What IS this stuff?

[michiganmuzzy]

The ones I used were approx. 1/8" thick steel with a lip type pour spout on either side for left or right pour. Handle and all about 16" long and the ladle held about 2 1/2 lbs of lead. Melting old dirty lead is ok for plumbing joints but still have to skim the heavy dross. New lead would be optimal for bullets but what you are doing is cleaning out the garbage. Would be nice if you had some type of pre-heated screen to pour the lead through to catch the bulk of what has not floated.

Is that a thing that anyone has tried? Pouring thru a steel screen to get the big stuff out?

 

[michiganmuzzy]

I agree that you may have better luck if you work in smaller batches. Maybe try just one system on a batch to see what works better, instead of trying everything on one huge batch. I think that wooden stirrer was a no-go.

 

[michiganmuzzy]

I agree that you may have better luck if you work in smaller batches. Maybe try just one system on a batch to see what works better, instead of trying everything on one huge batch. I think that wooden stirrer was a no-go.

No I just bought that one at a thrift store for $5. The Teflon coating, if it had it, is gone.

Doesn't look like it had teflon, to me. But I feel like teflon could ruin a batch of lead, maybe.

 

[D55]

Not sure if anyone has ever tried pouring through a screen it was just a thought of which some of mine are scary even to me.

 

[MSalyards]

I think the screen would just plug up, even if heated.

 

[michiganmuzzy]

I think the screen would just plug up, even if heated.

Got some time on my hands currently. I may try it and see what happens.

 

[D55]

Flux makes lead/solder adhere to other metals so little to no flux if the screen were to be used.

 

[sdporter]

I’m just trying everything I’ve EVER read to get contaminates out.

Got some time on my hands currently. I may try it and see what happens.

i have poured ingots through a big screen strainer, it does plug up but a couple of seconds with a small torch and a smack on the table clears it pretty good. As long as you are feeding it with a steady stream, it goes through it ok, it’s in between ladle fulls that the problem arises. At least that’s what I remember anyway. My sheet lead is dirty to start with. Some of it is new, but most of it I get here at the hospital when they remodel an imaging room. The batch that’s in my kettle now, I have added nothing flux wise to. I’m gonna try and just stir and skim that without fluxing.

 

[MSalyards]

Heres a pic of what I start with. There is cable sheathing, and lead medical test tubes from radiology.

 

[D55]

Radiology, your bullets don't glow like tracers do they?

 

[sdporter]

View attachment 7848 View attachment 7848 Heres a pic of what I start with. There is cable sheathing, and lead medical test tubes from radiology.View attachment 7849

Pretty much the same here. This is a roll of new sheet lead that was left over from a remodel, and also part of the body of an X-Ray table that was pulled out of service. I made some ingots out of the x-ray table and they came out at about a BHN 12 and are super brittle. So it’s basically junk, 1000 lbs of junk.
I don’t know what else is in it and don’t know how to tell, as it starts to liquefy, it gets an “oatmeal” looking stuff on top. I fluxed this in and poured some ingots. I don’t know if it’s zinc or what. Anyway, I don’t use it but still have it. One day I’ll haul it to the scrap yard probably.
The shielding bricks around our abandoned CT tested at about a 12 also. I’m gonna play with those a little, see if I can get the melt at about 700 and leave it sit there and skim the floaters out to see if I can get it softer. Zinc melts at 784 degrees so if that’s what’s in it, I may be able to skim it out and get something usable that way, probably not, but gonna try anyway.
I watched a couple of more videos today and think I may just not being patient enough.
I’ve heard zinc can really screw things up. The ingots have a definite “ring” when you drop them on the concrete, where the sheet lead ingots just “thud”.

 

[sdporter]

i have poured ingots through a big screen strainer, it does plug up but a couple of seconds with a small torch and a smack on the table clears it pretty good. As long as you are feeding it with a steady stream, it goes through it ok, it’s in between ladle fulls that the problem arises. At least that’s what I remember anyway. My sheet lead is dirty to start with. Some of it is new, but most of it I get here at the hospital when they remodel an imaging room. The batch that’s in my kettle now, I have added nothing flux wise to. I’m gonna try and just stir and skim that without fluxing.

 

[sdporter]

View attachment 7848 View attachment 7848 Heres a pic of what I start with. There is cable sheathing, and lead medical test tubes from radiology.View attachment 7849

So I read this today:

 

[sdporter]

I always assumed the sheet lead was pure lead, but it does sound like it has a trace of copper in it. I read a great post or article yesterday during lunch on purifying lead (getting zinc and antimony etc... out). It said the tin would stay in the mix as long as you flux the oxide back in. I’ll see if I can dig it up and post a link to it. Pretty interesting read....

 

[sdporter]

Your lead may have other contaminates in it from something previous . Start out making smaller batch's, say 50 lbs.

I did that tonight. Melted down probably 30 lbs. took about an hour to clean it up. I think I got all the junk out, all that I was fighting was lead oxide I believe. I think I may be melting it at too high of temperatures. I have read a ton of stuff over the last week. I had a bunch of purple dross on top, which from what I’ve read, is the color lead takes as it oxidizes. I don’t see any inclusions in my ingots, but a nice pretty purple color on the tops. If I added 1/2”x1/2” piece of candle, it would disappear for a couple of minutes.... I can’t find my thermometer at the present, but shooting the black of the Dutch oven with an infrared was giving me 720 degrees.

 

[HC]

That looks better.

 

[eekjellander]

Have any of you encountered this in your lead pots, and WTH is it? How do you stop/get rid of it?
It’s really messing with my bullets. They still shoot ok, but I am after perfect.
You can see in the bullet, some inclusions, and the base isn’t perfect.
I melt down plumbers sheet lead in a cast iron pot and flux, and skim, and flux, and skim, until I have a nice shiny surface. Then I cast into mini muffin tin ingots, mix with 50/50 solder to 35:1 alloy (17-1/2 lbs to one pound 50/50 solder) melt in my Lee 10 pound bottom pour pot, and then get all this crap stuck to the sides and on the valve rod. Of course it decides to come off in the pour.
I use candle wax as a flux, have used cedar sawdust also and tried leaving it on top of the melt after stirring it thoroughly.
I used to plug my spout with it too, all the time, until Lewis suggested drilling the spout out a little larger. Now it doesn’t plug, but after about 1/2 a pot, I start getting the crud.
I don’t think I’m running too hot either, it takes about 2-3 seconds for the spruce to solidify and there is no color in the bullet, I’ve gone too hot before and had some pretty rainbow colors show up, mostly purplish.
I had the same thing there too. Crud in the bullet.
I stir and scrape the sides of the pot also while I am casting and seem to always get a little more of it to float every time I do. At a loss....

I know exactly what your dealing with as I get the same thing ,(While using rolls ) with rosin . If its 1LB stiks I dont have a clue but I bought a bunch of reels at an auction with rosin cores and it makes a mess fluxing burning off /Ed

 

[eekjellander]

I missed the part about sheet lead (it"s early) disregard previous post/Ed

 

[sdporter]

Think I’m just gonna use my crappy lead for these guys....965 bore cannon projectiles.

 

[sdporter]

Think I’m just gonna use my crappy lead for these guys....965 bore cannon projectiles.

This one I built EVERYTHING for, handles and all (except the screws). It’s one big A bullet.