Barrel for melting scrap lead?
- Thread starter johnndor
- Start date
Any suggestions? I will assume the lead your are purchasing will not fit your lead pot, I have large thick lead melting pots with lots of available heat, I do not change anything, when it comes to lead that will not fit 'my big pot' I use axes and hatchets. Remember! You must keep[ your mouth closed and use eye protection because if you use lead from anywhere there is a chance some of it came from beneath the toilet complete with wax. Save the wax!
You will not believe this but many years ago I was helping a friend empty his septic tank, he slipped and fell in and there he was with only his lips above the stuff saying "Don't make a wave, don't make a wave".
F. Guffey
The scrap I have sometimes does not conveniently fit into an 8" or 12" pot... If I had something like 18" that would be nice... I don't need the volume as much as the surface area.
I melt out in my back yard - I suppose I could cut it up more but was thinking about efficiency.
There's a local guy on Craigslist that has something like a 55 gal drum - he melts sailboat keels (has to cut them down into chunks first) and sells at $1/pound. Cool set-up - I don't need anything that large but might try a 10 gal barrel or something like that.
I melt out in my back yard - I suppose I could cut it up more but was thinking about efficiency.
There's a local guy on Craigslist that has something like a 55 gal drum - he melts sailboat keels (has to cut them down into chunks first) and sells at $1/pound. Cool set-up - I don't need anything that large but might try a 10 gal barrel or something like that.
Lucas McCain
New member
All the melting pots I have seen or used are cast iron. As I was told it's for 2reasons, strength and retention of heat capability.
Using a 10 gallon barrel does not sound safe. A couple gallons of lead is going to be very heavy. It also is going to take an awful lot of heat and the barrel will not retain much heat. I think that when the barrel gets hot and the heavy weight it may just plain collapse on you.
My suggestion is for you to use a cast iron Dutch oven pan.
Using a 10 gallon barrel does not sound safe. A couple gallons of lead is going to be very heavy. It also is going to take an awful lot of heat and the barrel will not retain much heat. I think that when the barrel gets hot and the heavy weight it may just plain collapse on you.
My suggestion is for you to use a cast iron Dutch oven pan.
"...Using a 10 gallon barrel does not sound safe..." They're used as BBQ's all the time. So are half 50 gallon drums.
"...couple gallons of lead is going to be very heavy..." One weighs 94.715 lbs. 189.43 for 2. 20 gallons of beach sand weighs 255.24 pounds. Doubt the weight will matter.
Charcoal burns at 1,000F or so. Pure lead melts at 621F. 50 gallon drums are used as fire places regularly too without any issues. Heat won't matter either.
The thing that will matter is how you plan of getting the melted lead out and into ingot forms.
"...use a small cast iron skillet..." As in a frying pan? That is unsafe. Assuming you're pouring melted lead like bacon fat. Better you buy a proper casting furnace. The Lyman "Big Dipper" Electric Casting Furnace runs $53.95 and holds 10 pounds.
"...couple gallons of lead is going to be very heavy..." One weighs 94.715 lbs. 189.43 for 2. 20 gallons of beach sand weighs 255.24 pounds. Doubt the weight will matter.
Charcoal burns at 1,000F or so. Pure lead melts at 621F. 50 gallon drums are used as fire places regularly too without any issues. Heat won't matter either.
The thing that will matter is how you plan of getting the melted lead out and into ingot forms.
"...use a small cast iron skillet..." As in a frying pan? That is unsafe. Assuming you're pouring melted lead like bacon fat. Better you buy a proper casting furnace. The Lyman "Big Dipper" Electric Casting Furnace runs $53.95 and holds 10 pounds.
He can do a lot more than 10 pounds at a time if he wants.
If I'm processing lead from multiple sources like wheel weights etc. I usually do about 50 pounds at a time and make 1 lb ingots. It's not challenging to do a few hundred pounds in a day with a good burner and a large dutch oven and some good flux. I like bees wax.
If I'm processing lead from multiple sources like wheel weights etc. I usually do about 50 pounds at a time and make 1 lb ingots. It's not challenging to do a few hundred pounds in a day with a good burner and a large dutch oven and some good flux. I like bees wax.
Gallons of lead! 
The web says a gallon of lead is 113 pounds. Lets see, multiply that by 10, and you will have 1130 pounds of molten lead in a ten gallon container. Sure sounds like a horrific death waiting to happen!
Take a look at a number 7 Rowell ladle.
https://www.rotometals.com/casting-ladle-bottom-pour-rowell-7-7-bowl-diameter-29-handle-length/
The ladle holds 25 pounds, it weighs 10 pounds, so you are lugging 35 pounds of weight. That is close to my limit. The #8 is larger but understand that 50 pounds is a lot of weight to sling around! Could get dangerous.
The web says a gallon of lead is 113 pounds. Lets see, multiply that by 10, and you will have 1130 pounds of molten lead in a ten gallon container. Sure sounds like a horrific death waiting to happen! Take a look at a number 7 Rowell ladle.
https://www.rotometals.com/casting-ladle-bottom-pour-rowell-7-7-bowl-diameter-29-handle-length/
The ladle holds 25 pounds, it weighs 10 pounds, so you are lugging 35 pounds of weight. That is close to my limit. The #8 is larger but understand that 50 pounds is a lot of weight to sling around! Could get dangerous.
Try a large cast iron pot.
20 gallons of lead will weight about 1 ton. Unless your building something with angle iron supports and have a massive burner a 20 gallon barrel will be useless. I believe I have heard of people cutting old propane tanks in half and using them but I'd research that before taking my word for it.
20 gallons of lead will weight about 1 ton. Unless your building something with angle iron supports and have a massive burner a 20 gallon barrel will be useless. I believe I have heard of people cutting old propane tanks in half and using them but I'd research that before taking my word for it.
And keep in mind there is a huge difference between a stove and a cauldron.
A stove self cooled the outside, heat going up.
The steel fails after a while, pot bellied stove had a shape to avoid that but did not eliminate.
My fireplace has fire bricks in it to keep the steel intact.
Dutch oven is exactly what I would go with. Try second hand or even garage sales.
as noted above, 25 gallon drum of lead is a disaster looking to happen.
A stove self cooled the outside, heat going up.
The steel fails after a while, pot bellied stove had a shape to avoid that but did not eliminate.
My fireplace has fire bricks in it to keep the steel intact.
Dutch oven is exactly what I would go with. Try second hand or even garage sales.
as noted above, 25 gallon drum of lead is a disaster looking to happen.
My lead pots are 1/2" thick, the stove that makes me nervous is the one that runs on gas. There seems to be confusion as to what to call the tools I use; some have claimed it is a railroad furnace and others have claimed it is a plumbers furnace.
There is nothing I do not have in the way of case iron, I have all the big names in case iron collectables, I can not imagine the horror of spilling 650 degree melted lead on my legs and feet. There is something about that story that suggest melting lead in thin cast iron is a bad habit.
F. Guffey
There is nothing I do not have in the way of case iron, I have all the big names in case iron collectables, I can not imagine the horror of spilling 650 degree melted lead on my legs and feet. There is something about that story that suggest melting lead in thin cast iron is a bad habit.
F. Guffey
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I know; I read it everyday, all you gotta do is get some muffin and corn bread cast iron molds and start pouring. I was not there but Ol' Ben Franklin went to visit France; while he was there the French ask Ben about a malady that had struck workers. He did not know about all of those struck with different maladies but he made it clear, he pointed out all of the type setters. And then there is Northeast Oklahoma. A friend that worked in the mines told me I would not believe how much lead is underground and I should never worry about running out.
F. Guffey
F. Guffey
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My wife was complaining about the view thorough the steering wheel, I had three pieces of pool table slate in the pick up with lead from an X-ray room.
The slate had nothing to do with this thread but the rolled up sheets of lead does, I would not throw a rolled up sheet of lead into a melt out of fear there was water rolled up in the lead, so cutting the lead up and flattening it out helps prevent water being added to the melt without enough time for it to evaporate.
F. Guffey
The slate had nothing to do with this thread but the rolled up sheets of lead does, I would not throw a rolled up sheet of lead into a melt out of fear there was water rolled up in the lead, so cutting the lead up and flattening it out helps prevent water being added to the melt without enough time for it to evaporate.
F. Guffey
Not that it is much of a problem these days but I have had ink on Linotype erupt a pot enough that lead is still stuck on the ceiling 19ft above. Welding leathers, gloves and good head gear save the day that time.
These days I don't get in a hurry to do everything I have at once. I do one batch at a time, this way any liquid turns to vapor before the lead is hot enough to melt. Not as fast but also much less chance for any drama.
nanuk-O-dah-Nort
New member
I got half an ingot of pure from a nickel mining smelter.
weights about 900+ kgs. a full ingot is around 2000kg.
There was over 10,000kg being sold off at something like $0.10 per pound. I wish I could have bought it all.
as for cast iron, I make sure I heat NEW pots/pans up REALLY HOT! Then give them a good WACK with a piece of steel.
cast today has so much contaminants that expand at different rates, it is not uncommon to have a skillet crack on the first heat!
I would NOT want ANY Lead in it when it cracked.
my next melting pot to clean WW and lead scrap will be a bottom of a 10lb propane tank. It will hold more than enough to be wary of!
weights about 900+ kgs. a full ingot is around 2000kg.
There was over 10,000kg being sold off at something like $0.10 per pound. I wish I could have bought it all.
as for cast iron, I make sure I heat NEW pots/pans up REALLY HOT! Then give them a good WACK with a piece of steel.
cast today has so much contaminants that expand at different rates, it is not uncommon to have a skillet crack on the first heat!
I would NOT want ANY Lead in it when it cracked.
my next melting pot to clean WW and lead scrap will be a bottom of a 10lb propane tank. It will hold more than enough to be wary of!