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melting lead

sunranchwyo
i'm trying to make some decoy anchors. have a lee pot and aluminum anchor mold. using wheel weights for material. my finished anchors are brittle and actually chrystalize then break. what process do i need to stop the brittleness and make nice anchors? e-me please with answers. thanks

please e-me at risinsun@ida.net
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Comments

10 comments

Date Votes
  • D@D
    Melt some tin with your lead that will help.

    I don't approve of political jokes. I've seen too many of them get elected.
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  • richbug
    Wheel weights have too much antimony in them to be used in an aplication like that. Hard enough that they are almost brittle. To make really good anchors you will need some soft lead. Old lead sheeting and pipe without fittings work well. Even using shot or
    bullets screened out of a bullet trap would be much better.

    My border collie is smarter than your honor student.
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  • nmyers
    Since you already have the wheel weights, the easiest thing to do is to add 1 lb of 50/50 bar solder to 9 lbs of wheel weights. You can order it from Brownell's.

    Oh, be sure to do any lead casting outdoors. In my youth, I did casting in the basement, & that's why........what was I saying?

    Neal
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  • perry shooter
    Hello I don't know how many you plan to cast but get either a roll or bar of 50%/50% soder and mix in with your wheel weights.
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  • ATF
    If your molds are supposed to make a certain weight anchor using wheels weights they will come out much lighter.[:)]

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    ATF,Eagle Guns
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  • Buffler
    DO NOT melt LEAD where there is ANY chance of WATER...
    rain,condensation,etc. Would be the same as a H.G. in
    the pot!! No where there is a chance of WATER!!!!
    BE SAFE!! Buffler
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  • bobski
    an old guy taught me to drop a few (5 cent) nickels in the pot.

    former air operations officer SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2. former navy skeet team, former navy rifle/pistol team member. co-owner skeetmaster tubes inc.. owner/operator professional shooting instruction. NRA certified instructor.
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  • FrancF
    off topic-
    If you can get a hold of 3/4 Dia Rebar and cut it into small sections,
    it works great! and cheap too, If I recall a 10" hunk weighs about a pound + might save ya some time and hassle. [:)]
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  • Iconoclast
    Add some scrap lead. For decoy anchors there is absolutely no need to invest in the expense of 50/50 solder. The primary advantage tin brings to the alloy is improved flow characteristics. This is important in precision bullets but WTH cares if there are voids or surface lines in a decoy anchor fer Gawd's sake? Pure (+/-) lead will soften / dilute the antimony mix of the wheel weight and serve your purposes just as well at far less cost. I would submit that the relative weight of an anchor made with lead alloy and pure lead comes under the same level of importance as the number of angels on the head of a pin . . . a few grams, or even ounces, one way or another ain't gonna make a heck of a lot of difference as it can in a bullet where hardness and weight are so much more critical.

    "There is nothing lower than the human race - except the french." (Mark Twain) ". . . And liberals." (me)
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  • roysha
    You didn't say what type of anchor you were casting. If you are making the strap type that wraps around the decoy neck for storage, you will have to go with almost pure lead, wheel weights are simply too hard for this application. If you are making the mushroom or pyramid shaped ones I really can't see why you are experiencing any difficulty.

    Flush the Johns on Election Day.
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