I was weighting some plugs last night with those new "steel" split shots. What a PIA! They don't seem to have the same density as lead which means I have to add more too. It makes a mess out of the plug.

I'm sure some of you guys melt your own lead. I was curious as to what techniques or methods are used for this. Melting pots? Torches???

I'm just as interested in safety precautions while working with lead. Gloves? Respirators?

Thanks for any feedback.

gloves and definitely a respirator made specifically to remove the lead threat. Do it outside, or with very good ventilation. Best way to do the slugs is to get a blank Do It! mold, put it in a vice on your drill press, and carefully drill in the center of the mold with the same size drill bit that you will use in the plug. This will give you a slug that is the same diameter as the hole you drill. Need a slug with a hole down the center? Do the same as above, then use a smaller bit in the center of the first hole and drill the rest of the way through the mold. I use one of the egg sinker inserts (brass wire with a handle) in the mold, pour lead, pull out wire, then pop the slug out. Hole in the center. You can do the same thing with 2 pieces of scrap wood if you are not needing to do a lot of slugs. The wood will wear out after 20 pours or so.

If you are just doing a few slugs here and there, an old spoon that you will never use for eating again and a propane torch can be used to pour the lead. Notch the side of the spoon to allow you to pour the lead. Better bet is to get a small ladle made for melting lead. If you are going to be doing a larger number of slugs, get a Palmer Hot Pot II melter. Will hold 4# of lead, you can heat and pour from the same pot.

Jigman

I use a lead pot to melt it with an Exhaust fan going , Been doing it that way for over 10 years no problems yet, Get checked for LEAD poisioning every year to be safe..............

Originally posted by JHABS
I Get checked for LEAD poisioning every year to be safe..............

John, is that why your stache grows so good?:laughs:

my understanding is that the temperature at which lead pots run is not high enough to vaporize lead. if this is true, you shouldn't run any risk of inhaling any lead.

Originally posted by tlapinski
my understanding is that the temperature at which lead pots run is not high enough to vaporize lead. if this is true, you shouldn't run any risk of inhaling any lead.

:hs: I heavily disagree. But then agian I'm melting glass not lead.

TABLE OF PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF PURE LEAD
Atomic Number 82
Atomic Weight 207.21
Density (20oC) 11.34 g/cm3
Melting Point 600.55 K (327.4oC)
Boiling Point 2023.15 K (1750oC)
Coefficient of linear thermal expansion (20oC-100oC mean) 29.3 x 10-6/K
Thermal conductivity (near 20oC) 34.66 W/m K
Specific Heat (20oC) 129.8 J/kg K
trying to remember from all the chemistry classes i took. should have spent more time studying and less time altering the glassware. :smash:

wouldn't you have to reach the boiling point to vaporize the lead?

Perhaps.. All I know is with melting lead, and certian things in the glass world, if you can smell it, its bad... so if your melting lead and you smell a sweet smell, your in trouble. Also, i think that you pose more danger to yourself by just handeling cold lead in you hands than you might do my breathing in a slight whiff of lead fumes:huh:

wouldn't you have to reach the boiling point to vaporize the lead?

I don't think so. You don't have to reach the boiling point of water to vaporize that...

When I was a kid I used to clinch lead split shots on fishing line with my teeth. :eek:

I bet I'm not alone here either.

It explains a lot. :uhoh: :uhoh:

How do you know if a respirator removes the lead? Is there some sort of code on the filters?
:confused: :confused: :confused:

lead melts ?

MFish, it should state it on the package. There are different filters for different things.

I agree with Eben, if it smells, its not something you want to inhale. The Do It! web site, and others that sell lead melting stuff, all say to have adequate ventilation while melting lead.

Jigman

Gloves are definitly a must, when handling lead as often as it sounds that you guys do. It is easily absorbed, and I don't believe it has to be boiling to vaporize either, then again I was working with the glassware in chem class as well, instead of listening..:smokin:

Yep, gloves are a must too. Wash your hands after handling any lead and do not eat/drink/smoke until after cleaning up.

Jigman

i still find myself closing the splitshots with my teeth such a hard habbit to break

WARNING! when melting lead there is a potential for it to explode,scattering molten metal all over the place. This happens because sometimes small bubbles form in the lead as it hardens especially if there is moisture present in the mold. Now consider what happens when you try to remelt this piece of lead. As the temperature rises, the gas pressure inside the bubble builds until the melting point of the lead is reached,at which time,POOF!
It happened to me when I was a dumb kid and I still have little scars on the back of my hand as safety reminders. Had it gone in my eye I'd have surely been blinded. Now that I'm a dumb old phart, I use goggles, leather gloves and long sleeves.
One other thing, lead that has been deeply submerged in water,as in old fishing weights, is much more prone to this obnoxious behavior.

next time you are at fore river tackle, ask rick if you can check out his setup :) I bet its been in that same condition of 50 years!

Hey Motorfish, i think we should contact one of those tort lawyers and start a class action law suite against the split shot companies.I don't remember any warnings on those little blue metal slide boxes they sold the split shot in.:D:laughs:

As far as lead exploding in the hot pot watch out if you are useing wheel weights. Dirt, oil, salt ect on a weight that you drop into a half full pot make it go BOOM in a BIG way. Dont ask how I know just trust me on this one.......:eek: :eek: :eek:

we should contact one of those tort lawyers and start a class action law suite against the split shot companies.

Maybe we could get some free lead out of em'!!!
:D