"The Word" from Les Schwab

[BruceB]

Stopping in at the LS tire store today, I was met by the manager who happens to be a shooter, and who has given me quite a tonnage of wheelweights in the past. He said he had bad news for me, which turned out to be this:

By the end of June, all lead wheelweights will be out of use in the Les Schwab system, to be replaced by steel weights.

This is one more sign of the problems we're going to face. Get whatever WW you can find, NOW, and I wouldn't worry too much if it costs more than we're accustomed to paying. As I mentioned on another thread (and was met with some disdain and nay-saying), even at fifty cents per pound the bullets we cast will still be very inexpensive.

It's one heck of a lot better to pay a certain price for them now, maybe more than we really like, than to look back and WISH that we'd bought them when they were still available. The current primer situation is an example, but at at least the primer shortage should be temporary. With lead WW, it will NOT be temporary....when they're gone, they'll be gone for good.

[Ancesthntr]

The way I look at it is this: we can pay a very high price for lead and still cast bullets cheaply on a per unit basis. Do the math: There are 7000 grains in a pound. Let's say you're casting 115 grain 9mm, 158 grain .38 and 230 grain .45. If you buy ingots on Ebay for $1/pound, then you'll get 60, 44 and 30 complete bullets from that pound, respectively. That's 1.66 cents, 2.27 cents and 3.33 cents per bullet, respectively. Now go and check out what it costs to buy cast bullets from various places near you, or via the Internet. The cheapest price that I can find for cast bullets at Midway, where I get a dealer discount, is as follows: 8.7 cents, 5.9 cents and 15.6 cents each, respectively. It is easy to see why lots of us cast bullets (or, in my case, why I'm about to start).

Buy in quantity, and it'll be cheaper. Get the WWs or some other source for free or even $20 a pail, and it'll be cheaper yet (as we all know). Some of you have been very fortunate, akin to those who started hoarding silver coinage before the production stopped in 1964. Right now, we're about to be placed in the position that existed with these coins in 1965 - there's a limited (though still large) supply out there, with less every day because someone is, essentially, mining the metal in the open market.

I agree, get what you can right now. I'm just starting, and actually had a bit of luck at a local tire store yesterday evening (though I have to wait until tomorrow to get it - the guy doesn't want his boss to know). I'm going to continue to get what I can for the best possible price.

[sqlbullet]

Mastercast.net is roughly half the Midway prices you quote above in qty of 1000 or better.

I agree though. Stock up now. I have about 1000 lbs on hand and plan to add another 1-2 tons as fast as I can.

[Shuz]

Bruce--That truly is bad news for us out here in the west. This mirrors what my Les Schwab dealer told me in December 08 when I bargained for a bucket of ww's to be thrown in with my deal for a new set of skins. My guess, though, is that they won't be all out of the system until early next year. While Schwabbie may only replace with steel by June, there will still be lead ww's on the wheels brought in for rebalance.

[madcaster]

The way I look at it is this: we can pay a very high price for lead and still cast bullets cheaply on a per unit basis. Do the math: There are 7000 grains in a pound. Let's say you're casting 115 grain 9mm, 158 grain .38 and 230 grain .45. If you buy ingots on Ebay for $1/pound, then you'll get 60, 44 and 30 complete bullets from that pound, respectively. That's 1.66 cents, 2.27 cents and 3.33 cents per bullet, respectively. Now go and check out what it costs to buy cast bullets from various places near you, or via the Internet. The cheapest price that I can find for cast bullets at Midway, where I get a dealer discount, is as follows: 8.7 cents, 5.9 cents and 15.6 cents each, respectively. It is easy to see why lots of us cast bullets (or, in my case, why I'm about to start).

Buy in quantity, and it'll be cheaper. Get the WWs or some other source for free or even $20 a pail, and it'll be cheaper yet (as we all know). Some of you have been very fortunate, akin to those who started hoarding silver coinage before the production stopped in 1964. Right now, we're about to be placed in the position that existed with these coins in 1965 - there's a limited (though still large) supply out there, with less every day because someone is, essentially, mining the metal in the open market.

I agree, get what you can right now. I'm just starting, and actually had a bit of luck at a local tire store yesterday evening (though I have to wait until tomorrow to get it - the guy doesn't want his boss to know). I'm going to continue to get what I can for the best possible price.

I agree with this summary!
That is good thinking,PLUS you are not robbinng yourself of the quality "self" time-or is it work?

[sheepdog]

Spoke with a rep from ammcoats, the makers of steel zinc and nice lead weights like the ones that say "micro" on them. According to them they have no plans of stopping lead weights anytime soon and lobby against the "eco-freaks" in Congress. At least someones still believes in let the market/consumer decide.

Even if they all do it sounds like the non-lead stick on weights are turning into a flop.

[troy_mclure]

unfortunately wheel weights around here are nonexistent anyways. scrap lead is going for .60c a lb from the scrap yards.

[HangFireW8]

unfortunately wheel weights around here are nonexistent anyways. scrap lead is going for .60c a lb from the scrap yards.

Same here. The tire shops are all spoken for. I can get bar solder (and I do) for way cheaper than wheel weights.

-HF

[troy_mclure]

where are you finding bar solder? theres one plumbing shop in town and it only sells spools, at about $3 an lb.