$2.75 a pound for LEAD? You're kidding right?

[nickjb]

Wheel balancing weights are harder to cast as they are not pure lead (well, most aren't), but the alloy that is added to them (3% antimony , I read somewhere if anyone cares) is there to make the lead a bit harder so it doesn't bend quite so easily. This makes weights that are a bit more robust and the slots wont close up if (when) you drop them.

If anyone has any casting tips I would like to hear them as my results so far have been a bit hit and miss.

 

[MSilvia]

I bought a 5 lb mold, got enough scrap lead to fill it twice, and with the help of a blowtorch made two rectangular slabs that rattled when I dropped them. I melted them down again and got a usable weight on my third try. On my fourth try, I actually got great results!

I have a small antique forge I restored at my parents' house, and might try pouring liquid straight into the mold in the future, but I'll tell you what I learned about the propane torch method.

First, make sure you heat the mold up before melting lead into it, or the liquid lead will harden when it hits the cooler metal. If it hardens, it won't melt into the lead poured on top of it, and you'll end up with a stack of pieces (hence the rattling), rather than a solid block.

If you get a stirrer (like an old screwdriver), you can help to ensure good results by diligently re-heating the lead in the mold and stirring it thoroughly as you add and new solid chunks. If you can stir it to the bottom, you know it's melting together. If you can't, keep heating until you can.

If there are impurities, thorough heating will allow them to float to the top, where you can skim them off.

Old lead pipe is another good source of cheap lead, but shot is easier to work with.

 

[MSilvia]

Up here it's common to wear 4 times that much lead, to offset our two layers of 7 mil wetsuit. Personally, I wear 42 lbs, but I'm very bouyant. Carrying that belt and two tanks in one trip builds good muscles though.
:lifter:

Originally posted by Dee
Jonathan, it's common here in the States to require OW students to purchase their own weights. Depending on the time of year, a basic 8-10 is the norm. If they need more than that, we keep extra weights handy to fine tune their weights and these are returned to the Inst./DM/LDS...whoever supplied them.

 

[KC_Scubabunny]

My husband was also outraged at the high cost of soft weights at our dive shop.

He purchased lead shot at a local shooting range, nylon from Hobby Lobby and made pouches with tapered design that perfectly slide in and out of our integrated weight pouches. I have to admit, it is one of the slickest things he has ever done. Instead of trying to jam those square weights pouches into the tapered integrated pouch that we had to do before when we were training and using the shops weight.

Another handy part of making your own, you can make them in odd amounts like 6 lbs or 8lbs that might be hard to find through your dive shop.

KC_Scubabunny

 

[art.chick]

I think after the tire-balancing & shooting range posts that I stand corrected about today's divers being all about store-bought do-dads!

 

[tholt576]

You can also get pouches premade at my website and fill them with the lead of your choice. (I use lead shot from a shooting range < $1 per lb)

 

[FredT]

Originally posted by nickjb
Wheel balancing weights are harder to cast as they are not pure lead (well, most aren't), but the alloy that is added to them (3% antimony , I read somewhere if anyone cares) is there to make the lead a bit harder so it doesn't bend quite so easily. This makes weights that are a bit more robust and the slots wont close up if (when) you drop them.

If anyone has any casting tips I would like to hear them as my results so far have been a bit hit and miss.

The basic rules of lead alloying are that:

Antimony hardens the lot.

Arsenic increases surface tension making molds harder to fill but shot rounder.

Tin decreases surface tension and lowers melt point. 1% tin is enough if the mix has little arsenic. It may take 2% if melting hard lead shot that can be up to 3% arsenic and antimony.

For more data check these:

http://diverlink.com/gear/diy-leadweights.htm

http://diverlink.com/gear/diy-weightbelts-selfadjusting.htm

I have good luck fluxing outdoors with bacon drippings or old vegetable oils as well as using beeswax. Be aware the oil and lard flare significantly and reduce much of the lead oxide to metal.:fire: Keep the pot well clear of flamables!

Weights MUST be cheap enough to discard at any time without a second thought. If you'll be tempted to hang on to a belt or integrated weight pocket "just a little longer" due to it's cost, FIND A CHEAPER SOLUTION!

Cast lead weight belts bulk almost 1/3 that of the pouched versions. This means lower drag as well as much less cost.

FT

 

[Tractor Tom]

In talking (complaining) to the fellow who runs the LDS, about the cost of shot weight, he confided that not only does shipping cost him a lot, but also the EPA assesses a "useage fee" for lead weights as they are environment contaminates. He said that he expects soon we will not be able to get lead, and will need to use zinc for weight as it is less of an environment problem. Interesting to note that zinc costs more than twice the $2.75 a lb that he is currently charging for lead....

Food for thought, don't drop your weighs as they are environmental contaminates....

Tom in Frankenmuth, MI
NAUI certified Scuba Diver since 02/78

 

[FredT]

Metalic lead is hazardous to your health if it splashes on you or impacts you with a high kinetic energy. :fury:

For lead to be hazardous to ANY biological process it must first be converted to a soluable salt. This conversion is rapid enough that lead balls from wrecks over 500 years old still are recognizeable as to caliber!

:box:

This is junk science at it's worst! Many of the most vocal complainers have little or no clue and consider metallic lead at the same level of hazard as lead styphnate.

http://www.webelements.com/webelements/elements/text/Pb/key.html

http://www.design.caltech.edu/micropropulsion/msds_w79.pdf

When in doubt, dump those puppies. The life you save WILL be your own!

FT

 

[Tractor Tom]

But what Kevin at the LDS was saying is that the problem is coming at a "regulatory" level. He is paying a useage charge to the EPA for putting metalic lead in the environment for us to enjoy! If it comes to it, I'll drop my weights every time, and let the next guy, who is not experiencing difficulty pick them up from the bottom and take them home.....

Tom in Frankenmuth