Blood lead levels

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i also cast my own bullets indoors , with a good ventilation above the pot.
i smelt my scraplead into ingots the same way.
i shoot all of my ammo indoors , where theres some sort of ventilation.

call me stupid or ignorant , but i will continue to do this in this way.

i aint to concerned about the lead poisoning .

there are far more dangers in this life to consider , still we take our chances
every day , without thinking about it i think.
 
I found this thread pretty interesting -- especially all the conflicting information.

I have decided to sell all my self defense arms favoring a pressurized canister (like pepper spray) filled with lead dust, heavily used corn cob and mercury from broken thermometers. And I can take it on airplanes, in courtrooms and to the post office. Then I'm going to save up all my dryer sheets from tumbling and hang them over my exterior doors and windows, like mistletoe.
 
i have been shooting for years, never had my lead levels checked. but about 4 years ago, i started casting. and like anything elese, there is a learning curve to it. i made a couple of stupid mistakes. i was not feeling real well, so i had it checked. i can not tell you what the numbers were, but i was fine, even after the stupid mistakes. i have been reloading for years. but i have never, ever shot in an indoor range. one of those, without a very good ventilation system, seems to me like a great spot to elevate your lead levels. mostly from the primers.
 
Well according to the above post I guess we should all give up the shooting sports and just roll over and die.
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Why do you seem to think the only choices are to either (1) ignore (and at the same time denigrate those who try to point out) a potential risk in the face of overwhelming evidence that it exists or (2) assume that nothing short of total cessation of anything related to the shooting sports can help? Nobody here is suggesting that it's not possible to enjoy our shooting/handloading/casting hobby - only that, like many other enjoyable things in life, there is potential risk involved from exposure to lead that can be mitigated by taking a few simple precautions. (Or, as I said in another post, recognize that the risks exist but choose to do nothing to mitigate them - that's a perfectly rational position, but pretending there is no risk is not.)

I'll be taking my kayak out shortly, and will be wearing my PDF and potentially a helmet. I find that to be a reasonable response to the potential risks involved, rather than the irrational options of (1) pretending that people can't drown or (2) giving up the sport because I can't think of any way to mitigate the risks.
 
Why do you seem to think the only choices are to either (1) ignore (and at the same time denigrate those who try to point out) a potential risk in the face of overwhelming evidence that it exists or (2) assume that nothing short of total cessation of anything related to the shooting sports can help? Nobody here is suggesting that it's not possible to enjoy our shooting/handloading/casting hobby - only that, like many other enjoyable things in life, there is potential risk involved from exposure to lead that can be mitigated by taking a few simple precautions.
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Regarding the item you list as number (1). I'll basically ignore as it has not been my experience in my 40 plus years of reloading and in living in an older home, "one my family has lived in since the 1880" that I'm sure has lead paint in it and is sided with asbestos siding.
Also my experience is supported by many other casters and shooters. Maybe not from the AMA or OSHA. I've dealt with OSHA a couple of times, not as a owner of a company or one who is in management, but as a common worker. I informed the OSHA inspector to get the He!! out of my way and allow me to finish my work, the idiot had no idea what he was talking about and had never even seen the type of machine I was operating.

Regarding # (2) My feelings is that the whole issue is entirely overblown.

Please reread my posts # 24, 29, & 46

I'm 68 years young and have things much more important to worry about than lead, which my reading have stayed in the 4 to 6 range for the last 10 plus years.

This is still my opinion and I'm still sticking to it.

BTW the single sentence you quoted was pretty much made in jest, sorry you couldn't get that.
 
I'm 68 years young and have things much more important to worry about than lead, which my reading have stayed in the 4 to 6 range for the last 10 plus years.

This is still my opinion and I'm still sticking to it.
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We're of equivalent age. I'm planning on living long enough so that it makes sense for me to take reasonable precautions now to protect my health. You say you know your serum lead concentration and have (correctly) determined it's not a problem for you. That's very different from ignoring (your word) the problem, which your remarks may encourage others to do to their detriment.

You're entitled to your own opinions, just not your own facts.
 
You can't take mercury on an airplane.

You should see how mercury attacks and weakens aluminum.

Most of the articles linked involve either a large number of small lead particles (like shot), or presence of the lead near major joints with large amounts of synovial fluid contact.
Synovial fluid in joints has been well known to leach lead nicely.

Some are just plain ridiculous in equating contact with organic lead compounds and skin contact.
The most common ‘lead’ in lead paint is lead acetate (AKA ‘sugar of lead’)/
Lead pigments disappeared a long time ago, and most are lead oxides that are not especially soluble.

Lead acetate is very soluble if ingested (eating or breathing dust with lead acetate) and very available for bioaccumulation.

A single bullet not near a major joint is not going to do much at all, not or handling lead, or even swallowing an occasional piece of shot from hunting (it goes right on through).

Lead can create odd risks though.
Touching lead and then handling cigarettes can put lead powder on the cigarette.
Smoking past the now contaminated area will vaporize the finely divided lead and it can easily be absorbed in the lungs.

If lead casting temperatures are held to around 750 F, there is not much lead vapor.
Using a flame to speed melting can produce lead vapor easily though.
The flame temperature can be more than high enough to boil lead (3180F).

If the lead goes much over 750 F any tin can also start to separate out.

There is one study floating around from gunshot victims showing a rise in blood lead levels, but the study also show the blood lead level starting to fall as the surface of the lead is rendered inert by the body.

The dangers have been exaggerated in a ridiculous fashion.

Child blood lead levels have fallen nicely with the removal of lead tetra-ethyl from gasoline.
It was used as a knock inhibitor increasing the apparent octane of motor tested gasoline (now you now how gasoline can apparently have more than 100% octane).
It also created a witch's brew of organic lead compounds when the fuel burned that could easily be inhaled and absorbed.
Anyone living in a city with a lot of traffic absorbed lead, and children with a lower body mass had increased blood lead levels.
 
I have been a firearms instructor for 25 years on an indoor range and tumble brass indoors all the time. I get tested every physical and no ill effects yet. I DO however wash the living crap out of my hands each and every time I shoot or tumble brass...always. I have seen shooters eat a sandwich right after shooting tons of cast bullets with their fingers still black...that's not prudent IMHO.
 
My take on it is that we're all different.
Some of us absorb lead from thin air & some could eat a pound a day & eliminate all of it.

Me personally? It seems that I'm one of those who can absorb it just by looking at it.
In Aug 2011 my lead level was 29.
I stopped using lead bullets & went with jacketed or plated & started taking 1000mg of Vitamin C.

Six weeks later it was at 23, 2 weeks ago my level was at 20.

I rarely shoot at an indoor range & wash my hands regularly after handling ammo.
And I don't cast.

Just my 2 ¢
 
ever shot in an indoor range. one of those, without a very good ventilation system, seems to me like a great spot to elevate your lead levels. mostly from the primers.
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I just don't know what to say about indoor ranges. A local indoor range that I occasionally shot in, the ventilation system feels very strong. Powder smoke rapidly disappears down range.

And yet, when I had my lead levels checked, my Doc said one of his patients works at that range. And his lead leads were "very high".

Of course, his exact lead levels are his personal medical information and no one else's business so lets leave it at that.

Based on my review of lead data and the interest in lead toxicity, I hate to say it guys, but expect cast lead bullet bans in the future. A couple of successful lead lawsuits against indoor ranges and you can expect they will either shut down, or require shooters to only use FMJ, jacketed, or copper plated bullets.

You can then expect that to follow to public or for profit outside ranges.
 
"Based on my review of lead data and the interest in lead toxicity, I hate to say it guys, but expect cast lead bullet bans in the future. A couple of successful lead lawsuits against indoor ranges and you can expect they will either shut down, or require shooters to only use FMJ, jacketed, or copper plated bullets"

We as handgun shooters should start looking for solutions before a solution is forced on us. I for one am trying to support the ammo makers that have cleaner ammo at the same price point as other range ammo. Cabelas/Blazer TNJ seems to be something that we all should try and see if there are any down sides to this approach. It has done really well in every gun that I have tried. It sells locally for $10 to $12 for 9mm. I would hope the solution would not be much higher cost for ammo.
 
15 years ago there were lots of threads on rec.guns about Lead poisoning [pre WWW forums].

If you have very high blood Lead levels, you did not get it from guns. Most likely it was from power sanding Lead paint.
 
And yet, when I had my lead levels checked, my Doc said one of his patients works at that range. And his lead leads were "very high".
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He is exposed every day, for who knows how long each day.

Unless you shoot every day for the amount of time he works you are unlikely to have anything approaching his exposure.

His is occupational exposure.
 
1KPerDay said:
John, do you happen to know if this type of primer requires the larger primer holes typical to "leadless" or "lead-free" ammunition?
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Sorry, don't have a clue. Since it is sold as a component, I cant imagine that it wouldn't work in a normal primer hole size. Maybe a submittal through the manufacturers "Contact Us" page would get an answer?

A prudent course of action if you try this is, as always, start low and work up.
 
I guess I'm the guy who started this thread.I do not work for the govt or the anti gun crowd.If you are one of those who think I'm trying to sabatoge the shooting sports just keep doing what you have been as long as you feel OK. The reason I am bringing this up is because I love shooting and it is my main hobby.I also believe strongly in self defense and dont want to die and get sick at my own hand.Yes call it what you want but I am scared of lead poisoning and bringing the lead dust into my home for wife,children and grandchildren to breath. Hopefully my levels will go down and I will continue to shoot outdoors. PS I also just learned that when you leave the range you must wash with cold water as it closes the pores. I have been using hot water with a soft scrub brush on my hands and nails.
 
I'm more concerned about the idiots on the road I have to share it with who are talking on their cell phone or texting then I am lead, but thats just me.

At least the lead I have control over, but I have none when the other driver crosses the center line and comes right at me.
 
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