How much to pay?

[JLM3rd]

Hi all,
I am about to run out of the free lead that I had cast from years ago and it looks like I'll have to buy lead now. How much do you all pay when you have to buy? I know it varies by source and quality, but just trying to get a ballpark idea to know if I come across a good price.

Thank you

[ph4570]

A buck a pound+/- shipped for clip-on WW ingots is typical.

[Bill*]

Yup.....buck a pound is about right

[JLM3rd]

Thanks guys,
I saw this afternoon there is someone in my city who has lead already made into ingots for sale on Craigslist. I called him and he has 465 pounds at 40 cents a pound. I'll go check it out.

It's been about 10 years since I cast bullets, so I need to get back up to speed. I helped my uncle cast, and he pretty much set everything up and I was just the helper. When he passed away, I got maybe 10K bullets we casted together, so I've been working off of them for years. My shooting is starting to pick up after a couple years in "hibernation" and I am stunned by the prices of primers, powder etc. I sure do appreciate all the information I am getting here.

Thanks again

[Munkeyjoe]

$.40 is good..... I have no free source for lead and I am paying about $1 + shipped to my house for WW, and $14 pound for tin.

[merlin101]

At .40 a lb I'd be buying all that I could get, I pay .60 a lb here in NY

[Rooster]

I would jump on the .40/# myself. A fair price in today's market.

Lead is one of the members of the environmental 'Evil Axis' and will be in short supply soon enough because of other people's hyped-up phobias. There are too many indicators out there to logically conclude any other long term outcome. That's sad. Sorry for the melancholy passage.

The others are correct that the going price over the electronic airways is around $1/# on WW's. I like to receive mine as a raw commodity in all its grey, beaten to death glory. This insures the alloys' integrity and institutes the free market checks.:mrgreen:

[mold maker]

In a couple years .40/lb will sound like free. Get all ya can, while ya can.

[snsbpb]

If I can get lead for .80 a lb, I feel like I stole it. If I was a little closer to Independence I'd be on it. It even comes in nice wooden crates.

[clodhopper]

I have been picking up bullets at the outdoor range(free), and buying scrap from the indoor range for 20 cents a pound.
Then smelt it down into ingots.
It takes a lot of time, and 40 cents sounds like a real bargin.
I'm not willing to sell for a buck a pound, but other folks who have more efficent smelting and or mineing operations do.
At the local recycle yard they pay 5cents per pound and sell the same dirty lead for 50 cents which needs melted and cleaned.
I keep looking in the bin for some lino or solder but no luck so far.

[finishman2000]

i pay $20 a pail for ww's. usually 3/4 to full each. I was searching hard last year to build up my supply but have lessened the search this year since i have at least a ton in bars and another 6 pails sorted and waiting to be smelted at this point.

[cajun shooter]

WW's with lead will be a thing of the past as soon as this economy is better off and Congress has other things to put their fingers on.

[skeet1]

I have three pails of WW waiting to smelt and I got those for free there is a lot of steel and zinc weights mixed in that I will have to sort out. I think that right now when there is a mix of different kinds of weights they are less attractive to salvage dealers and I hope to get a lot more.

Last week I got a line on a 5 gallon pail full of solder drippings and hope that turns out. When it cools down looks like I've got some smelting to do.

Skeet1

[nes4ever69]

i always bought off ebay for less then a dollar a pound. usually 89 to 92 cents.

[JLM3rd]

If I can get lead for .80 a lb, I feel like I stole it. If I was a little closer to Independence I'd be on it. It even comes in nice wooden crates.

Well, I got an 80 lb box. I'll probably regret not taking it all at some time in the future. So, there is some left for others. He had gotten some other calls but no takers on the rest of it. A very nice guy.

He called it "pure" lead and said it was from plumbing and hospital lead wall shielding. It's pretty soft, I can easily scratch the edge of an ingot with my fingernail. I guess when the time comes to cast, I'll need to look into what I need to mix it with harden it a bit for handgun bullets. We got to talking about reloading too while I was there, and I ended up getting 200 once-fired nickle .357 mag brass for $10 too.

[snsbpb]

Well, I got an 80 lb box. I'll probably regret not taking it all at some time in the future. So, there is some left for others. He had gotten some other calls but no takers on the rest of it. A very nice guy.

He called it "pure" lead and said it was from plumbing and hospital lead wall shielding. It's pretty soft, I can easily scratch the edge of an ingot with my fingernail. I guess when the time comes to cast, I'll need to look into what I need to mix it with harden it a bit for handgun bullets. We got to talking about reloading too while I was there, and I ended up getting 200 once-fired nickle .357 mag brass for $10 too.

You did good and 80 lbs should last you a good while. You will need some antimony (sb) to harden your lead. clip on wheel weights or printers type are the most common ways to add antimony, both also contain tin (sn) which helps to fill out your mold.

Are you going to reload for .357?

[JLM3rd]

You did good and 80 lbs should last you a good while. You will need some antimony (sb) to harden your lead. clip on wheel weights or printers type are the most common ways to add antimony, both also contain tin (sn) which helps to fill out your mold.

Are you going to reload for .357?

Everything I load is pretty mild. 38/357, 45 ACP, and 44 Spec/Mag is what I load.

[fredj338]

i always bought off ebay for less then a dollar a pound. usually 89 to 92 cents.

The only issue w/ buying ingots form anyone is what are you buying? If you trust the seller to be honest & they are selling you what they say, then $1/# is my limit currently. It's getting harder to get cheap or free ww from tire shops, & the buckets you do get are showing up w/ more & more non lead ww. I agree, get all you can get now, cheap/free lead is not going to be around long.
There is already an enviro move to ban lead ww across the USA. Kalif already has banned them & has more cars in the state than 25 other states combined. The manuf of ww is not going to make two types to sell across the USA so non lead ww are coming to your state sooner than later. Once that happens, two years, maybe three & all the lead ww are done.:violin:

[nes4ever69]

The only issue w/ buying ingots form anyone is what are you buying? If you trust the seller to be honest & they are selling you what they say, then $1/# is my limit currently. It's getting harder to get cheap or free ww from tire shops, & the buckets you do get are showing up w/ more & more non lead ww. I agree, get all you can get now, cheap/free lead is not going to be around long.

i always check feedback on the sellers. most people i buy from have sold tons (usually 200 or more 50 lb lots) of lead witch i belive may be honest.

i bought ww before off ebay were the guy sold by the weight. had zinc, bolts, and valve stems in it.

[jsizemore]

If you go to look at those ingots, take some sidecutters with you. If you can make a mark in them easily, their probably the real deal. If they won't take a cut, and make any sound other then a dull thud when you tap on them with the sidecutters, you need to let the seller hold them. Unless you want a project. Good Luck

[a.squibload]

I'm NOT addicted, I'm not. I just happened to be driving close to the metal yard and thought I should stop in and look.
What a racket. People bring them lead items (35¢/lb), and people pick up the lead items (80¢/lb).
I think these may be isotope caps?
The ingot is 26 lbs.
They gave me 3 lbs off the weight, a free small bucket, and a screwdriver kit![smilie=w:

Now the good part: I thought the caps had a "ring" to 'em when I dropped 'em on the floor.
(even though all this stuff scratches with thumbnail). So they used a handheld x-ray tester to show me the alloys.
Caps: Fe .19, Pb 93.3, Sn .98, Sb 5.51.
Ingot: Fe .28, Pb 92, Sn 1.7, Sb 6.
We didn't test the sheet stuff, it's pretty soft.

The WW was found in a parking lot.


A guy came in to buy something, saw my lead, told us he throws that stuff away from the jobsite.
Gave him my number.
BUT now he knows he can sell it for 35¢, if he wants to bring it in, so I might not be getting that call...

[Charlie Two Tracks]

If nothing else, you can call and tell him that you will pick it up for .35.

[a.squibload]

Didn't think about that, too late, didn't get HIS number. Hope he calls, could offer that or
at least trade him something.

[mold maker]

Casters have a choice for the time being. Stock pile lead now, or be prepared to pay, if ya can find it at any price.
When lead is no longer available (not too long), your choice without it, will be to GIVE away your molds, or decontaminate them, and hang em on the wall as bygone art

[stephen perry]

You guys need to find a tire shop that deals in balancing 18 wheel truck wheels, I have been getting 1/2 and 1 lb ww. I've given up on car wheel weights. Too much zinc and grime. Besides I have 5 buckets of the little guys waiting anyway. I have a tire shop that does big trucks also and that's what I get get, price a 12 pk of beer. My longtime tire sales guy says the kid / part owner is selling the grime buckets for $20, they can have them.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR

[Nose Dive]

Wow,,,40 cent a pound for ingots...das gut! buy all you can...sell what you can for 80,,,,keep da rest...

[riverwalker76]

In my opinion ... anytime you can find lead for under 50 cents a pound .... empty your wallet buying it. If you look at lead futures you will see that every year it goes up slightly. You might not use some of it for 10 years, but at least you have it if you need it. In 10 years ... we will be paying $1.50 a pound or more for lead.