Lead exposure and plated projectiles

[rajbcpa]

Well, I have been using plated projectiles for a couple of years now and they work great. I would say they perform like lead cast projectiles but they have the advantage of causing less barrel leading.

As a result of the recent component supply shortage, I bought a bunch of lead cast projectiles because I could not find and buy plated bullets.

I have had a couple of health issues last year, and I don't need lead contamination to add to the list. I'm taking reasonable precautions to avoid lead contamination with the lead slugs including washing my hands often.

Is there a lot less chance of getting lead contamination if you are loading with plated and not cast projectiles?

 

[longdayjake]

Well, yes there is less of a chance of being exposed to lead. For sure. But, if you are really paranoid you would kinda freak out to know that Plated bullets are plated using an acidic cyanide. I wonder how much of that cyanide actually gets washed off.

 

[KeithET]

Reloading with lead bullets will not cause any issues if you take some very simple precautions. Keep your hands away from your face while handling lead. Don't eat anything or drink anything until you have washed your hands. As always no smoking while loading! Keep your loading area clean as well.
You will be fine.

KeithET

 

[Cosmoline]

The lead you get on your hands washes off easily and is not really the source of most adult lead poisoning. The fumes and particulate matter from casting and shooting are more likely to be a problem. You could probably eat a cast bullet and it wouldn't generate much if any blood lead level problems. But breath in too many of the particles and you've got problems.

http://www.rainierballistics.com/airbornelead.php

This is one reason I've gone over to liquid media for cleaning. The dust clouds from shifting the solid media really gave me pause.

 

[rajbcpa]

I have a Lyman tumbler with a top and you can get about 90% of the media out using the rubber drain plug. For the rest, you need to remove the top, continue to run the motor, and use your hands to get the rest of the media out of the cases. This is the part that involves breathing a lot of bad dust.