Just scored unlimited lead, need containers ....

If you were going to melt lead down into workable sizes, what would it be? What weight? What type of form did you use? I am thinking 3" PVC pipe might be the easiest...any ideas?

be very careful...the fumes are extremely toxic.

Check your local dive shop. They have heavy duty weight carrying bags they use for dive belt wakes.

Many states have laws to protect people from themselves with regards to recovering lead.
It's not just the guy at the melting pot who's in danger, It's also your children or grandchildren who aren't even in the house while molten lead is being handled."

EDF studies found that melting lead in hobby equipment not only puts lead into the air immediately, but also deposits invisible lead dust around the house, where children and adults can be exposed long after. The problem doesn't stop when you put your lead-casting kit away, unless you know how to do specialized cleaning, you've created a hazard like lead paint that stays in the house indefinitely. Ordinary vacuuming and dusting just stirs up the lead dust and creates more exposure. I'd find another form of ballast if it was up to me.

Killer wake vs kill your family

I own a mechanical company, plumbers have been melting lead and pouring it into joints for a hundred years. Then again, most plumbers are nuts...so go figure.

Anyway, we know exactly what to do and have the equipment to do it safely. I was more interested in if anyone had any interesting ideas of what form to put it in.

Thanks for the warning though, you are right, you don't want to be cutting/grinding the stuff in the garage all day.

I obtained a lot of lead from an indoor gun range and melted it down using my coleman stove and a small cast iron skillet. I did it outside and used a fan to blow the fumes away.

As a mold for the lead I used a 12 inch stainless steel tray used for drywall work (known as a "mud pan"). It yeilded a nice sized brick that weighed about 50 pounds each. I then wrapped them in duct tape to smooth out the rough edges keep the lead contamination down.

So far, my plan is to use 2", 3", and 4" pvc pipe. I am going to look up the weight per cubic foot, then figure out the lengths needed to make it easy to store. I am thinking about 50lbs each is ideal, and 25 for the 2" (to stuff up under seats, etc).

I plan on capping both sides, then using 1" tubular webbing to form a sling type deal, to make a handle.

This way it is completely sealed in every way, as dense as it can be, the pvc will help cushion things, and being round they will fit into goofy areas better.

That is....unless you guys come up with something better.

What about square pvc / vinyl fence material? Vinyl fence posts with 2 end caps. It won't roll around and you can make it whatever size you want.

Can you put in bread pans and then use a linix like meterial to spray on it?????

Are you planning on melting it? If so, PVC is a bad form, as the temp would be way to high to pour molten lead in it.

If you are just planning on filling it with lead in its current form, fine.

I used the disposable bread pans that are made of aluminum or tin or what ever they are made from. They were like 3 for a dollar, and when the lead cooled, I just foled the lips over and wraped it in duct tape. Each brick weighs about 20 - 25 pounds. I would not want them to weigh any more, as I carry them around in my truck to smooth out the ride a little, and put them in the boat right before launching. Then unload them after we pull the boat out. I can't imagine lugging around 50 pound bricks.

My 20 - 25 pound bricks are about 2.5" X 4" X 8" roughly.

Guys don't under estimate the effects of inorganic lead the public health risk from inorganic lead can create problems with the nervous systems of children. In high concentrations, children can even suffer irreversible brain damage and death.
In adults, the health risks can include increased blood pressure and related cardiovascular problems and cancer.

common inorganic lead emissions about 1/5 the size of a human hair, can easily be inhaled and deposited into lung tissue. from there it can enter your blood stream. larger size particles can be deposited into drinking water or food supplies. so when you're outside melting down lead with a fan on, where is that cloud of lead poison headed to ? there's a reason why we have removed lead from our paints and fuels and it only took us 50 years to figure it out. currently aircraft fuel is the primary source of inorganic lead emissions. the next largest source of inorganic lead is from metal melting facilities.

Stay away from melting lead, the risk -- reward factor is just not worth it.

Make sure to add water to the lead when it is melting.



Oh Wait. Don't do that.

If I were gonna mold some very dense material...

I'd make a pair that were molded into a shape that custom-fits my bow area, under the most forward cushion. Might mix up a batch of plaster or two-part foam or something in a plastic bag and then sit it on the floor in that area. After curing, you just take it out and use it as a plug to pour a new plaster mold from which you can pull the final part from. This way, it's custom fit to the contours of the floor, etc.

Could even do that without melting - fill your mold with tire weights and then mix up and pour some thin concrete. Or something.

maristar-jeff chill out dude. Do you bend over and sniff the fumes when you are pumping gas? Well why on earth is someone going to sniff them when they are coming from a toxic metal? Being they are less dense than air, air will push them up. In other words it isn't going to stick around like a fart, and most fumes are visible anyhow.

Robert T post pics when you are done, I've got lead in my plans as well I'm just unsure how I'm going to coat it. Untill then I got 400 lbs of metal laying in numerous apartments. It is just unreal how much heavier lead is.

I used the bread pan idea, and made 10 bricks, about 22-25 pounds a piece, and they fit under my back seat.
Derek - that is a really good idea.
"I'd make a pair that were molded into a shape that custom-fits my bow area, under the most forward cushion. Might mix up a batch of plaster or two-part foam or something in a plastic bag and then sit it on the floor in that area. After curing, you just take it out and use it as a plug to pour a new plaster mold from which you can pull the final part from. This way, it's custom fit to the contours of the floor, etc."

Crap...I now have a full 55 gallon drum of lead chunks in the back of my shop. The ancient lead pot that we have takes a old style propane tank that we no longer have.

Question...

How did you guys melt your lead?

Be careful melting your lead into a round shape, it makes it unstable unless you secure somewhere in your boat. Last thing you want is hundreds of pounds lead rolling around in your boat, could cause lots of problems.

I used to work with lead coated phone cables all the time for years. The only effects that I could possibly attribute to it is a lack of hair on my head and I drink a lot of beer!!!

I think Maristar jeff's concerns about lead exposure are justified. Be very careful. Your body has no way to get rid of lead. Once you've got it, it stays for a very long time and affects multiple organ systems.

I think no one knows how much exposure is safe, so be very careful.

I was lucky enough to have a brother-in-law who thought that it would be cool to surprise me with six 50 pound bricks for christmas one year. He melted them down from rifle range debris. He poured them into cake pans that are about 12 inches square and 1 inch deep. I wish they were a little lighter. It strains the back to reach deep into the back compartments to lift them out.

why not save yourself the trouble and pack the pvc pipes with the lead chunks (I assume it is tire weights or gun range debris) and cap off the ends?

I wish it was the little nuggets! These are wheel weights for tractor trailers. Each weight is about 3" x 3" x 3/4".

I almost had myself talked into just throwing them into a Tupperware container, the filling the gaps with sand, then taping the top on....then putting them inside a cheap duffel bag from walmart...but now I am thinking the brick idea may be the best bet.

I am going to check out how much disposable bread pan type things are.

Robert-

How many do you think you'll make and will you sell to fellow LSL boaters??

are you sure they are lead? The wheel weights I have dealt with all were cast iron.

Ronia. I don't sell things to friends and neighbors. Shoot me an email, lets have a lead melting party and see just how much damage we can do to ourselves

By the way, they finally told me what a scrap yard pays for lead...the going rate is $.04 a pound.

pretty cheap stuff

Ignore that comment, I was thinking the huge round ones you bolt to the wheel to weight the wheel down on the ground, or the ones you hang off the front, I now realize you meant tractor tire weights

I custom made a melting pot. I used a 12" steel pie, and cut about a 8" section of it. I then took some 1/4" steel plate, and welded it to the pipe to make a pot. I then added some 1/4 x 1/4 bar stock in the shape of handles at the top. I got all this at a local scrap jard for less than $25. I then put this on my propane frier, and heated it up, and kept adding lead to keep it 2/3 full. To fill the bread pans, I stole one of my wife's old metal ladels from the kitchen, and scooped the lead out of the pot and poured it into the pans. It is wierd to hold a soup ladle full of lead. Now I don't plan to melt any more lead, and have the pot and ladle sitting in my garage collectig dust.

If anybody wants it for melting lead they are welcome to it. I live in Houston in the NW area.

Learning curve over. I got it figured out.

Cheap..almost free lead. completely sealed and safe in the boat.

Probably will die soon from the fumes though

I will post the method I used if anyone is interested...if not I wont waste the time.

Ronia, I tried to email you, got some lead for you. I lied about not charging you, it will cost you a beer.

Robert,

Actually we won't be needing it as we are purchasing a new NON LSL approved boat this weekend!!

Thanks anyway! Don't let the pesky waterpatrol catch ya!

i'm curious why the guys recovering shot from shooting ranges are even bothering to melt it down. i'm getting ready to use birdshot and dont plan on melting any of it. i am going to pour it into bags and then put it into square PVC fence posts to prevent it from rolling around.

tom, we are melting now. If you can get recovered shot...you dont need to melt it down.

The theory is that even with perfectly round pellets you will only get about 50% of the density. I want maximum weight for the size, so melting it down made sense.

I dont have time to do the math...but I am pretty sure that in a box of marbles there is close to 50% air.

Which obviously means it will take up twice the space.

anyone want to do the math on this one???

Having a background in civil engineering....geotechnical....That means I play in DIRT as an occupation....

A box of shot that is all the same size and perfect spheres such as shotgun pellets may be about 35% air by volume.....about the same as a bucket of river gravel all the same size. The way to pack a lot of weight into the space without melting it all down is to mix up a blend of different size spheres.....the small ones fill in between the larger ones.

I have the same background, and still play in the dirt every day

I was trying to figure the volume of a sphere in my head....and....well anyway I went to a gents club for lunch and had a few beers....

Anyway, if you have recovered bullet fragments I wouldn't melt it down.

I now have about 600 lbs of lead in a VERY small package...it worked great.

The PVC is a great way to do it, you just have to keep it cool if you melt it.

This thread is hilarious at times, but serious about the threats of the lead to. This board is a real kick and lots of good boating/inventive info. here. Everyone keep it up.

i know loose shot wont be as heavy as melted shot, it just didnt seem like it was worth the extra effort. guess i'm just a lazy SOB;)

I have some lead bars that are in the 50lbs size I had coated in the LineX bed liner spray and it works great.

Robert T - curious about what you ended using as containers, so pls post. Also, where did you score this unltd lead? Been looking around locally without much luck. .04 cents a pound would be great