Where to buy lead???
- Thread starter Brad925
- Start date
Wow, that's a large price.
Look for a local battery recycler. Mine is Metalex in Richmond. They recover lead from batteries and sell it in pure ingot form. Bonus is I get rid of my old batteries at the same time. Two birds, one stone...
I prefer pure lead so I can blend it the way I want. Soft for antique and harder for the newer stuff.
I prefer pure lead so I can blend it the way I want. Soft for antique and harder for the newer stuff.
The price included shipping according to postal code....
Holy crap - did anyone actually buy it at that price?? That's crazy!
I think you could actually buy it cheaper on ebay.
or Wal-Mart at $4.48/pound
Musket lead should be near pure lead. Very soft.
Linotype has a lot of tin in the mix. Very hard. Tin isn't cheap.
If you want to know what the actual price for lead is supposedly at, check out Rotometals.com site.
You will pretty much have to buy in ton qty's to get anywhere near spot, then pay trucking. A ton of lead does not take up much space!
Check out the phone book for metals dealers. If you are near a reasonable sized city, you should have at least one that deals in ingots of known alloy. If you want mixed alloys for specific mixtures, without doing it yourself, expect to pay!
The pure lead ingots I have are marked The Canada Metal Company Limited Winnipeg. FWIW.
Cheers
Trev
Musket lead should be near pure lead. Very soft.
Linotype has a lot of tin in the mix. Very hard. Tin isn't cheap.
If you want to know what the actual price for lead is supposedly at, check out Rotometals.com site.
You will pretty much have to buy in ton qty's to get anywhere near spot, then pay trucking. A ton of lead does not take up much space!
Check out the phone book for metals dealers. If you are near a reasonable sized city, you should have at least one that deals in ingots of known alloy. If you want mixed alloys for specific mixtures, without doing it yourself, expect to pay!
The pure lead ingots I have are marked The Canada Metal Company Limited Winnipeg. FWIW.
Cheers
Trev
Thankz Trev,
I do collecting wheel weights from several garages, but don't mind to find cheaper sources for less hassles...
Not sure what you are thinking there 'lefty ... and no offence ... batteries are highly toxic, not something for us homeguys to be messing with.
Im talking lead inside of batteries.. if you cant entertain the acid issue, then you wouldn't play with them from the get go.. for those that can,... its prolly not a bad idea for a more pure lead?...
Car batteries are a source for lead but if the battery is really corroded you get only a small amount of lead out of one.It will mostly be slag. If you can find newer ones they have more lead in them. When you take them apart you will have a bunch of other things to dispose of also. If you pour a strong baking soda solution into the battery before taking it apart you get rid of a lot of the acid also. I have several pairs of jeans with legs that look like the mice got them before I figured out to get rid of the acid first.
Another source for good lead is the old lead pipes for toilet seats. There is a few pounds of it there.Also there is a type of old wireing out there that the plasitc coated wires are incased in a lead shield. Seems to have been used for old light stands outside.
Another source for good lead is the old lead pipes for toilet seats. There is a few pounds of it there.Also there is a type of old wireing out there that the plasitc coated wires are incased in a lead shield. Seems to have been used for old light stands outside.
You are welcome. $0.35 a pound! No doubt you wish you bought more!
Metalex might not be the cheapest, but the price is reasonable considering the purity of the metal and the option for blends like the 3% you mention. I just got tired of scrounging for wheel weights, sorting out the crap and piles of slag. When you factor in the effort, buying it from them is a bargain. Kinda hard to stick a 60# ingot in a lee melter though... I found the best tool for cutting lead easily are with Japanese carpenters saws (from Lee Valley). The hardened teeth on them won't gum up like a hacksaw.
