It's So Beautiful!

[Josh Smith]

Pure lead foil... 15.5lbs or so for free...

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b191/WabashShootist/LEAD/98f8152e.jpg

... OH HAPPY DAY!

I figure I'll cut this with just enough tin to let it flow, and see what kind of weights I come up with :D

Josh

[BOOM BOOM]

HI,
From a dentist I bet.:Fire::Fire:

[HammerMTB]

I recognize those.
Get 'em while ya can. Most dentists are going to electronic X-ray machines that don't need the film. The lead foil will be a thing of the past.

[Josh Smith]

Hello,

Thanks folks.

Am I correct in assuming these are pure lead? Like 99.9999% or whatever?

Thanks!

Josh

[BOOM BOOM]

HI,
YEP, pure Pb

[montana_charlie]

The dental foil I get casts at 7.8 BHN...which is exactly what I would shoot for if mixing my own alloy.
So, it isn't pure lead and I don't know it's composition. But it is great alloy for 'soft' bullets.

CM

[Edubya]

It also makes for a great alloy with WW.
Be sure to cast some boolits for slugging your bore with the pure. If your regular casts fits your cylinder or bore as is, just "Beagle" with the HVAC aluminum tape for the slugs.

EW

[Echo]

I have heard (on this forum) from someone who seems to know that the makeup of these foils includes a small percent of Sn (.5? CRS) and also a small percent of Sb (1%?). Not pure Pb, but dang close.

[454PB]

The stuff I get casts quite well and tests 8 BHN as Charlie said.

I suspect it has a small amount of tin and that's why it casts nicely.

[zomby woof]

The lead they use is Lead >96%, Tin 1.5% +/- 0.1%, Antimony 1.5% +/- 0.1%.

[qajaq59]

Nice find. I get my ww for free, but have to pay to get the pb. And if you shoot any BP you're going to love that stuff.

[zxcvbob]

I got a pound and a half of dental lead foil today. It looked like a lot more than that in the box because it's "fluffy" -- until I balled it up. I can get a lot more next time I go in for a check-up & cleaning because now the dentist knows someone who wants it (he was paying to get rid of the stuff), maybe 10 pounds.

Can I add it directly to my boolit furnace, or does it need to be rendered into an ingot first? It looks awfully clean.

[Suo Gan]

I got a pound and a half of dental lead foil today. It looked like a lot more than that in the box because it's "fluffy" -- until I balled it up. I can get a lot more next time I go in for a check-up & cleaning because now the dentist knows someone who wants it (he was paying to get rid of the stuff), maybe 10 pounds.

Can I add it directly to my boolit furnace, or does it need to be rendered into an ingot first? It looks awfully clean.

Just render it in your lead pot, flux it good, and mark it as pure.

[Baryngyl]

Is this clean lead, pulled off the X-ray film before it is used, or is it something that was in peoples mouths and you should treat it as a bio-hazard?

Michael Grace

[EMC45]

Dang! Looks just like the bag I got from my sister (Dental Tech) a few months ago!

[sqlbullet]

I get a 5 gallon bucket from my brother in law from time to time. Good lead.

[454PB]

Is this clean lead, pulled off the X-ray film before it is used, or is it something that was in peoples mouths and you should treat it as a bio-hazard?

Michael Grace

Sort of. The lead itself is encased inside cardboard lining and a type of film. The film is developed and viewed by the dentist, and the cardboard is simply thrown away. The lead is then "recycled". So.....the lead has been exposed to the patients mouth and saliva. If that bothers you, wear latex gloves before handling, or simply dump it directly into your melting vessel.

[Baryngyl]

So just basic lead melting/casting precautions should be fine, wearing gloves and washing hands before eating/putting fingers in mouth/picking nose/etc should be fine?

Michael Grace

[454PB]

In my opinion, yes.

By the time you get your hands on this stuff, all the microbes should be dead anyway.

Normal lead handling hygiene is all I use.

[ghh3rd]

My father was a dental technician, and left lots of "stuff" behind. I didn't realize until recently that there were two one-pound rolls of actual pure tin foil.

I still have a roll left, and am tempted to wrap a sandwich in it and take it to work to show those who say "tin foil" instead of "aluminum foil" what tin foil really looks like :)

edit: just think, if I had ony know that I'd start casting lead at 56 yrs old, I could have had him save all of the tin and lead that he could find during his 28 years of dental work. hindsight is a great thing....