CA Lead Bullet Ban

[glockman19]

The State Fish & Game Commission has expanded it's ban on the use of lead ammunition in hunting grounds that also are home to California Condors.
Earlier this year, the state Legislature outlawed most lead ammunition in hunting rifles, saying that rare California condors suffer lead poisioning when they eat animal carcuses left behind by hunters. Friday's 3-1 voteby game commissioners goes further, however, and prohibits the use of lead in firearms that are .22 caliber or smaller.
"It's important because it you talk to condor recovery biologists, the #1 threat to condor recovery is lead poisioning," said Kim Delfino, a representative of the group Defenders of Wildlife. With only about 300 California condors left, 17 of the birds statewide were found this year to have lead poisioning.
The New regulations go nto effect July 1, 2008.

What other metal would be good to cast bullets other than lead?
I have a lot of brass, would brass make a good bullet?
How would ballistics change? what would be the weight : mass difference in metals?

 

[Eric F]

the same thing hapened with lead sinkers around here folks turned to bronze brass soft steal ect.

 

[JCT]

Try Bismuth? That's what most fishing sinkers are now made with. If that didn't work, I'd use brass ( copper and zinc ). Maybe you can find a softer brass alloy.

 

[Chief-7700]

The State Fish & Game Commission has expanded it's ban on the use of lead ammunition in hunting grounds that also are home to California Condors. OK since we have to save the Condors, however I have not seen any maps the indicate the Condor lead free zone. It seems the tree huggers and fern feelers are up to banning .22 lead ammo or could this be another attempt at gun/ammo control.

 

[glockman19]

All lead hunting ammo

 

[AirplaneDoc]

Fortunately I don't live in the fruit and nut state.

And I thought Illinois was bad

 

[NuJudge]

You can apparently cast Zinc very nicely, but I have not tried it and the metallurgy of it I have not studied.

CDD

 

[The Bushmaster]

Bismuth and lead are almost identical in weight and melt points. I believe they are right next to each other on the element periodic table...

 

[Snapping Twig]

Back door gun control, nothing whatsoever to do with the condor.

Remember....bullets pass through, they don't stay inside the animal. This being the case, how are the condors getting the lead? Answer - they're not - it's a ruse.

But remember....it's for the children...

 

[HankB]

Hmmm . . . ban lead bullets . . . and a lot of the alternatives, when used in handguns, could be considered "illegal armor piercing" pistol ammunition . . .

This bodes ill.

 

[RedLion]

Just load your bullets with high explosives
not much lead in those

 

[The Bushmaster]

Being as how I spent 20 years next to the condor reserve I will agree with Snapping Twig. Besides the condors should be extinct. Their food supply is gone and the "goody-two-shoes" have ranchers kill a beef and leave it in the condor reserve so they can eat...They are a very large prehistoric buzzard and rely on large dead animals...Not many of those left...By the way...We pay for those beeves out of our tax dollars...

 

[papajohn]

So if someone were to exterminate the other 300 of these ugly buzzards, the ban could be rescinded, right?

This whole thing stinks of BS. Buzzards eat Bullets, thinking they're meat? If they're THAT stupid, they SHOULD be extinct!

Papajohn

 

[The Bushmaster]

Coastal Missouri?? That's a bit of a stretch...

 

[AirplaneDoc]

Hey, the whole eastern side of the state is on the water, and when all the glaciers and ice caps melt, and California falls into the ocean, then Missouri might just be truly costal. Won't have to worry about the Condors then either.

 

[The Bushmaster]

Hummmm...You have a point there after all...On both counts...

 

[Javelin]

CA - "banning weapons one peice at a time"

 

[fastattack]

I've always said that the anti crowd will ban ammo since it is easier than confiscation of your guns. In my mind the connection between condors and lead is suspect at best. Next will be banning lead at our shooting ranges due to lead contamination of our aquifer.

 

[papajohn]

"Coastal Missouri?? That's a bit of a stretch..."

I live a few blocks from the Big Muddy, the dividing line between the People's Republic of Illinausea and Free America. I used to live over there, then moved back here when they passed a CCW law. That will NEVER happen in the PRI.

PJ

 

[The Bushmaster]

Welcome home papajohn...

 

[Kimber1911_06238]

yeah, next they'll just ban all triggers. You can own any gun you want, but if it has a trigger.....YOU'RE A FELON

 

[Oohrah]

Zinc works but is lighter than lead !

 

[BigBlock]

I say we all get together and ban california.

 

[Hook686]

Are FMJ bullets lead ?

Hmmmm what is the specific law ? Lead bullets to me are cast lead, soft lead, SJSP, JSP, etc but FMJ or even Plated FN strikes me as not specifically lead, for the lead is not exposed.. Unless the Condor chews the bullet, the condor ought not be exposed to lead I'm thinking.

Why is everybody so uptight, steel shot has been around quite a while now.

 

[papajohn]

First they'll ban lead. Steel bullets are Armor-Piercing, already banned in most places. Bismuth is horribly expensive, and they'll probably try to find a way to ban it, as well. This is what they do, they chip away at our freedoms until there's nothing left. NEVER GIVE AN INCH!

PJ