cleaning lead for casting

[LandyAndy]

A bit of advice please.
I will be recieving 2 bucketfulls of used wheel weights to use for casting into fishing sinkers.
What is the best way to clean the lead up.I have in mind melting it and pouring it into some sort of sand mould.Is poking a rod into a bucket full of damp sand to create a mould good enough or do I need to make some oiled sand????
I have ordered sinker moulds.
Andrew

[123rover50]

Just melt it in an old cast iron pot or similar, all the dross will float off. Scoop it with an old table spoon and discard it. We use it for boolits and use a mould but for sinkers what about a teaspoon or something as a mould and drill your hole in it. Be very carefull not to let water near the molten lead as it will cause an eruption if it drips in it causing molten lead to fly everywhere. Very painful. Even a little water clinging to the weights you drop in the pot will have the same effect.
I dont know how damp sand or oiled sand would react but be careful.
Didiman

[d@rk51d3]

Any water would be a big "no-no".

Steel clips and zinc weights will float to the surface, but if you get the lead too hot, the zinc will melt into the batch and ruin it.... (well, for bullet casting anyway. Don't think it will matter too much for sinkers.)

Cheap s/s slotted spoon is handy, or drill a hole or two into an old unwanted s/s spoon for the same effect.

The old iron round muffin trays you find at the op-shops are used for moulds by quite a few people.

[Bearman]

As said Andy, all the crap will float to the surface when you melt it. Simply scoop it off and the rest is clean lead.

[bee utey]

As a lad I melted lead wheel weights to make scuba diving weights. I welded up a steel square pot for the gas burner, welded a 1/2 inch washer into one corner to collect the dross before it ran into the mould. Easy but best done outdoors a long way from the house!:)

[LOVEMYRANGIE]

You need to borrow my moulds??


I am not a moderator, I am a human being!!!

[LandyAndy]

You need to borrow my moulds??


I am not a moderator, I am a human being!!!

What have you got???
I just ordered Snapper sinker moulds,they are very expensive sinkers to buy.
Wasnt much more on offer,will be getting jig head moulds too ex UK.
Andrew

[LOVEMYRANGIE]

Long deep sea snapper, spoons and stars.
All the moulds have various sizes.
I have a few Warrs lead ingots here I want to use and make up spoons.


I am not a moderator, I am a human being!!!

[roverrescue]

Andrew,
There is no need to process clean lead like wheel weights. If you end up using dirty lead like stinkin batteries etc it can help to do a process pour first. I usually just pour the molten lead onto concrete after cleaning the worst of the dross off.

For your pouring pot a good trick is to take an old stainless saucepan (ally is too soft and after a while casting will get soft), just above the base drill a hole that fits say some 10mm - stainlees tube, need about 75mm or so length. Weld tube in so that the spout angles upwards at 45degrees.

Chuck the wheel weights in, scoop the worst of the dross (clips etc off) and then pour through the spout. The lead at the bottom of the pot will be clean/ hot and pour well.

Keep the moulds hot

I believe drinking beer whilst pouring counters the risk posed by lead fumes! ;)

When the sharks are thick we burn through a couple of kilos of plonkers in a night... reminds me I need to pour some more!

S

[LandyAndy]

Andrew,
There is no need to process clean lead like wheel weights. If you end up using dirty lead like stinkin batteries etc it can help to do a process pour first. I usually just pour the molten lead onto concrete after cleaning the worst of the dross off.

For your pouring pot a good trick is to take an old stainless saucepan (ally is too soft and after a while casting will get soft), just above the base drill a hole that fits say some 10mm - stainlees tube, need about 75mm or so length. Weld tube in so that the spout angles upwards at 45degrees.

Chuck the wheel weights in, scoop the worst of the dross (clips etc off) and then pour through the spout. The lead at the bottom of the pot will be clean/ hot and pour well.

Keep the moulds hot

I believe drinking beer whilst pouring counters the risk posed by lead fumes! ;)

When the sharks are thick we burn through a couple of kilos of plonkers in a night... reminds me I need to pour some more!

S


CHEERS:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool:
Very useful info.
Thanks
Andrew

[LandyAndy]

Long deep sea snapper, spoons and stars.
All the moulds have various sizes.
I have a few Warrs lead ingots here I want to use and make up spoons.


I am not a moderator, I am a human being!!!

Cheers Andrew
May be interested in borrowing the star mould if I dont get one of my own.
Thanks
Andrew

[LandyAndy]

I had a trial run at melting lead today.

First I upgraded my outside the shed fire.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/110.jpg

The old outside the shed fire with the new one.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/111.jpg

Time to see if lead will melt.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/112.jpg

Its melting
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/113.jpg

Ready to pour.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/114.jpg

Anybody for a shiny muffin???
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/115.jpg

Quite happy with my initial trial.
Looking for a decent heavy base stainless saucepan to make a crucible from,and a slotted spoon to remove the rubbish.
Andrew

[d@rk51d3]

Good job.

Fun, isn't it. :cool:

Should be plenty of spoons at the op-shops.
Old camp ovens work well, as the heat is apparently more consistently spread, and holds better too.

[LOVEMYRANGIE]

Old camp ovens work well, as the heat is apparently more consistently spread, and holds better too.

Exactly. Allows you also to put it right on top of the coals and get the lead hotter. Makes it a lot easier to remove the scum when it's really hot as it separates better.

Maybe try a chip basket to just lift out all the metal tags.


Might be time to start doing a roundup of dead car batteries mate!!

Andrew


Using Capitals, the difference between helping your Uncle Jack off a horse or helping your uncle jack off a horse...

[Tombie]

To clean the lead we melt it and skim it off.

Then I use upside down coke/beer cans to mould 'ingots' for later use.

I have a proper lead furnace for moulding sinkers.

[Bigbjorn]

Get a heavy iron pot, some fire bricks to build a furnace to hold the fire and the pot, and an old vacuum cleaner in blow mode to provide an air blast for a suitably hot fire. Coal, coke, barbecue charcoal, or barbecue heat beads are good. You can pour aluminium & bronze with this arrangement. Plenty of castings have been done at home using this method by generations of hobby engineers. You only need a skimmer made from a suitably long steel rod with a rectangular tab welded on to control slag whilst pouring. You just use the rectangular end to move and hold back the slag from the pouring lip.

Best not to use the household vacuum cleaner. This may cause stoppage of conjugal rights.

[LandyAndy]

Exactly. Allows you also to put it right on top of the coals and get the lead hotter. Makes it a lot easier to remove the scum when it's really hot as it separates better.

Maybe try a chip basket to just lift out all the metal tags.


Might be time to start doing a roundup of dead car batteries mate!!

Andrew


Using Capitals, the difference between helping your Uncle Jack off a horse or helping your uncle jack off a horse...

Hi Andrew
I dont intend messing with old batteries,too unfriendly to the world.
I picked up 3/4 of a bucket of wheel weights today,they owe me a further bucket and some.
Would weigh at least 30kg if not more.
Andrew

[LandyAndy]

Went thru the pan cupboard.
Dug out a nice heavy pan about the size Im looking for.I have modified it to melt/pour lead.THANKS Roverrescue for the great idea.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/05/3.jpg
Its a very heavy pan,says Scanpan on its base.Do you think SHMBO will miss it???
Andrew

[LOVEMYRANGIE]

Hope you have that mattress sorted in the shed bud, that's if she let's you live......


Using Capitals, the difference between helping your Uncle Jack off a horse or helping your uncle jack off a horse...

[roverrescue]

Them may be some of the most exe plonkers around Andy!!!!!

-$120 Scanpan
-3 weeks grief from the Mrs

feed of good fish - hmmm - yeah okay probably worth it!!!

That is the idea though mate. That system will mean you can save the whole pouring into a muffin tray process. Chuck that baby on the jarrah, wheel weights in, scrape off the big goobers and pour away!

And dont forget beer cures lead fume fever

S

[LandyAndy]

I actually bought the Scanpan for $5.00 from a secondhand shop.Its had some burnt cooking in it that obviously wasnt able to be cleaned up.
PERFECT for my job;);););)
Andrew

[LandyAndy]

Well I got to the bottom of my first bucket of wheel weights.
Not all wheel weights melt,the ones that look like they are painted silver and some of the stick-ons.
My boy tels me they are an alloy,mixed with antitomy to make the lead hard.
With the next batch I think I will boil the whole lot up at once in a steel bucket to ladle the rubbish off.
It was quite a big job.
My pan bong pourer works great,will be good with just pure lead in it rather than all the snot.
I got a star sinker triple mould yesterday,sinker moulds from USA are in the country.
Andrew

[d@rk51d3]

They'd be the zinc weights. ;)