Zinc contamination

[quack1]

I had to run some errands in town yesterday, so I hit a couple of dealers for wheel weights. One place, where I had been able to get a few pounds now and then, said they were now recycleing them back to the company they buy new weights from. As I never got a lot of weights from them, no big deal, but I got to thinking. The weights I did get from them were probably 50% zinc and steel ones(the place specializes in foreign car repair) . Now, when the weight factory melts these down to make new weights, I'm betting they aren't separating out the zinc ones. As more and more weights get recycled into new weights are we going to eventually be getting zinc contamination in all wheel weights? In my area, I never saw a zinc weight until about 4or 5 years ago, but in the last 2 buckets I smelted last month, I'll guess I picked out 15-20 lbs of zinc weights. That's a significant amount, and I have seen guys posting from other areas mention they get a lot more than that. I wonder if some of the posts asking about wrinkled bullets could be caused by zinc contamination that is already in the weights, before smelting. Some food for thought.

[chunkum]

I think you're very likely onto something.
c.

[ron brooks]

I'm really hoping that what they do is seperate them out by temp, like we do so that they can sell the zinc ones to those who really wnat and/or have to have the zinc weights and the lead ones at a lower price to those who don't want or need zinc. At least as I said this is what I am hoping is happening.

[John Boy]

Now, when the weight factory melts these down to make new weights, I'm betting they aren't separating out the zinc ones.

Quack, this does not happen with the wheel weight manufacturers. They are one or the other: Lead or Zinc

The environmental issue is to remove lead, not combine lead with zinc. Lead is an environmental issue and Lead Free weights are coming into being

[Old Ironsights]

Sears sends theirs to their Die Hard division, at least so I've been told.

[chunkum]

John Boy
I hope you're right on that. I'd suspect that some re-casters are less concerned with makeing the zinc/lead distinction than others. But on the other hand, it would mostly depend on where the maximum profit was - in recasting for a quick resale or in taking the time to separate the wts. Time will tell, I reckon.
c