Making Lead Shot

[KrisB]

You can do as I did.
Go to Wally World or other discount store and purchase a couple of the bar soap boxes. Usually sold in the travel kits.
These make good mould's.
Spray the mould with PAM, or another type of cooking spray. (As a release agent.)
Mix up an appropriate amount of 30 minute epoxy and mix a measured amount of your lead shot with this. Pour into your mould and allow to set up for 24-48 hours.
The epoxy will effectively waterproof the shot and makes for a good sturdy brick weight. You can experiment and find moulds of differing sizes and shapes for your own customized weight needs.

(This idea was one I actually used for making weights to help balance Model Aircraft when I built them.)

if you're making something solid, it's pretty silly to use lead shot... just think of the wasted space between the balls!

It seems to me that a bag of lead shot is between 1-1/2 and 2 times the size of the same weight of lead in a block... what happened to the whole "streamlining" thing that has been taught in scuba classes forever?

 

[rat314]

if you're making something solid, it's pretty silly to use lead shot... just think of the wasted space between the balls!

Being a shooter, hunter and a re-loader,
I used the lead shot because I had access to plenty of it. Plus, I just like the Do It Yourself practicality of using what I had laying around the house.
As for the wasted space? That is minimal at best and can be justified in making weights of specific shapes sizes and weights for special needs.
My actual purpose in using the epoxy in the first place was more to protect the shot from being exposed to the water in hopes of preventing the leeching effect that can occur as lead oxidizes. As an added plus, they dry fatser at the end of a dive than does a soft shot pouch does.
As for, streamlining. Except for the shaped tank weight I made using this method. All my other weights ride in my integrated weight pouch so that is not even an issue with these.

 

[KrisB]

if you're making something solid, it's pretty silly to use lead shot... just think of the wasted space between the balls!

Being a shooter, hunter and a re-loader,
I used the lead shot because I had access to plenty of it. Plus, I just like the Do It Yourself practicality of using what I had laying around the house.
As for the wasted space? That is minimal at best and can be justified in making weights of specific shapes sizes and weights for special needs.
My actual purpose in using the epoxy in the first place was more to protect the shot from being exposed to the water in hopes of preventing the leeching effect that can occur as lead oxidizes. As an added plus, they dry fatser at the end of a dive than does a soft shot pouch does.
As for, streamlining. Except for the shaped tank weight I made using this method. All my other weights ride in my integrated weight pouch so that is not even an issue with these.

Rat,

I'm not suggesting a non-do-it-yourself approach... I'm just suggesting if you're looking to make solid blocks that you actually melt the lead!

I, too, use integrated weight pouches, and noticed when I went to the homemade weights there was a significant difference in streamlining from even the weight-belt blocks!

 

[av8er23]

I checked into this once and determined that it would be easier to just purchase them. The lead shots from the gunshop was like 25 bucks and then you would have to have pouches to put them in.

 

[H2O lover]

What size shot would you recommend for filling myown pouches? #8?
Thanks
H2O Lover