Cutting a block of lead.

Dip it completely in liquid nitrogen. Wait for a few minutes so the whole block gets to -176C.
Next 3 steps must be done relatively quickly:
Remove lead block from liquid N2 container, place it on a steel anvil
Say "Hasta La Vista, Baby!"
Hit the lead real hard with a sledgehammer.
 
J/k with my "ideas", but if you decide to cut it with a saw, make sure you do that outside and wear a mask. Lead particles will contaminate the area to quite an extent.

Melting it in the tin can would probably have been the best idea btw.
 
I was cutting up 60 lb lead blocks with a bow saw bfor a while. Using spray lube helped but it's still hard work. Now I have a power hacksaw I found on kijiji that is working great with a 10 TPI blade.
 
Mark it deep with an axe, and then use a steel splitting wedge and a sledge hammer. If anyone has a serious, homemade log spliter, that would work also. start at the edge and shear chunks off.
 
Reciprocating saw didn't work out well for me, I found the bow saw was faster and less effort than the recip, believe it or not. If you do use a reciprocating saw try to find a very coarse blade, like under 10 tpi.

Axe will work on pure lead but not worth a crap on ww or antimonial lead. It will also make a mess of your axe. Ask me how I know.

The easiest is to melt it if you can.
 
Awhile back I acquired a 100 pound lead cylinder, about 4 inches across by maybe 18 inches long or so. Used a stock pot on a propane burner. Probably took an hour and a half to get it all melted, but melt it did.
 
Back
Top Bottom