Removing lead from bullet casings

M

mvsjewels

Inactive
Hi there!
Can anyone please shed some light on how to remove lead from bullet casings?! Does tumbling alone do the trick or is there something else I need to do, short of purchasing new cases? I don't shoot -- I am a jewelry designer, and I want to heat, cut, and drill into these bullet casings I was given, however, I really don't want to expose myself to lead. Any suggestions, please?
thanks!!:)
Monika
 
I've done a bit of what you're intending to.

First, use a kinetic bullet-puller to pull the bullet from the case.

Pour out and discard the powder. Remember, it's highly flammable.

Remove the primer, very carefully, by gently tapping it out with a depriming tool from a Lee Loader, or use a reloading press if you have one to deprime the case. Remember, the primer is highly volatile.

If the anvil is loose in the primer, you can remove it with a wooden toothpick, and using the toothpick, loosen the priming compound and discard it. Otherwise, you can "remake" a fired primer into an unfired-appearing one by removing the anvil, then using a flat pin punch on a flat steel surface (like a vise) to pound it flat. You can re-seat it into the case with a loading press or a specialized priming tool, such as the Lee priming tool.

You can remove the lead from a jacketed bullet by holding it with a pair of tongs in the flame of a butane torch or similar heat source. That will leave you with an empty jacket.

If you're looking to lighten a hollow-point or TMJ bullet, you can saw the base of the bullet off with a hacksaw, then melt the core out. If you're trying to lighten a soft-point bullet with exposed lead at the tip, you can use this same procedure, taking care to not heat the tip of the bullet enough to melt the lead in it.

Finally, you can use a reloading press to re-insert the empty bullet into the empty case. Recommend you drill a hole or two in one side of the case (where you may be planning to mount the mounting hardware) so that it will be clear upon close examination that the round is a dummy.

Good luck! :cool:
 
I think you need to clarify what you are doing a little here so we can give you accurate advice.
What exactly are you thinking of when you say "bullet casings"?

To shooters a "bullet" is the thing that is propelled from the gun's barrel during firing. It is usually a copper alloy shell (called a jacket), filled with a lead, or lead alloy.

A "case" is the hollow metal holder of the powder, primer & bullet itself. Usually there will be minimal or no lead in a case. There might be minimal lead compounds as a residue within the case but the metal contains no lead at all. It's usually either brass, Nickle-plated brass, mild steel, or in some odd cases plastic or aluminum.

The whole combination of components is a "round".

You see depending on which part you're planning on working with your technique might need to vary a little.

Tumbling removes firing residues from the case. 99% of this is just soot. Tumbling may remove minute amounts of lead compounds in the soot or ash, but that's it. Tumbling "bullets" will polish the copper alloy jacket, but won't do anything about the lead and lead alloys inside the jacket.

Also most primers (the source of the lead residue) are now lead-free anyway & have been for years. Lead free primers are usually referred to as "non-corrosive" in the shooting world.

You can buy the individual components as well, probably for less than complete rounds, some of it is even un-fired & so starts out lead-free!
 
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