Starting out with a mixed bag

[okksu]

New to casting. I have accumulated what is probably a life time supply of lead for me. Wheel weights-about 120#, stained glass came lead @ 30#(alloy w/ @ 1-2% antimony), plus another 50# of fishing sinkers, diving weights, plumbing lead, unknown origin lead cast into a home made boat anchor. 99% of my shooting is milsurp 100 yard target shooting. My intent is to keep loads in the 1600 fps range. I can melt about 4 quarts at a time. Should I make ingots of each of these groups and keep them separate or then remelt a proportioned mix to get a final ingot that should be a semi consistent but unknown alloy? Good idea or no?

[leadman]

You will want to get as consistent an alloy as possible. What I would do is melt everything into ingots, keeping the various alloys seperate.

Then write down what you chose to put in the pot to make a mixed alloy. Cast some boolits with it and try them and if you like the alloy you then have a formula for making the rest into the same alloy.

If it does not work for you post on here what you chose for your alloy and what the results were and I am sure you will get some thoughts on how to modify that batch to make it work better for you.

The key is keeping records.

[qajaq59]

I keep each type separate so I can mix them into whatever alloy I need later on.

[lwknight]

Since you gat a big nice melter , I would suggest getting a breadpan that is about 5X8.
Use the one that has a non stick type finish , not the tin looking ones.
To make nice ingots you have to burn the pan in on your burner to cook off the coating.
It still will be non stick but t he coating when new bubbles up uglies on your ingots
if you don't burn it off first.

The reason to do this : You can make 20 pound ingots that stack up nice and compact.
Be sure to mark then too. You might move things around and forget what is what or like in my case , things seem to move themselves

[gray wolf]

or like in my case , things seem to move themselves

Funny how they never move back by themselves.

You don't know how many times I have had stacks of things and I would bet a bundle that I would remember what everything was--WRONG--
The only benefit is that I can't remember where some of them are --
So I don't have to remember what they were.
((( kidding )))
It's so easy to mark an ingot, that it is foolish not to.