I KNOW THIS IS PROBABLY LIKE ASKING WHERE SOMEONES FAVORITE FISHING HOLE IS LOCATED, BUT IM NEW TO BULLET CASTING {SANTA BROUGHT ME A LEE PRODUCTION POT AND ACCY.} WHERE DOES ONE FIND SOURCES FOR SCRAP LEAD IN MIDDLE TENNESSEE, AND WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT TO PAY?

Hi Rangeryder

I don"t know about Tennesee but usually tire shops and garages are a good source for wheel weights. Some will give then to you and others my want arount 10.00 a 5 gallon bucket. If they give them to you to save a hazmat fee dont forget to drop off a box of donuts. Scrap yards also have them. If you are casting muzzle loader ball you want soft lead like old lead pipe or telephone cable sheathing ussually at the scrap yard. Another good source is the berm at the outside ranges. Hope this helps. Boon

I second the suggestion of tire stores, guess the cost of living is higher up here as I've had to pay $20/bucket, and now that shop no longer sells them.

I've also found my wife has a better chance of getting them for free then I do

A 5 gallon bucket of wheelweights, after you filter out the old valve stems, lug nuts and cigarett butts, melt down and skim off the tire clips, you end up with about 100#'s in ingots.

How close are to Murfreesboro?

WC

make friends at newspaper print shop, old printing shops for linotype. If you take a walk look in the gutter I get 40 to 50 pounds a year from this source. Check with plumbers for old shower pans. Scrap yards for babbit metal, linotype, there's tons of the stuff out there.
Talk to your friends they may have sources for lead allow. I've gotten several hundred pounds of lino that way. My former in-laws had a couple of sculptures that my ex made in college out of lead, that lead made wonderful bullets.
Jim

I GOT A CHANCE ABOUT 15 YRS AGO TO HELP MY FRIENDS CLEAN OUT AN INDOOR RANGE SAND AND STEEL SHEET TYPE BULLET TRAP. WE MELTED DOWN THE RANGE LEAD AND SPLIT UP THE INGOTS. I'VE GOT ENOUGH BULLETS TO LAST ME A LIFE TIME NOW.

EXPERIENCE IS ONE THING YOU CAN'T GET FOR NOTHING... OSCAR WILDE................

THE 2ND AMENDMENT PROTECTS US ALL..........

GOD BLESS AMERICA...........................

rangeryder
I've done all the above- the "pit or dunes" where I shoot is my best "free source" always try and recover some of my shoots to recycle! But when you use just this source your bullets end up softer. Most of the jacketed bullets have very soft lead cores-But you can turn that copper jacket and reduce the price of scrap WW's. If you want hard cast bullets you need to either add Hard bird shot every other casting or mix with range lead to get harder bullets. Or pay for scrap WW's.

Just this past year the tire stores have given me 5 buckets of wheel weights. One store says they are supposed to sell them to the salvage folks, but since I had just bought $400 in tires they said take them. They seemed more concerned with the fact that they might end up loosing the plastic bucket???? Every time I need a flat fixed, the front end aligned, new tires I come away with at least one and usually two buckets of lead. I don't shoot that much cast stuff, but I did trade two buckets for a very nice handtooled leather belt with loops for 6 16 ga shells and 6 40x40 Maynard shells, nice addition to my Cape Gun junk for not much cost. IMHO....

talked to the guys where i shoot,they said no way,said had to be reclaimed?probably epa talk,i do have some monotype and linotype thankfully, with about 750lb of ww.

I've been picking up wheel weights for 15-20 a bucket. I went to a scrap recycler and got some telephone cable sheathing scrap that is very soft for .35 a pound. They also had a couple tons of Linotype for .50 a pound.
Lar.

I just bought two buckets of WW for $20 and got 300 pounds + of ingots out of them. Went to another shop that boxed them up neatly in boxes that run about 50 pounds and got 15 boxes for $70.

One point to remember is that garage folks hate the gubmint as much as we do. Tell them that you have had trouble buying scrap because of the EPA (I have anyway) and they will bend over backwards to help you out.

Now I need some cheap tin. Had some luck buying pewter fraternity mugs at yard sales and flea markets for $2-3 each. One mug will do about 75 pound of WW. Anyone got a better idea?

rangeryder...Make friends with a telephone serviceman or a roofer. Often flashing and cable sheathing come their way in large quantities for the hauling.

This is a mixed bag as some is pure, some is alloyed and some in high tin content but lead is lead and usually, the price is right.

When you're scrounging the tire shops. Don't pass up the truck stops and places that service buses. Their weights are huge and seem to have a higher antimony content than regular car weights./beagle

I have done all the tire shop scrounging and wheel weight rendering I EVER want to do.

I have reclaimed lead from indoor ranges, picked spent bullets out of the dirt at the backstop, looked for people selling off stained-glass window materials at yard sales and hung around radiator shops looking for high-tin alloy for mixing purposes.

Sure, I have always have enough lead to keep on shooting but now I find myself wanting more than anything to find a foundry, specify an alloy and buy, yes, BUY 1000 pounds of good, clean, known material I can just toss in the pot and keep on casting!

Do any of you folks out there know of such a place?

Good morning,
Forrest

FAsmus,

Try Atlas Metals in Colorado Springs Colorado. I have purchased some really nice alloy from them. I have found that their blended alloys are just perfect to add to wheelweights. On the other hand if you want to cast only their alloy you might find a different mix with more lead for less money. I have found that they are very reasonably priced and a great company to deal with.

[Reverenddan:

R: Try Atlas Metals in Colorado Springs Colorado..

F: Thanks very much. I'll go look them up.

I do get down to Colorado Springs now and then during the course of my job. Now when I off-load the passengers in COS I'll just pick up 1000 pounds of alloy, put it in my airplane and go home! Wonderfull stuff.

Good afternon,
Forrest

I believe you can still get it from the refinery in East Helena, Montana. I believe there may be a one ton minimum.

I have gone to Atlas Metals website. They apparently are in Denver.

I called their 800 line and was quoted some prices that kind of scared me off: $1.10/pound for alloy of 87% lead 10% antimony 3% tin!

I'll go look at the Helena offering. I get up there about as often as anywhere else around the Rockys.

Thanks for tip.

Good morning,
Forrest