Got some lead...What is it good for?

[Stopsign32v]

Well I recklessly got some lead off this board without even knowing what it would be good for. However I usually just go by the honesty of the members on this board and it hasn't let me down yet so I have little concern. However I got about 100lbs of the following lead. I do not know lead hardness differences or what different metals do to the lead so I'm kinda lost in figuring it out myself.

Alloy 95% lead 5% antimony cast from Redneck Gold and Cast Boolits molds

[sukivel]

Cast a bunch of bullets and shoot them, and don’t worry about it unless you are driving them really fast.


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[dverna]

If it was me, I would add about 2% Tin.

[ryanmattes]

Alloy 95% lead 5% antimony cast from Redneck Gold and Cast Boolits molds

Sounds like wheel weights. You'll want to add a little tin, maybe 2%, to help with fill out. I bought some plumbers solder online, 60/40 tin to lead, and I use the alloy calculator sheet to figure out how to bring it up to somewhere around a 10 BHN for all non gas checked bullets. It's a decent, cheap alloy that works for pretty much everything.

The calculator is in a pinned thread here, it's an excel file, and you just put in the weight of your different alloys and it'll tell you the resulting weight, composition, and hardness. Very useful tool.

Instead of a hardness tester, I bought a shading pencil set, and printed out a scale I found on this site. Basically, if the point of the pencil draws on the lead instead of gouging it, the lead is harder than the pencil, and vice versa, so you can get a reasonable estimate of the BHN of your lead. Doesn't need to be very accurate unless you're really pushing the velocity, especially if you're poly coating.

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[jimb16]

Nothing wrong with it other than it needing a bit of tin to improve casting. It should make some good hard bullets. With some added tin, it will be suitable for rifle or pistol. You did ok.

[Stopsign32v]

Any idea a good place to get some tin?

[FLINTNFIRE]

I cast with just wheel weights , it makes good bullets , clean mold up to temp and alloy flowing good , sometimes I need to up temp , but it will make good bullets without tin , hard enough for loads I am using , the antimony makes the bullets hard , tin makes mold fill out easier adds little hardness .


Edit , I picked up high tin content pewter off the auction site supposed to be 90% tin antimony and copper , price was decent .

[Dusty Bannister]

Any idea a good place to get some tin?

Same place you got the alloy. Forum members.

[dverna]

Further to my suggestion to add tin...that is what I would do as I know tin makes casting good bullets easier. I have a low level of frustration so I do what works for me and saving a bit of money is not much of a factor. Tin is expensive.

For a new caster, adding tin will help bullet fill out so it is more forgiving. But you lose nothing by trying out your 95-5 alloy and will gain some experience. If it works, you avoid having to alloy it and you have bullets to shoot. If the bullets are not as good as you want, all you have invested is some time. You can remelt and add tin when you get some.

After your first bullets, post some pictures and you will get suggestions that may be helpful.

Good luck...have fun...and wear protective gear. Hot lead can burn you very badly.

[Helka]

Any idea a good place to get some tin?

Go to your local thrift store and look for pewter. 90-95% tin and the rest is lead. I went to three and scored just over 10# worth. That’s enough to do 500# of lead at 2%


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[Stopsign32v]

Go to your local thrift store and look for pewter. 90-95% tin and the rest is lead. I went to three and scored just over 10# worth. That’s enough to do 500# of lead at 2%


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This could be a dumb question...But when you go to a thrift store, what does the pewter look like? Are we talking like blocks of metal or stuff you melt down?

[Helka]

This could be a dumb question...But when you go to a thrift store, what does the pewter look like? Are we talking like blocks of metal or stuff you melt down?

Stuff you melt down. It’s usually a darker grey colour and very heavy like lead.

Here is an example. It’s easily bendable. Most stuff will actually say Pewter on it.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210821/1cf5db83b2e9912c6c25a2aa5d1689ce.jpg


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[jim147]

Stuff you melt down. This pad is not good with links so go to the lead section and look at the stickies.

[Helka]

Here is another example

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210821/94719e6ce71beb8d3713ddc631088330.jpg


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[FLINTNFIRE]

Not all so called pewter is real pewter , so see what it melts at , specific alloys melt at specific temps or in a range of temps , I would heat my clean mold and cast some bullets first to see what they look like , Tin is nice , but not a necessity .

I have bought the high tin pewter , but most of my casting is old wheel weights and range scrap with soft lead tossed in depending on alloy I am trying for or as I think it needs it .

I do not agonize over percentages in my mix to the point of needing samples from it all , if you have a large batch of the same alloy you can make it work .

[358429]

The best part about this hobby is you get to re-melt your mess ups[emoji3] even powder coat Burns away quickly. Dverna is right in post 9, find out if this alloy casts acceptable bullets from your molds and if it works run with it.

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[William Yanda]

PM incoming

[bangerjim]

Good alloy. ma need 1-2 % Sn for good fill when casting.

You did OK.

Don't sweat the details.....cast/shoot some and see what you get. That alloy should be good for 90% of what most people shoot.

[bangerjim]

This could be a dumb question...But when you go to a thrift store, what does the pewter look like? Are we talking like blocks of metal or stuff you melt down?

That is rather a dumb question!~~~ Pewter will be in the form of mugs, picture frames, trinkets, artsy-craftsy carp, etc........NOT ingots ! It will be marked on the bottom. Do not fall for the hundreds of bread plates made from aluminum!

[sigep1764]

That stuff you got from Kylongrifle is what I cast my rifle boolits with. It is hard enough to drive 223, 270, and 30-30 boolits to 2000fps in my uses. You could go faster, I just haven't yet. It is good clean lead, you will be very happy.

[Wheelguns 1961]

Yes, it is some of the best stuff that I have bought on here. Very clean. The ingots are all the same size, meaning they all weigh very close to the same. I mix 50/50 with pure lead for pistol bullets. I also add 2% tin.

[Lloyd Smale]

maybe for a beginner but to me the advantages of adding tin sure dont justify the cost. If you get your pot and mold temps right you can cast perfect bullets out of 100 percent pure lead. Its been being done for a couple centurys now. If you insist on adding tin id recomend you buy some type metal. At least with that your getting some antimony too that will harden your lead. Two things I see alot of casters doing is fluxing to much and adding tin when its not needed.

[Sasquatch-1]

I personally am with the crowd who say try the alloy first to see how it cast. If you have the nice crisp edges you want there is no need to add tin. If the edges are rounded and you have some wrinkles (that can't be attributed to a dirty mold) then you may need tin.

If your significant other enjoys yard sale and flee market shopping these are also good places to find pewter. As stated earlier, Pewter can look like aluminum which is much lighter. But don't go by weight alone. Some vases and other items have weighted bottoms.

There was a thread going a while back about pewter hallmarks that would be good to look at.

[richhodg66]

Try casting with it first, depending on bullet design (some cast easier than others) it may/probably will cast fine without tine and 5% antimony is plenty hard for most applications.

I think a lot of new casters get wrapped around the axle on alloy hardness more than is necessary. Being sized and lubed correctly has a lot more to do with whether it'll shoot well than bullet hardness does.

[richhodg66]

Tap what you think is pewter with a piece of metal (I use my wedding band) and it will "thunk" rather than ring. If it rings, it's not pewter. If it's real shiny, it's not pewter. It'll usually bend real easy. You know these metal beer mugs with the glass bottoms that every company gives as retirement gifts and such? Almost always pewter and they turn up in thrift shops all the time.

[lightman]

This could be a dumb question...But when you go to a thrift store, what does the pewter look like? Are we talking like blocks of metal or stuff you melt down?

Look at the lead and lead alloy thread under the title pewter picture and hallmarks. Lots of pictures and other info there.

Tin can also be found in the form of solder. You can often find partial rolls at grange sales and flee markets.

[Bigslug]

Any idea a good place to get some tin?

Rotometals well sell it to you in packages of convenient half-ounce nuggets. https://www.rotometals.com/tin-cut-wire-pieces-99-9-pure-1-pound-made-in-usa/

[Four-Sixty]

If you shoot tumble lube bullets, tin could arguably be a waste. I shot lots of bullets made from reclaimed shot (high in antimony) for years without ever adding any tin.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Well I recklessly got some lead off this board without even knowing what it would be good for. However I usually just go by the honesty of the members on this board and it hasn't let me down yet so I have little concern. However I got about 100lbs of the following lead. I do not know lead hardness differences or what different metals do to the lead so I'm kinda lost in figuring it out myself.

Alloy 95% lead 5% antimony cast from Redneck Gold and Cast Boolits molds

Here is my 2¢
I would use the alloy calculator and blend your 95/5 with Tin and Pure lead to end up with 94-3-3.
94-3-3 is a great alloy to use for Rifle or Mag pistol, and easily diluted to 97-1.5-1.5 (at the time of casting) to use for low pressure loads.

I am lucky to have had sources of seemingly more pure lead than I'll ever use, and I also have had the opportunities to buy tin from various sources for reasonable prices. So, if you do NOT have these resources currently, I'd probably sit on the 95/5 until those things happen to become available to you...because, as you keep searching for alloy, you likely come across those things.
good luck.

[Soundguy]

antimonial lead is good to start with.. similar to clip on ww. add a little tin and you can cast anything handgun and low pressure rifle.

[mdi]

Besides pewter and lead free solder, you can get pure tin here; https://www.rotometals.com/search.php?search_query=tin&section=product

[oley55]

Look at the lead and lead alloy thread under the title pewter picture and hallmarks. Lots of pictures and other info there.

here is the link to the mentioned forum thread: https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?127929-Pewter-pictures-and-hallmarks

Pretty much everything you will ever need to know about pewter. I routinely (once a week) try to visit a couple thrift stores (mostly Goodwill) and over the course of a year I have managed to scrounge up twenty pounds. I suspect I have invested nearly $60, but when you compare that cost against Pewter alloy from Rotometals, I feel pretty darn satisfied.

When you are scrounging do not automatically ignore the silver plated tee pots n stuff. The main container or trays will be silver plated brass/copper, but the spouts, handles and legs are generally pewter. Sometimes those nasty silver plated items are priced quite low. In fact just yesterday I picked up two silver plated tee pots for $6 and got two pounds of pewter off them. Not super cheap, but still worthwhile.

I carry a small pocket knife and will try to carve a sliver off in an inconspicuous spot. If I can cut into it, it's a keeper (assuming the price is right).

[Larry Gibson]

If it is 95% lead with 5% antimony to start with I would add 5% tin to it to make it Lyman #2 alloy with a BHN of 15 (+/-). Then you could use it for softer handgun bullets by mixing with lead at 75% lead to 25% #2. Harder bullets for magnum loads or semi-auto pistols at 50/50. Rifle bullets for hunting at 50/50 lead/#2. HV or match grade bullets it could be left at #2 alloy and also easily HT'd or WQ'd.

[alamogunr]

I would not immediately add 2% tin to any alloy. Several years ago my employer at the time(I'm retired) had almost 1000 lbs of 40/60 solder they wanted to dispose of. They were just before calling a hazardous waste disposal company. I told them I would dispose of it for them and do it so slowly that no one would ever know. I still don't automatically add tin to a pot. It it casts, fine. If it doesn't, I add <1% and if casting doesn't improve, I add a little more.

Don't start filling my PM mailbox with offers to buy. I've used some and given some away to good causes(running youth programs, etc). Whatever is left will go to my sons someday along with my WW stash.

[bruce381]

or go to home depot and buy a few bars of 50-50 or 40-60 solder very pricey but is avalible in a pinch

[Land Owner]

The Temptations said it best in '69 -

What is it good for?
Absolutely Nothing.
Say it again...Oh! Wait...that's War! Sorry, wrong thread...

[lightman]

here is the link to the mentioned forum thread: https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?127929-Pewter-pictures-and-hallmarks

Pretty much everything you will ever need to know about pewter. I routinely (once a week) try to visit a couple thrift stores (mostly Goodwill) and over the course of a year I have managed to scrounge up twenty pounds. I suspect I have invested nearly $60, but when you compare that cost against Pewter alloy from Rotometals, I feel pretty darn satisfied.

When you are scrounging do not automatically ignore the silver plated tee pots n stuff. The main container or trays will be silver plated brass/copper, but the spouts, handles and legs are generally pewter. Sometimes those nasty silver plated items are priced quite low. In fact just yesterday I picked up two silver plated tee pots for $6 and got two pounds of pewter off them. Not super cheap, but still worthwhile.

I carry a small pocket knife and will try to carve a sliver off in an inconspicuous spot. If I can cut into it, it's a keeper (assuming the price is right).

Thanks for adding that Link, Oley. I need to learn how to do that! I know my way around a lead pot, computers not so much!