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Thread: BUYing wheelweights!

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
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    BUYing wheelweights!

    I called a local recycler and he said pure lead is fifty cents a pound but wheel weights were only fourty cents. With MOST of the tire shops and garages around here under contract to some recycler,I may HAVE to go this route soon!

  2. #2
    Boolit Grand Master



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    I did the calculations and 100 lbs of ww would yield about 85 lbs of bullet metal. Using your costs, you per bullet cost for a 250 gr bullet would be $.017 per bullet (nearly 2 cents). That is getting a bit pricy until you figure what commercial cast bullets (probably not as good as you will cast for yourself) cost. When you compare them against "store bought" it is pretty economical. So far, the most I have paid is 20 cents a pound but that was many years ago. Most of my ww's have been free. However, I just KNOW that that would change if I was on the street, now (I have all that I will need for the forseeable future).

    Dale53

  3. #3
    Boolit Master Maven's Avatar
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    There's only one recycler locally that deals in WW's. Two days ago his price was $0.75/lb., which strikes me as extremely high.

  4. #4
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance
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    ... ever consider shopping on eBay? I just scored 100# of pure lead ingots at 78 cents a pound. Remember, the price of lead has sky rocketed!

    National Bullet hasn't been shipping for a couple of months now because they are having problems buying their skids of alloy ...
    http://www.nationalbullet.com/index.php?name=News
    Regards
    John

  5. #5
    Boolit Master
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    Wow,

    and I was feeling bad last month after paying 14 cents a pound.

    Ed

  6. #6
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    PatMarlin's Avatar
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    I just ran an ad in a weekly classified...

    "Looking for scrap lead and wheel weights. Will pickup, pay cash. Leave message."

    We'll see what that drums up...

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master







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    Last 5 gal. pail I was able to buy ran me $.15 a pound.
    1Shirt!

  8. #8
    Boolit Bub
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    Last batch I got ( half a pail ) smelted down to 58#'s cost me 3 bottles of water. Wish I could offer them guys some beer may get more lead.

  9. #9
    Boolit Buddy largecaliberman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by jhalcott View Post
    I called a local recycler and he said pure lead is fifty cents a pound but wheel weights were only fourty cents. With MOST of the tire shops and garages around here under contract to some recycler,I may HAVE to go this route soon!
    Going to a recycler is the best way to go. The only drawback is (with the one I deal with) I have to purchase the whole 55 gallon drum, around 1300 - 1400 lbs that he sells to me for $.30 per pound. The best thing about this deal is he will buy back the clips for $.09 per pound. The last time I got 1387 lbs I ended up with around 250 lbs and got around $25.00 for the clips. Better than throwing the waste in a landfill.
    FREE MEN OWN GUNS, SLAVES DON'T ----- GOD BLESS AMERICA.

  10. #10
    Boolit Buddy largecaliberman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by mvesk View Post
    Wow,

    and I was feeling bad last month after paying 14 cents a pound.

    Ed

    whew, some people just have the luck, good for you.
    FREE MEN OWN GUNS, SLAVES DON'T ----- GOD BLESS AMERICA.

  11. #11
    Moderator Emeritus / Trusted loob groove dealer

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    Quote Originally Posted by largecaliberman View Post
    Going to a recycler is the best way to go. The only drawback is (with the one I deal with) I have to purchase the whole 55 gallon drum, around 1300 - 1400 lbs that he sells to me for $.30 per pound. The best thing about this deal is he will buy back the clips for $.09 per pound. The last time I got 1387 lbs I ended up with around 250 lbs and got around $25.00 for the clips. Better than throwing the waste in a landfill.
    It looks like he would give you back .30 per pound, as he is selling you non-lead weight.

  12. #12
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by largecaliberman View Post
    whew, some people just have the luck, good for you.
    Well, paying at all seems like a raw deal at first when there's plenty of reports of fellas scoring lead for free.

    At the same time, how much can I afford to drive in circles begging tire shops for a "free" bucket of WW's here and there? Not too much as it turns out if you have to figure in gas and time.

  13. #13
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    I've see supply's starting to dry up in my neck of the woods.

    My ad starts tomorrow, and we'll see what happens. This is pretty serious really, as if lead availability became scarce and real expensive, we' all would have a problem.

    There's no way I'm going to buy condom bullets..

    At least I have a metal detector, and can mine a great deal of my lead back...

  14. #14
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    Also, I have to drive an hour and 45 minutes one way, just to get to a city to find lead, then I have to drive from area to area at that point.

    But....................

  15. #15
    Boolit Master
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    wheel wt source option

    I work for the highway dept. (TXDoT) and I'm convinced the shoulders of our major
    roadways could be profitably mined for wheel weights. I walked along the edge of IH 30 for less than 50 yards and found a handfull. If someone were to use a metal detector to alarm on the clips a large quantity could be found; especially in areas where the pavement surface is rough. Maybe someone sees an easier way of collecting what's spread along the shoulders of our highways.

  16. #16
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    Awe... that's from runnin' into all those armadillos..

  17. #17
    Boolit Master
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    So if I check the highway rumble strips here by work on 54 I should find some? I'll check and let you know. A few wheelweights is a few more.

    Ron

  18. #18
    Boolit Master
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    I found the best places to look are at intersections where ther is braking and excelerating going on, especialy intersections where there are pot holes.
    BIC/BS

  19. #19
    Boolit Master
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    Well I was driving by a tire shop and was watching two young guys fighting to get a 5 gallon bucket into a dumpster. Before I could get stopped, they had succeeded. A 5 gallon bucket was lost. Can you imagine?

    They said that the recycler would only take them if they washed them and segregated all the junk. And how it was getting too cold and they weren't being paid enough to be foolin around with cold water this time of year.

    I sympothized and managed to save three, extremely dirty buckets, from the same fate.

  20. #20
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    Hee, heee....

    SO far I've got three calls off of my classified ad this weekend. One guy has a bunch of underground cable sheathing lead, and two others left a message, but I don't know what they have.

    I'm waiting until tomorrow morning to call the scrap yard down there and see what they pay first, before I call these folks back.

    I'm thinking maybe offering them half of what the scrapper pays since I'll be picking it up. Prolly feel em out first, cause they may just want to get it out of their place for cheap. We'll see.

    Anyone have any idea on prices? I've looked on the net and found some ads of companies wanting to buy and move lead in PRK for around .52 a pound, 40,000 minimum..

    Then some metals charts show as high as .78!! Geee Gads-
    Last edited by PatMarlin; 11-12-2006 at 11:41 AM.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check