Matt-J2
Member
I'm trying to get into casting, and want to know what sort of alloy to get for casting roundballs. Pure lead? 20-1? 40-1? That sort of thing.
Lead for casting roundballs
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1911Tuner
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The cheapest route is to use the stick-on lead wheelweights...which are as nearly pure, soft lead as you'll get on the cheap. There's a small percentage of tin, which is a good thing.
The problem is that there are zinc and iron stick-ons...along with a couple of unidentifiable metals and even plastics. Beware of these. If you leave a tiny bit of zinc in the metal long enough for it to melt...you may as well throw out the whole pot.
The test is to use a small pair of pliers to "mash test" the weights.
If you can easily mash a corner...it's lead.
The other bad news is that, lead wheelweights are being phased out in order to protect 2 dozen or so giant California buzzards and the children, etc. So, get'em while you can. Local tire shops will often give them away, or sell'em pretty cheap. They're usually mixed up with clip-ons...so you'll want to deal with a shop that'll let you separate the pure lead weights from the antimonial lead. Of course, the lead clip-ons make great hardcast bullets, so you may want to think about that. If you don't use'em, you can always hold onto'em for somebody that will. When they disappear, the price for wheelweight metal will jump sharply.
The problem is that there are zinc and iron stick-ons...along with a couple of unidentifiable metals and even plastics. Beware of these. If you leave a tiny bit of zinc in the metal long enough for it to melt...you may as well throw out the whole pot.
The test is to use a small pair of pliers to "mash test" the weights.
If you can easily mash a corner...it's lead.
The other bad news is that, lead wheelweights are being phased out in order to protect 2 dozen or so giant California buzzards and the children, etc. So, get'em while you can. Local tire shops will often give them away, or sell'em pretty cheap. They're usually mixed up with clip-ons...so you'll want to deal with a shop that'll let you separate the pure lead weights from the antimonial lead. Of course, the lead clip-ons make great hardcast bullets, so you may want to think about that. If you don't use'em, you can always hold onto'em for somebody that will. When they disappear, the price for wheelweight metal will jump sharply.
desidog
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I have a .22 bullet box out in the garage, for plinking in luxury during inclement weather. I take the spent subsonic lead rounds out of there and recycle them. Generally Aquila colibris or Rem. subsonic .22lr's.
A bullet box rated for .22lr might work well for a .32 cap and ball pistol with a light powder load...but the smoke might annoy the boss!
A bullet box rated for .22lr might work well for a .32 cap and ball pistol with a light powder load...but the smoke might annoy the boss!
Voodoochile
Member
I also use Adhesive Wheel Weights that are made of 98% pure Lead & yes Zinc & Steel ones are being the new EPA way to go so soon the Lead ones are going to get harder to acquire.
Like 1911Tuner said but the easier way to tell a Zinc weight from a Lead weight is to have a small pocket screw driver, if you can just run it accross the weight & the screw driver wants to dig in then it's Lead, you have to almost force it to scratch a Zinc weight because Zinc is harder than Lead.
The Home Depot way is also a good alternative.
Like 1911Tuner said but the easier way to tell a Zinc weight from a Lead weight is to have a small pocket screw driver, if you can just run it accross the weight & the screw driver wants to dig in then it's Lead, you have to almost force it to scratch a Zinc weight because Zinc is harder than Lead.
The Home Depot way is also a good alternative.
Mike OTDP
Member
You want pure lead. Anything else is fodder for cartridge guns, not muzzle-loaders.
SWC Bonfire
Member
kanook, that was the first thing I thought when I saw some vent flanges in home depot the other day... how do they compare cost-wise to buying the cast ingots from like Midway or other bullet casting vendors?
sundance44s
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One thing for sure shipping cost added into buyiing lead has to be considered when buying on line .
Scrap lead prices were low a few months ago ...last time I bought .
I always like to use roofing lead or any plumbers grade ...like old water pipes when you can find them ...
Too much of the other scrap lead is hard to figure the hardness on ..I`ve gotten lucky sometimes and ended up with harder lead other times ..I cast 45 cal bullets with the harder leads and use the dead soft for round balls .
The scratch test works for me most of the time ...sometimes I do what I call a drop test on a hard surface ..if it bounces at all I put it back .
Scrap lead prices were low a few months ago ...last time I bought .
I always like to use roofing lead or any plumbers grade ...like old water pipes when you can find them ...
Too much of the other scrap lead is hard to figure the hardness on ..I`ve gotten lucky sometimes and ended up with harder lead other times ..I cast 45 cal bullets with the harder leads and use the dead soft for round balls .
The scratch test works for me most of the time ...sometimes I do what I call a drop test on a hard surface ..if it bounces at all I put it back .
Zeke/PA
Member
I use only pure lead for all my muzzleloader shooting and save the unknown alloys for fishing sinkers and lures.
While still employed on a full time basis, I was fortunate enough to liberate from my employer two pure lead scale dampners that weighed in at 100# each that were destined to the scrap heap.
Using a course pitch blade on the toolroom bandsaw, I cut the lead "sheets" in lead pot size chunks.
I cast for my T/C Hawkin, my T/C Seneca and three black powder revolvers buy even at that, the supply should last quite some time.
While still employed on a full time basis, I was fortunate enough to liberate from my employer two pure lead scale dampners that weighed in at 100# each that were destined to the scrap heap.
Using a course pitch blade on the toolroom bandsaw, I cut the lead "sheets" in lead pot size chunks.
I cast for my T/C Hawkin, my T/C Seneca and three black powder revolvers buy even at that, the supply should last quite some time.
kanook
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SWC not sure on the comparison of price. i use to install custom mirrors and we would use that lead to set and adjust the mirror for a custom fit. so I always had alot of it readily available to me. sorry about that. but i know that it works nicely and is easy to add to the pot in strips instead of the ignot
Pancho
Member
I've always been told and have lived with using 100% lead for muzzleloading. I believe it's mainly an ease of loading issue. 100% will be the softest and therefore easier to load than the alloys. Round ball could be a little more forgiving due to the fact that you're using an undersized ball with a patch but if you ever decide to pour some maxie-balls you better be using pure lead or you're going to have to use a hammer to get the maxie started.
ARENAMAN
Member
Maybe I was lucky, and maybe they dont always have it in stock, but I found salvage roof pipe lead in a big bin for sale at a scrap metal yard and bought all I wanted for 30 cents a pound. That is a great deal. They also had what looked like lead ingots that seemed to me to be alloyed with tin or something to make it harder. Might be better for our reloader friends.
So, if you have a metal salvage yard in your neighborhood, stop in and check out what they have in the way of lead.
So, if you have a metal salvage yard in your neighborhood, stop in and check out what they have in the way of lead.
Matt-J2
Member
Thanks for the tips, folks. I'll be checking some of those out tomorrow. 
bullseye308
Member
I know someone selling some good lead, but he is almost out. PM me and I'll tell you about it.
. PM me and I'll tell you about it. Smokin_Gun
Member
Hi Matt, eBay is about the best 40-60/lb. box of pure lead ingot I have found...take a look around there.
If useing a patched roundball, pure lead is not necessary since the ball never comes into contact with the barrel itself...only the patch does. I've used wheelweights and even linotype for roundballs in my rifles and they work perfectly.
For revolvers where the bullet is swaged down into the chambers, dead soft lead is a must though.
For revolvers where the bullet is swaged down into the chambers, dead soft lead is a must though.
Ifishsum
Member
Do you know anyone in the roofing business? If so, let them know you're looking for scrap lead. I got a couple of hundred pounds of scrap roof vent and flashing material that way, it's nice and soft.
tx gun runner
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I go to the local scrape yard and look for lead from xray shield or wire shielding at $.50 a lbs . I use pure lead for muzzle loader , wheel weight for pistol and punking rifle , and 25 to 1 for serious target work .
CAMPBELL49T
Member
Man this lead is getting out of sight. I have seen it all the way to a dollar. In my own little world I get it for.......cheap. I have around 170lb left out of 240. Winter is not over yet will use some more. An old black powder shooter told me. If you find it for cheap......don't tell nobody.
wittzo
Member
A lot of the tire stores are selling the lead to battery companies, mostly the big ones. Some of the smaller ones are getting wise, they're selling them for scrap when they used to pay a hazmat fee to get rid of them. Sort of like the mom and pop stores paying to get rid of grease, now they're selling it because of biofuel.
qajaq59
Member
I cast conicals and balls so I need the soft lead. I got lucky and found over a hundred pounds of x-ray shielding at the scrap yard for $0.35 a lb. With that, plus the stick on weights, I'm set for black powder casting for a while. But I never stop looking. For my smokeless powder rifles I use a 50/50 WW/ pb alloy with tin added.
doubleh
Member
You can use about any lead or lead alloy for patched roundballs. The trick is finding the correct thickness of material for patches or using smaller diameter balls. I used to shoot roundballs cast out of #4 babbit which is HARD as I had a source for the used metal when it was no longer good for it's intended use. I used a standard sized mold (I forget the dia.) and a very thin patch and only shot them for plinking purposes. Accuracy was as good as with pure lead but they were extemely brittle. I used to plink caliche rocks in caliche pits with them. You never recovered one as they shattered on impact. All you would find was tiny little pieces of babbit. My source dried up years ago and now I buy lead from the salvage yard. Last summer I bought 50# of cable sheathing for 47 cents a pound. After melting it down I had 45# of lead and 5# of dirt and dross. Not bad when the dealers are getting around $2 per 1# ingot around here.
qajaq59
Member
Since we were talking about it I stopped at the recycle yard on the way back from the range a while ago. He only had 18 pounds of soft lead, but sometimes you have to take it when you can get it.
qajaq59
Member
Sure does and better yet, we save our soda cans, so with ten pounds of cans and a $5 bill I figure the price was right. lol
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