengers don't want to bring material in. No scrap coming in means nothing for us to recycle...

Richard

[arclight]

Perhaps we can use this to our advantage for a little while. If the scroungers aren't bringing in scrap lead, we might be able to scrounge it from the plumbers, tire shops, etc at better rates, since we're not trying to resell it.

Arclight

[MKT]

Well, I went to my local recylcer this morning with the intent of purchasing a few pounds of WW. Took me a while to find them but I found they had a very large bin that was 1/2 full. I was thinking I'd get about 50 lbs of weights.

When I went ot the counter the young lady there didn't know if they sold lead and suggested I speak with the forklift driver. Went over and talked to him, he replied they "didn't sell" lead. When I asked why, he only restated that they don't sell lead.

[dakotashooter2]

Just one more reason NOT to live in CA.
Because of this law you can probably expect your state become a garbage dump.
It won't be worth the hassle to pick such stuff up and salvage itso it will just accumilate in unwanted areas.

[Tokarev]

I put out my back today buying over 300 lb of WW from a local recycler. He buys it from the tire shops for 2 c/lb and sells to me at 20 c/lb! Bite me.

[supv26]

I put out my back today buying over 300 lb of WW from a local recycler. He buys it from the tire shops for 2 c/lb and sells to me at 20 c/lb! Bite me.

Wow, and I was thinking of getting some from a place that was going to charge me 50 cents/pound!

[Bret4207]

This is a s a result of the high scrap prices of last year. Those prices, like the high grain rices, have fallen to junk levels. We had several high profile thefts of LARGE amounts of copper in this area. I think someone went to prison for it. Of course the child rapist and drug dealers went free, but who gets hurt there, right?

[nicholst55]

We had several high profile thefts of LARGE amounts of copper in this area. I think someone went to prison for it. Of course the child rapist and drug dealers went free, but who gets hurt there, right?

Then there were the two employees at Lake City Army Ammunition Plant who stole and sold an estimated one million 7.62 NATO bullet jacket cups. They were arrested.

The scrap dealer said that he'd never seen copper tubing caps that small before, so he got to wondering.... :roll:

[cajun shooter]

My wife and I have a house plan drafting business. When the prices went high for copper , lead and other metals the thiefs nearly put a few of our builders out of business. They would go into homes that were ready to sale and rip the stuff out of the walls. The insurance company went up on the preminums it got so bad. Because of this, I understand what the law makers are trying to do. It's not a law to deter loading but theft. Talk to your local builders and developers and they will give you more than one story of homes being destroyed.

[3006guns]

I live in northeastern California and I guess I just got lucky.........called our local tire shop and was told to come on down and they'd give me some weights........three buckets full. I thanked the guy and during our conversation he said that their company was going to all STEEL weights in the near future, mostly due to California's "informed" regulations. Maybe the condors are chasing cars and eating the wheel weights......[smilie=1:

Fingerprinting and pics of the seller? Jeez..........

I also notice our brand new scrap dealer has been awful quiet lately. Actually closed is more like it and yes, I'm starting to see junk appearing in some vacant areas. Easier to dump an old washing machine than pay at the municipal dump.

[44man]

I went to the scrap yard in MD to sell my cans. They had a barrel of WW's so I asked how much for them. I was told they don't sell anything to the public anymore.
I looked at the board and they pay 10 cents a pound for them.

[3006guns]

Okay, I just did a Google search on the lead wheel weight issue and it seems an envionmental group sued one of the major manufacturers along with Chrysler. As a result, no lead weights in California after either July or December '09 (can't seem to get a correct date). It was stated that cars shed roughly 500,000 lbs. of weights each year and they get ground down, leach into the water supply and are poisoning all of us. The strange thing is, NO ONE has actually seen this massive pile of lead nor can I find any studies (other than academic) that show how this number was arrived at. It may be a very real problem, but like the old commercial said, "Where's the beef?" (proof). I have found an occasional weight along the road...maybe three in twenty years....and joked about what a valuable find it was, because the damn things are designed to NOT come off the wheel. Ever watch a tire shop remove them? Special tool with a foot-long handle.

I'd be the first one to support anything that will improve or safeguard our lot in life, but I swear most of this legislation is pushed by well meaning soccer moms based on what they HEARD by an "expert" at a PTA meeting. Nevada and Oregon are short trips from where I live. I suggested the idea of moving and my wife was horrified. "You'd move just because of your hobby???" No, I'd move because I'm sick of watching my private life legislated into something like Orwell's "1984".:twisted:

Edit: When I said "legislation" that was incorrect. It seems the weight manufacturer along with Chrysler agreed to this in order to avoid the lawsuit, so it's not actually a law as of yet...they just don't want the hassle. Typical of how these groups accomplish their end result. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here.

[qajaq59]

I just called around about buying wheel weights in the Melboure Florida area and got nothing except, "We can't sell them to you because of the enviroment." I really wish the government would STOP this BS of supposedly "protecting" me.

[686]

it is better to show up in person than to call on the phone. take buckets a scale and money and go looking. check the small scrap dealers.

[dakotashooter2]

Just get one of those disposable white jump suits, a respirator and a few business cards indicating you are a certified lead disposal business.
Walk into the scrap yard dressed in your gear, hand them a business card and have at it. It might work!! [smilie=1:

[badgeredd]

Just get one of those disposable white jump suits, a respirator and a few business cards indicating you are a certified lead disposal business.
Walk into the scrap yard dressed in your gear, hand them a business card and have at it. It might work!! [smilie=1:

Now that is creative!

I find some of the so-called environmental issues amusing. We all know that if the government REALLY wanted to clean up our air quality, they'd tax the obscene profits the oil companies have had in the last three or so years, and develop hydrogen fuel cells and engines. It doesn't get much cleaner than that! Another tact would be to tell the oil companies that they have to put X% of the profits into hydrogen fueling stations. Of course that would mean getting into some very rich pockets, and that isn't going to happen without duress! We kinow it all about whose money is going to be affected.

Edd

[waksupi]

Why do people think the petroleum companies should be responsible for developing alternative energies? They are in The OIL business, not the hydrogen business. Should a grocery store be forced to offer haircuts? Baskin Robbins sell concrete?
Let someone else develop the alternatives. Should the oil and auto companies do development through force, when they have a usable viable solution, someone will claim they have a monopoly, and set out to screw them out of any profits or intellectual property they have made.

[Slinger]

You fellas that are affected by this political BS need to call you state reps. and raise hell. I don't hesitiate to call mine about anything that upsets my way of life. I know that bullet casters are a very minor minority, but these politicians don't like the idea of losing votes. If nothing else you can vent your frustrations.

[qajaq59]

it is better to show up in person than to call on the phone. take buckets a scale and money and go looking. check the small scrap dealers. Well, you're certainly right about the phone, so I'll try driving around to some of the smaller garages. We don't have any scrap dealers within a hour of where I live. None that I have found anyway. But I'll ask around at the rifle range.

[MT Gianni]

Now that is creative!

I find some of the so-called environmental issues amusing. We all know that if the government REALLY wanted to clean up our air quality, they'd tax the obscene profits the oil companies have had in the last three or so years, and develop hydrogen fuel cells and engines. It doesn't get much cleaner than that! Another tact would be to tell the oil companies that they have to put X% of the profits into hydrogen fueling stations. Of course that would mean getting into some very rich pockets, and that isn't going to happen without duress! We kinow it all about whose money is going to be affected.

Edd

It would also ensure that those who control distribution would continue to do so. I do believe that they are not above stepping on any competition of other sources developing energy.

[2Tite]

Meanwhile, the tire shop I get weights from thinks it's cool that I'm using them to make bullets. He takes the time to sort em for me and I only take the good ones. Scrapyard gets the zinc and the others. No tire valves or cigarette butts either. Life is good........

[Mtman314]

Why do people think the petroleum companies should be responsible for developing alternative energies? They are in The OIL business, not the hydrogen business. Should a grocery store be forced to offer haircuts? Baskin Robbins sell concrete?
Let someone else develop the alternatives. Should the oil and auto companies do development through force, when they have a usable viable solution, someone will claim they have a monopoly, and set out to screw them out of any profits or intellectual property they have made.

I spoke to a garage guy in redlodge last week. He told me his auto mech teacher has a blue print for a carb designed in 64 that could give 40 miles to the gallon. Standard Oil Has the Patent. won't allow it made.

[Mtman314]

I'm wondering about using batteries. I got about a dozen old batteries and want to cut them apart but I got a 4 year old and scared she'll get into the acid. what do ya use to nuetralize the acid and how much. LOL, junk yards are a great source. so can be boating shops we made our own heaving lines with lead bars cut down. Of course that way is premium prices.

[qajaq59]

I spoke to a garage guy in redlodge last week. He told me his auto mech teacher has a blue print for a carb designed in 64 that could give 40 miles to the gallon. Standard Oil Has the Patent. won't allow it made. That old rumor has been running around forever.

[Mtman314]

thanks for pointing out the problems with car batteries. so scratch another idea.

[StanDahl]

Okay, I just did a Google search on the lead wheel weight issue and it seems an envionmental group sued one of the major manufacturers along with Chrysler. As a result, no lead weights in California after either July or December '09 (can't seem to get a correct date). It was stated that cars shed roughly 500,000 lbs. of weights each year and they get ground down, leach into the water supply and are poisoning all of us. The strange thing is, NO ONE has actually seen this massive pile of lead nor can I find any studies (other than academic) that show how this number was arrived at. It may be a very real problem, but like the old commercial said, "Where's the beef?" (proof). I have found an occasional weight along the road...maybe three in twenty years....and joked about what a valuable find it was, because the damn things are designed to NOT come off the wheel. Ever watch a tire shop remove them? Special tool with a foot-long handle.

I think I believe it, at least the numbers of ww's shed. I've collected 15 lbs of wheelweights in recent bike rides around my suburban area. (That's a baby-wipe container full.) In the most recent rides, I collected 1.5 lbs on a 14 mile ride, 2 lbs on a 20 mile ride and another 2lbs on a 12 mile ride. This was only counting one side of the street and only along the gutter, not islands or center dividers, and only the ones that I could safely pick up. I passed up quite a few each time, either being too small or beat down to bother with, or too far out into a busy intersection, or I was going too fast to stop - usually because I'd stopped to pick up a ww and my son was getting too far ahead of me. Many seem to fall off at intersections where cars make turns, but an equal number are found randomly along the straightaways. Not all roads are as heavily traveled as in this area, but there are thousands of miles of roads in this huge L.A. metropolitan area alone that are just exactly like my collection area. Extrapolate that over the millions of miles of roadways in this country, and it could easily add up.

Looking at my own collecting numbers, I come up with a distribution of about a quarter pound per mile, only counting what I actually pick up per mile and extrapolating for the other side of the street that I'm passing up - the 14 mile ride was round trip, the others one way. There are plenty of ww's that I've missed, I know. According to quickly Googled sources, there are around 4 - 5.5 million miles of paved roads in this country. 500,000lbs/year may not be a bad number at all.

[home in oz]

After reading this discussion, I checked two local tire stores, and they now only recycle.