Looking for lead....

[nautique210]

I'm starting the search for lead. I've had no luck locally. Our local Nautique dealer bought his from "lead heads"??? They are 50 lb. plates with a molded in handle for easy moving. He uses what he has and won't sell. The "lead heads" seem to be out of business. He though they advertised in the Wakeboard magazines, but I've had no luck locating them.
Does anyone have any idea who sells lead plates, or where I can find the "lead heads"?
Thanks.....

[FatBoy]

RE: Looking for lead....

There is a place up in Michigan that sells steele shot in bags with handles. Can't remember the name but I know some people who have them and love them. They come in 50 pound bags. I poured my own lead bars, I poured 1400 pounds from old tire weights I got for free from tire stores.

[nautique210]

RE: Looking for lead....

Thanks for the info. We're currently using lead shot bags. They are 25 lbs. each, I will look to see if the locals sell in 50 lb bags. I much rather have the bars. I might have to break down and do this job myself. What did you use for a mold? We have a turkey deep fryer, I thought about using that for the melt down. Any tips? Thanks

[FatBoy]

RE: Looking for lead....

Thats what I used to melt down the lead as well. For molds I used non stick bread pans from Wally World, they work great. Just remember to pre-heat the molds before you pour or you will get little bubbles on the surface of your pour where the hot lead meets the cold bread pan.

[ag4ever]

RE: Looking for lead....

Fatboy,

I have a few questions for you. I have about 600 pounds of lead I have gathered (not tire weights) and want to melt it into a uniform shape. Some of my lead is in 10 bars some 20 pound and others 30 pounds with some more in samller chunks.

How much does one "bread pan" of lead weigh?

How long did it take to melt the lead?

How many pans did you fill at once?

What pan did you use to melt the lead?

What stores did you go to for the weights (samll mom & pop or lare chains)?

How long did it take to accumulate 1400 pounds?

Did you coat the lead after casting?

Did you cast some kind of handle in the lead bar?

What did you use to protect the ground where you were casting?

How much lead did you melt at once, and how did you handle the pan?

What did you do to skim out the steel clips from the tire weights?

Thanks

[FatBoy]

Re: RE: Looking for lead....

Fatboy,

I have a few questions for you. I have about 600 pounds of lead I have gathered (not tire weights) and want to melt it into a uniform shape. Some of my lead is in 10 bars some 20 pound and others 30 pounds with some more in samller chunks.

How much does one "bread pan" of lead weigh? 40 Lbs

How long did it take to melt the lead? 6 or 7 hours

How many pans did you fill at once? 3

What pan did you use to melt the lead? Homemade steal pot
What stores did you go to for the weights (samll mom & pop or lare chains)? Small stores, found one with a huge pile out back

How long did it take to accumulate 1400 pounds? 2 weeks

Did you coat the lead after casting? No

Did you cast some kind of handle in the lead bar? No

What did you use to protect the ground where you were casting? Nothing I live on a farm and have a big back yard

How much lead did you melt at once, and how did you handle the pan? 150 Lbs at a time and I would pour 120 Lbs at a time leaveing some in the pan to help the next batch start melting faster. Welding gloves

What did you do to skim out the steel clips from the tire weights? I have a cast iron ladle that I used for skimming and pouring.
Thanks

[ag4ever]

RE: Re: RE: Looking for lead....

Great info.

[Christopher-W.-Becker]

RE: Re: RE: Looking for lead....

All,

Remember lead is a hazardous material. Highly recommend as a min you paint your bricks to prevent oxidation. Spray paint works great at doing the trick. I work in the nuclear business and we you lead by the tons. We have our own smelt shop to make custom lead shields. Currently have about 4 tons of lead inhouse. You can make a simple form by welding some steel angle iron to a plate (see your luck scrap metal dealer). Check with the local lead recycler....occassionaly some people turn in lead bricks for scrap...you can buy them from them cheaper than new.

There are several firms which sell lead. Google Lead bricks and you should find then.

Christopher W. Becker

[TwinTip]

RE: Re: RE: Looking for lead....

Try the yellow pages under "Lead". I found a local shop that made different size bricks. I got three 40 lbs and one 30 lbs. I use them to balance the boat rather than to increase the wake size. The price was $1.00 per pound.

I had them drill two holes on each brick to make a handle, which I highly recommend. I then bought inside/outside carpet (you can get this at Home Depot) and covered the bricks. It looks pretty good since the carpet I bought is gray and matches the carpet on the boat.

I don't remember if it was Barts or Ski Limited but there is a watersports catalog that sells lead. If I recal correctly, this came in squares and was also about $1.00 per pound. If you buy from somewhere other than local, prepare yourself for a high shipping charge.