lead free
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fxvr5
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- May 26, 2017
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In case no one has mentioned it, Fiocchi lead free small pistol and small rifle primers can often be found at Grafs, Powder Valley and Selway Armory.
I've used the small pistol primers and found they work very well and do not appear to negatively affect velocity or accuracy.
I've used the small pistol primers and found they work very well and do not appear to negatively affect velocity or accuracy.
Fine Figure of a Man
Member
A new lead thread pops up every couple months.
I seems there are three groups of thought. A few don't care at all. Most take the common sense approach, washing hands, not eating or smoking around lead, using plated or coated bullets, etc. Then there are a few that seem to live in absolute fear of lead and don't consider any precaution an adequate defense against poisoning.
I seems there are three groups of thought. A few don't care at all. Most take the common sense approach, washing hands, not eating or smoking around lead, using plated or coated bullets, etc. Then there are a few that seem to live in absolute fear of lead and don't consider any precaution an adequate defense against poisoning.
alsaqr
Member
For 50 years i did military EOD and civilian EOD/UXO stuff. Got lead poisoning from burning huge quantities of military small arms ammunition and cleaning out the burn pits (lead dust). Chelation treatment was offered but I refused, choosing instead to consume large does of vitamin C. Four months later the lead poisoning was gone.
https://i.imgur.com/lidd17w.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lidd17w.jpg
If by "scared" and "absolute fear," you mean concerned enough to act, then it seems to be wise. If being scared and living in absolute fear is what it takes to explain why one would carry concealed or keep a home defense gun, then it seems like a reasonable condition. It doesn't seem more irrational to demand (by purchasing) less toxic ammunition and to sustain a market demand for excellent performance from ammunition that doesn't present the same health risks to the shooter and reloader as lead.
Fine Figure of a Man
Member
I mean an irrational obsession over a perceived threat or risk.
"Plumbumphobia"?
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I always, and mean always, after a match go to the bathroom room and wash my hands and arms before eating. I have no idea how effective that is. I have favorite restaurants which my Bud's and myself chow down, after a match, but in our match clothing. I must look like a homeless person as I wear my worst, most worn clothing to matches. I am certain that I am transferring lead from the clothes to the hands, because I touch my clothes, can't help that. I have not tested any surfaces in my vehicles, or home.
At your next physical, ask the Doctor to test your blood for lead. I am running about a 9. It got higher. It shot up when I started shooting Bullseye Pistol. It shot up bad after I shot at a range where part of the firing line was covered by not only by a roof, but a wall. It was a State Championship and there must have been fifty shooters, and the area I was in had zero air flow. I remember the metallic taste in my mouth after the match. Since then I have shot at that range again, in State Championships and monthly matches. Always I have requested a firing point on the end of the line that did not have a wall behind the firing point. There is still a roof, but the air flow is better without a wall.
I shoot small bore prone matches at a club, which built an indoor range for indoor small bore prone and pistol matches. I had to really brighten up the picture as it is dark as a tomb. This indoor range was built in the 1970's, and I can say, there is absolutely no ventilation beyond opening the side door. Which is how they got the lawn equipment inside, it is a big door, but it is not going to create a positive air flow.
This is typical of the attitudes and design of ranges back then, clean air and lead poisoning was not a consideration at all. Now the small bore prone matches I have shot at the club are outside, wonderful outside range, roof cover, plenty of air flow and ticks! Scores are posted in this room and I am leary of going too far forward, towards the dark end, and I don't like even being in the room. I just don't know how many decades of lead dust is on the floor and the walls.
I have heard from guys who run local indoor ranges,. The range I am thinking of has a very positive airflow. These range officers are regularly tested for lead but they have a story about someone who went forward of the line, to do something, and he was not properly suited up. His lead level shot up. Think about where lead is deposited in an indoor range, and stay away from those areas.
RA40
Member
How responsive are ranges when they may be asked about their AQ results? Do these places get periodically checked?
You’ve obviously been hanging with the wrong crowd.
You have to eat lead to cause an issue. Casting it holding it, etc doesn’t cause problems. I smelt lots of weights and cast thousands of rounds with no respirator or gloves and have low lead levels in my blood test. Because I don’t boil the lead, handling, shooting and such are no problem. Just don’t eat the paint chips or bullets!
You have to eat lead to cause an issue. Casting it holding it, etc doesn’t cause problems. I smelt lots of weights and cast thousands of rounds with no respirator or gloves and have low lead levels in my blood test. Because I don’t boil the lead, handling, shooting and such are no problem. Just don’t eat the paint chips or bullets!
The company that I worked for conducted environmental studies for DoD ranges and found that there was a relationship between acidity and lead mobility. Where conditions were not acidic the lead oxidized and passivated against further oxidation. The more massive the form of lead the lower the environmental mobility, i.e. the larger the pieces of bullet/projectile the less lead entering the environment. Soil and water samples on those ranges showed little lead entering the environment. Conversely, where water, soil and rainwater were acidic, lead mobility in the environment was very much higher. Lead at the shooting positions was barely detectable as long as they had not been part of a backstop or had not been down range at one time.
Good backstop design played a role as well. Sand berms were better than dirt. Rubber chunk was good as well. A good maintenance program shaping and sifting the sand helped as well to control lead entering the environment.
These are private corporations and they will not give you any data about anything at all. It is all proprietary. Someone is doing some sampling, based on the Seattle Times article but I don't know how to get the information from your local range. I have asked my Bud's at the local indoor firing range, they get blood tested regularly, claim they are OK. However my Doc has one of them as a patient, won't reveal who, and says the guy has elevated levels of lead in his blood. Won't say how much either. I get the idea it is more than mine. I would not doubt the range employees are required to sign non disclosure and arbitration agreements.
Here is some data on that, basically, lead is a danger. Do your best to reduce your intake. What you do is up to you.
Reducing Exposure to Lead and Noise at Outdoor Firing Ranges
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/wp-solutions/2013-104/pdfs/2013-104.pdf.
Or here:
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/wp-solutions/2013-104/default.html
Preventing Occupational Exposures to Lead and Noise at Indoor Firing Ranges
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2009-136/pdfs/2009-136.pdf
Lead Poisoning and the Shooter
Oct 2014 Shooting Sports
www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nra/ssusa_201410/
Loaded with Lead: How gun ranges poison workers and shooters
Seattle Times 17 Oct 2014
http://projects.seattletimes.com/2014/loaded-with-lead/about/
RA40
Member
Excellent, thanks Slamfire.
One of the past indoor places were secretive and belligerent when asked about their AQ. They've since closed. The one RO relayed to me after leaving was that the air was horrible. His doc advised him to leave that place since his blood test was not very good. He didn't relay his actual reading and he was a young guy in his later 20's.
Choosing times when there is the least amount of shooters has been good for me. Do the drills and be out of the firing line in the lowest time possible for the exposure. When I shoot the .22's I wear nitrile gloves for handling/loadng them. One good aspect at this range is ammunition be jacketed. Taking measures to wash hands and gear is good advice. Learned a lesson in my early years and the MSDS is one of the first steps of awareness for safe handling.
One of the past indoor places were secretive and belligerent when asked about their AQ. They've since closed. The one RO relayed to me after leaving was that the air was horrible. His doc advised him to leave that place since his blood test was not very good. He didn't relay his actual reading and he was a young guy in his later 20's.
Choosing times when there is the least amount of shooters has been good for me. Do the drills and be out of the firing line in the lowest time possible for the exposure. When I shoot the .22's I wear nitrile gloves for handling/loadng them. One good aspect at this range is ammunition be jacketed. Taking measures to wash hands and gear is good advice. Learned a lesson in my early years and the MSDS is one of the first steps of awareness for safe handling.
As a Smallbore Prone shooter I handle greased 22lr with my bare fingers every match. It is not practicable to wear gloves. I do not shoot indoors prone, and pretty much, every range I shoot has some wind, often too much!. The barrel is about 30" in front of my face with is a lot further than any pistol I own. I don't know how much touching 22lr contributes to my lead levels, I hope very little. I did ask the Eley representatives from the UK about the amount of elemental lead their ammunition pumps out, I thought they would have measured it. These guys were sales representatives and did not know, did not care to know.
I am of the opinion that my greatest exposure to lead is from the lead blown out the barrel from lead bullets and lead primers. This is based on this study:
Without measuring equipment, all you can know is the lead level in your blood, and try to correlate that to the activities you do. Not a great system.
here ya go: https://www.amazon.com/Yamde-Dispos...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=JW02QNV7DN0MR3DJJ1R2
get some goggles so the lead doesn't get in the eyes. wear ear muffs instead of plugs so the lead won't get in the ears. might as well get some knee pads so the knees don't get scratched. elbow pads to protect from damage, a wrap around helmet should be worn just so the scope doesn't cut your eye. and steel toe shoes just because something might happen.
that should do it.
murf
get some goggles so the lead doesn't get in the eyes. wear ear muffs instead of plugs so the lead won't get in the ears. might as well get some knee pads so the knees don't get scratched. elbow pads to protect from damage, a wrap around helmet should be worn just so the scope doesn't cut your eye. and steel toe shoes just because something might happen.
that should do it.
murf
Hunter86004
Member
I prefer a full Haz Mat suit with a Scott Air-Pak.
Lead exposure, especially from lead styphnate dust and breathing vaporized lead during firing, can be an issue. Years ago my lead level was elevated due to frequent firing at older indoor ranges and using lead bullets primarily in revolvers. Stopped doing those things and the lead level dropped to normal without treatment.
I suspect that most of the issue can be taken care of by going to indoor ranges with good ventilation, being careful with spent brass if reloading, and using encapsulated lead either powder coated, HiTek, or plated if shooting indoors.
Now, one of the problems with a lot of medical research is that it uses small sample sizes to extrapolate. There are similar problems with the assumption that exposure effects are linear (effects increase as exposure increases) and the assumption that everyone's biochemistry, life choices, and genetics are the same. Last, but not least, many of these studies work from the assumption that a given toxin is bad so that all ill-effects can be possibly caused by this toxin (over determination of effect). Because dosing people with varying amounts of lead and placebos in a controlled experiment is not considered ethical, studies rely on medical history studies of people working with exposure to lead or trying to extrapolate medical harm by varying exposure levels using animal testing. Neither are perfect as it is difficult using the medical history approach to separate a harmful effect from one specific variable such as lead exposure from all of the other uncontrolled variables in a person's life. It is also problematic to use animal studies as humans do differ in responses to toxins from other animals. The precision of our measuring tools for the toxins can also be a problem as we can now detect parts per billion fairly easily of a toxin but lack similar tools to measure cell and organ damage in a living human. The general rule is that any study is limited by the least precisely measure variable. Another is that the amount of the dose can often determine the effects of whether something is beneficial or toxic. Apparently one military study indicated that hot brass can cause exposure to the substances used to make it in measurable qualities and some of these are toxic, however, it is unclear about the general dosage received by someone operating a SAW in the field and what those effects might be.
Thus, it all comes back to the level of risk that one is likely to accept and to what extent society should act via laws and regulations to reduce risks. Being overweight with little exercise touches far more people and their health than shooting lead ammunition. However, society has not made being overweight nor failure to exercise criminal yet. A few restrictions Lead shot ammunition has been already regulated out of use in shotguns for waterfowl and California's ban on lead ammunition uses is far more extensive. Heck, California nearly slapped a warning label on coffee as a potential carcinogen. Some take it as an individual responsibility such as motorcycle riders wearing protective gear, others look at such things as limiting their freedom if mandated such as helmet laws. It is not helped by interest groups demonizing some products with shoddy science and forced their ban which has actually killed at least thousands of people due to the lack of that product.
Lead in soluble form can be a health problem along with arsenic, cadmium, copper, even gold or silver and many of the carbon compounds used as solvents. I suspect exposure to chlorine in pools and bromine in hot tubs might not be healthy in large amounts either. In an industrial society, we deal with all kinds of exposures every minute of every day, it is in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, and in our body. It is up to us to minimize the effects.
I suspect that most of the issue can be taken care of by going to indoor ranges with good ventilation, being careful with spent brass if reloading, and using encapsulated lead either powder coated, HiTek, or plated if shooting indoors.
Now, one of the problems with a lot of medical research is that it uses small sample sizes to extrapolate. There are similar problems with the assumption that exposure effects are linear (effects increase as exposure increases) and the assumption that everyone's biochemistry, life choices, and genetics are the same. Last, but not least, many of these studies work from the assumption that a given toxin is bad so that all ill-effects can be possibly caused by this toxin (over determination of effect). Because dosing people with varying amounts of lead and placebos in a controlled experiment is not considered ethical, studies rely on medical history studies of people working with exposure to lead or trying to extrapolate medical harm by varying exposure levels using animal testing. Neither are perfect as it is difficult using the medical history approach to separate a harmful effect from one specific variable such as lead exposure from all of the other uncontrolled variables in a person's life. It is also problematic to use animal studies as humans do differ in responses to toxins from other animals. The precision of our measuring tools for the toxins can also be a problem as we can now detect parts per billion fairly easily of a toxin but lack similar tools to measure cell and organ damage in a living human. The general rule is that any study is limited by the least precisely measure variable. Another is that the amount of the dose can often determine the effects of whether something is beneficial or toxic. Apparently one military study indicated that hot brass can cause exposure to the substances used to make it in measurable qualities and some of these are toxic, however, it is unclear about the general dosage received by someone operating a SAW in the field and what those effects might be.
Thus, it all comes back to the level of risk that one is likely to accept and to what extent society should act via laws and regulations to reduce risks. Being overweight with little exercise touches far more people and their health than shooting lead ammunition. However, society has not made being overweight nor failure to exercise criminal yet. A few restrictions Lead shot ammunition has been already regulated out of use in shotguns for waterfowl and California's ban on lead ammunition uses is far more extensive. Heck, California nearly slapped a warning label on coffee as a potential carcinogen. Some take it as an individual responsibility such as motorcycle riders wearing protective gear, others look at such things as limiting their freedom if mandated such as helmet laws. It is not helped by interest groups demonizing some products with shoddy science and forced their ban which has actually killed at least thousands of people due to the lack of that product.
Lead in soluble form can be a health problem along with arsenic, cadmium, copper, even gold or silver and many of the carbon compounds used as solvents. I suspect exposure to chlorine in pools and bromine in hot tubs might not be healthy in large amounts either. In an industrial society, we deal with all kinds of exposures every minute of every day, it is in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, and in our body. It is up to us to minimize the effects.
sjws (social justice warriors) don't like it when i inject a bit of logic and common sense into their narrative. the result is similar to injecting a bit of penicillin into an infection.
murf
Schwing
Member
I think there are a lot of flippant attitudes about lead exposure in the shooting community. People think that, because they have never had a problem, that no one else will. If they do, they almost instantly believe that the other folks must be practicing poor lead hygiene etc. The bottom line is that everyone's body chemistry is a little different. I seriously regret not realizing this sooner.
There are a lot of anecdotal points of view here. Let me toss one more into the mix. When I first started casting and shooting lead back around 2010, I was so careful that I was getting mocked. I wore a lead/asbestos mask, safety goggles, a hat, gloves and a leather apron. I didn't eat or drink while working with or shooting lead and I treated the lead like toxic material. I never shoot in indoor ranges and I had no other exposure to lead.
A couple of buddies ate, drank, smoked and didn't wear any kind of protective gear of any kind while casting and shooting. We did this together so they were exposed to the exact same environment that I was. After a few months, I had a doc appointment and had him test my lead level just to be sure. I was at 34! Over the next few weeks, I was taking spit tests (not as accurate but can be taken at home). At one point, my lead levels rose all of the way up to 84 before beginning to drop. Back then, I didn't even believe the spit tests because I didn't see how my lead levels could still be rising without exposure. A little research explains that. I won't go into detail here but blood lead levels can bounce all over the place because the body stores the lead in everything from bone to soft tissue. Chelation therapy was discussed but I opted out. I kind of wish I hadn't. I went through a few weeks of being severely dizzy, nauseated and exhausted.
My friends all had their lead checked as well over the next few weeks and were essentially zero. My doc has no idea why I seem to be a lead magnet. There really have not been any studies about this. All I know is that we were exposed to the same lead. I wore protection and they didn't but I still absorbed more than them.
One of the reasons I have not been here at THR as much is because I have had to cut back on my shooting. Instead of going 2-3 times per week, I have limited myself to once every few weeks or so. I still shoot the lead bullets I have already cast but very rarely and only if there is a breeze that isn't blowing it back in my face. I keep my lead and casting gear in case of a SHTF scenario but I never plan on casting again unless it is absolutely necessary.
I have managed to get my lead back down under 15 finally but the damage has been done so to speak. One thing I can really vouch for is vitamin c. I could not seem to get out of the 20's until I started taking it every day. Within a month I went from 27 to the mid teens.
My kidney function (GFR) has dropped from over 100 to 63 and my liver function was seriously compromised for about a year. Probably TMI but my testosterone levels also dropped severely. My liver function is slowly coming back but I will never get my kidney function back and I will be on testosterone replacement therapy for the rest of my life.
All of these problems are "Possible" side effects of lead exposure. I don't drink, smoke or have any other habits that would lead to kidney or liver problems. Whether my lead exposure caused them or not, I will never know for sure but I do know this: Some people really need to limit their lead exposure. Just because another guy can just wash his hands and be fine, doesn't mean that you can get away with that.
I don't think the "Experts" know didley about what lead really does to the human body and they really don't know why some people can almost get away with a lead diet while others absorb lead just by thinking about it. Just don't take it too lightly. Contrary to what the shooting community believes in general, lead is toxic.
There are a lot of anecdotal points of view here. Let me toss one more into the mix. When I first started casting and shooting lead back around 2010, I was so careful that I was getting mocked. I wore a lead/asbestos mask, safety goggles, a hat, gloves and a leather apron. I didn't eat or drink while working with or shooting lead and I treated the lead like toxic material. I never shoot in indoor ranges and I had no other exposure to lead.
A couple of buddies ate, drank, smoked and didn't wear any kind of protective gear of any kind while casting and shooting. We did this together so they were exposed to the exact same environment that I was. After a few months, I had a doc appointment and had him test my lead level just to be sure. I was at 34! Over the next few weeks, I was taking spit tests (not as accurate but can be taken at home). At one point, my lead levels rose all of the way up to 84 before beginning to drop. Back then, I didn't even believe the spit tests because I didn't see how my lead levels could still be rising without exposure. A little research explains that. I won't go into detail here but blood lead levels can bounce all over the place because the body stores the lead in everything from bone to soft tissue. Chelation therapy was discussed but I opted out. I kind of wish I hadn't. I went through a few weeks of being severely dizzy, nauseated and exhausted.
My friends all had their lead checked as well over the next few weeks and were essentially zero. My doc has no idea why I seem to be a lead magnet. There really have not been any studies about this. All I know is that we were exposed to the same lead. I wore protection and they didn't but I still absorbed more than them.
One of the reasons I have not been here at THR as much is because I have had to cut back on my shooting. Instead of going 2-3 times per week, I have limited myself to once every few weeks or so. I still shoot the lead bullets I have already cast but very rarely and only if there is a breeze that isn't blowing it back in my face. I keep my lead and casting gear in case of a SHTF scenario but I never plan on casting again unless it is absolutely necessary.
I have managed to get my lead back down under 15 finally but the damage has been done so to speak. One thing I can really vouch for is vitamin c. I could not seem to get out of the 20's until I started taking it every day. Within a month I went from 27 to the mid teens.
My kidney function (GFR) has dropped from over 100 to 63 and my liver function was seriously compromised for about a year. Probably TMI but my testosterone levels also dropped severely. My liver function is slowly coming back but I will never get my kidney function back and I will be on testosterone replacement therapy for the rest of my life.
All of these problems are "Possible" side effects of lead exposure. I don't drink, smoke or have any other habits that would lead to kidney or liver problems. Whether my lead exposure caused them or not, I will never know for sure but I do know this: Some people really need to limit their lead exposure. Just because another guy can just wash his hands and be fine, doesn't mean that you can get away with that.
I don't think the "Experts" know didley about what lead really does to the human body and they really don't know why some people can almost get away with a lead diet while others absorb lead just by thinking about it. Just don't take it too lightly. Contrary to what the shooting community believes in general, lead is toxic.
sorry to hear that, schwing. glad your vitamin c therapy worked for you. i hope your return here is permanent.
luck,
murf
gulogulo1970
Member
I think a good point to be made from all of this is, if you shoot and/or reload/cast get your Pb levels checked.
You won't know if you have a problem without the data.
You won't know if you have a problem without the data.
Jason_W
Member
If there was an alternative bullet material that performed as well as lead and was just as economical, I’d be all over it. Unfortunately, there isn’t.
So, a common sense approach to reduce exposure is the only option other than quitting shooting. Maybe there are some who can afford to use Barnes bullets for blasting ammo and hevi-shot for casual trap, but I am not among them.
Most things in life that are enjoyable at all carry at least some risk. Even food that tastes good is probably killing all of us slowly.
It’s a matter of personal choice, but I don’t want to live to be 115 if it means not really living.
So, a common sense approach to reduce exposure is the only option other than quitting shooting. Maybe there are some who can afford to use Barnes bullets for blasting ammo and hevi-shot for casual trap, but I am not among them.
Most things in life that are enjoyable at all carry at least some risk. Even food that tastes good is probably killing all of us slowly.
It’s a matter of personal choice, but I don’t want to live to be 115 if it means not really living.
There is an alternative: copper, and for shot there is steel, bismuth, tungsten. Because the lead styphnate primers are a source of the most dangerous type of lead, there are non-toxic primers. Several type of factory ammo is made with non-toxic components, but they may not be easy to find, especially as long as people aren't willing to buy it because they don't care. If the prices are high, it's because of low demand and that can be changed.
Reloading, the Fiocchi lead-free primers are reported to work well. I'm buying them in stock at Grafs but an earlier post reported them available at three different sources. I've found them for about $0.05 each compared to typical $0.03 for the lead ones. That's an extra 200 bucks a year if I shoot 10,000 rounds -- less than the cost of one blood test with my High Deductible healthcare plan.
For bullets, Barnes makes a number of bullets for handguns and rifles: TAC-XP, XPB are great bullets that are chosen by a number of factories for premium self-defense ammo. There's also the Lehigh/Underwood type CNC copper bullets for most popular handgun calibers. For your AR, there's Barnes' Varmint Grenades and TAC-X. If one doesn't change all their ammo to lead-free, they can certainly change the ones they shoot the most.
None of these components are the absolute cheapest, but if that's the criteria, would you also shoot the cheapest guns, eat the cheapest food, and drive the cheapest car? Isn't your health, safety, and well being worth more than being the cheapest?
Plated "lead-safe" bullets from Ranier or Berrys are worth considering for high volume where economics matter the most. I don't want to shoot XPB's at $0.75 each or Xtreme Penetrators at fifty-something cents each for my full volume, but I've found the Berrys for $0.09 or less in my caliber (as cheap as .357 gets without casting your own). These bullets won't expose you to lead in handling, and the ones I've recovered showed the bases were not eroded and the lands did not cut through the plating. They will splatter lead on steel targets, but your shooting position should be clean. With lead-free primers, cartridges loaded with these will curtail lead exposure.
Bottom line is even if you shoot over 10,000 rounds a year, you can switch to lead-free primers and all-copper or full-plated bullets for only a few hundred dollars more -- less than the cost of one routine doctor visit. Whereas a lead-related health issue will wipe out a lifetime of savings from shooting lead.
Reloading, the Fiocchi lead-free primers are reported to work well. I'm buying them in stock at Grafs but an earlier post reported them available at three different sources. I've found them for about $0.05 each compared to typical $0.03 for the lead ones. That's an extra 200 bucks a year if I shoot 10,000 rounds -- less than the cost of one blood test with my High Deductible healthcare plan.
For bullets, Barnes makes a number of bullets for handguns and rifles: TAC-XP, XPB are great bullets that are chosen by a number of factories for premium self-defense ammo. There's also the Lehigh/Underwood type CNC copper bullets for most popular handgun calibers. For your AR, there's Barnes' Varmint Grenades and TAC-X. If one doesn't change all their ammo to lead-free, they can certainly change the ones they shoot the most.
None of these components are the absolute cheapest, but if that's the criteria, would you also shoot the cheapest guns, eat the cheapest food, and drive the cheapest car? Isn't your health, safety, and well being worth more than being the cheapest?
Plated "lead-safe" bullets from Ranier or Berrys are worth considering for high volume where economics matter the most. I don't want to shoot XPB's at $0.75 each or Xtreme Penetrators at fifty-something cents each for my full volume, but I've found the Berrys for $0.09 or less in my caliber (as cheap as .357 gets without casting your own). These bullets won't expose you to lead in handling, and the ones I've recovered showed the bases were not eroded and the lands did not cut through the plating. They will splatter lead on steel targets, but your shooting position should be clean. With lead-free primers, cartridges loaded with these will curtail lead exposure.
Bottom line is even if you shoot over 10,000 rounds a year, you can switch to lead-free primers and all-copper or full-plated bullets for only a few hundred dollars more -- less than the cost of one routine doctor visit. Whereas a lead-related health issue will wipe out a lifetime of savings from shooting lead.
Jason_W
Member
I’m afraid I’ll have to disagree that switching to copper bullets is a negligible cost increase over lead.
Just a quick glance at the Midway site shows Barnes’ offerings in .308 diameter bullets start at about $0.46 each and top out around $0.75 ea.
Hornady.308 cal bullets start at about $0.22 ea. That’s not what I’d call an insignificant price difference.
For hunting, sure. Go unleaded ultra premium. You’re probably not going to fire more than a few rounds at game a year.
But, if you can afford to fire thousands of rounds of Barnes bikers a year, I want to know what you do for a living and how I can too.
Just a quick glance at the Midway site shows Barnes’ offerings in .308 diameter bullets start at about $0.46 each and top out around $0.75 ea.
Hornady.308 cal bullets start at about $0.22 ea. That’s not what I’d call an insignificant price difference.
For hunting, sure. Go unleaded ultra premium. You’re probably not going to fire more than a few rounds at game a year.
But, if you can afford to fire thousands of rounds of Barnes bikers a year, I want to know what you do for a living and how I can too.
Oh enough. We are all adults and can make our own life choices. Pick what works best for you and yours. Know the risk, take the appropriate safety precautions or use all non toxic components. Either is just fine.
Only if they're paying for it themselves or are being cited by OSHA and it is a condition.
Fully jacketed, base as well as sides/tip, result in less lead in the air than those open at the bottom.
Lead primer isn't common.
Indoor ranges should have visible air movement using a smoke test from the shooting stations towards downrange.
Ranges that recirculate their air need to have special filtrations systems that are properly maintained to keep airborne lead levels down below action limits.
Wearing your shooting shirt/jacket and washing your hands and face isn't quite a waste of time, but if you're shooting at a match or on a busy range for an extended period of time you should use a long sleeve shirt that you can take off and THEN wash your hands and forearms and face with cool, not hot or warm, water and soap. Take the shirt off so it ends up inside out.
Lead exposure is a real risk for competitive shooters or those that spend as much time on the range as competitors.
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