slflr Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 Or is it (for now) not worth the effort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chirpy Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 Selling the used battery may be easier and more profitable than the trouble and mess to reclaim the lead. Be very careful if you reclaim. Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M ammo Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 Or is it (for now) not worth the effort? I drained it and used a skill saw. To get it open. I tried it once, it was a pain in the *&^&^% and I didn’t get enough lead to make it worth my wile. Jim M ammo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 In El Salvador they do that so they can get bullets to shoot. I was too sick to go on the tour, but the reports from those that did were that it's not a healthy process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chizzle Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Or is it (for now) not worth the effort? I'm an industrial water chemist, and I've been in the largest lead acid battery recycler in North America. I would strongly discourage you from tearing one of these batteries open on your own for the following reasons: 1) The batteries are full of acid and could severely burn someone. Acid burns are typically much worse than temperature related burns; they just keep burning you much longer than temperature related burns and can result in severe scarring (I've seen it and experienced it; you don't want any of this) 2) The acid that you're dumping has a lot of heavy metals in it that could add to lead contamination of our potable water. Recycling plants run their acid waste through sophistocated waste water treatment plants to remove the heavy metals before the water is released to the environment. 3) If you did dump the acid in the drain, it can generate a tremendous amount of heat when it mixes with water; the result is a boiling mess of acid and water. I'm all for recycling and the creative re-use of materials, but in this case you are better off leaving them to someone that recycles batteries for a living. When we needed lead for making bullets, we always used to ask tire shops for their used wheel weights, and our small town newspaper for used line type. With lead prices going way up, they probably won't be as forthcoming as they used to be... Be safe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMITH Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 chizzle is absolutely right, it is bad news, don't screw with it. Even melting it once you get it out of the battery is dangerous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Not me..... uhh uhhh... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robomanusa Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 heed there warnings above, melting that lead would put off some of the most dangerous shit you could ever breathe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BritinUSA Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 This sounds like one of those stories that start with ... "Here, hold my beer while I try this..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L9X25 Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Most of the folks that I know of, that havested their own lead and cast their own bullets, eventually spent far more than their savings on medical bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajarrel Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Most of the folks that I know of, that havested their own lead and cast their own bullets, eventually spent far more than their savings on medical bills. Sir, Not to be argumentative, but as your signature line states, "opinions vary". While I wouldn't recommend anyone reclaiming lead from used batteries, I don't know of anyone who became ill from reclaiming lead from berms or tire weights from tire stores. It has been my experience that more lead is taken up from the 'vaporized' lead of shooting, particularly indoors than in the process of making bullets at home. At home I have a large, whole house fan pulling vapors out of the room, at the indoor range, ventilation is usually just adequate if not worse. I can only speak for myself dj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huston in Austin Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 The lead in a used car battery has some other elements in it that prevent it from working well in Ballisticast or Magma Casters. I have a friend who is a commercial lead bullet maker. He has run into this before and it makes maintaining the temp in the lead pots difficult ant the pour spouts clog up. It is not a fun experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CenTX Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 In El Salvador they do that so they can get bullets to shoot. I was too sick to go on the tour, but the reports from those that did were that it's not a healthy process. The fumes were pretty bad and they were doing it outside, if I remember correctly all the guy had on was a paper dust mask. It was interesting to see the process going from a car battery to a copper plated bullet, but certainly did not look like a healthy place to work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Carlin Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 When I was 16 (42 years ago) I tore up a five or six lead acid car batteries for the lead in them, I diluted the acid in the batterys by washing the acid out and into the storm sewer. (It did not seem so irresponsible to me then). After working all afternoon the gut of five batteries apart in the back yard. They were then disassembled in detail and the washed and dried lead plates were melted in a plumbers pot. There was a lot of waste in the form of grids of metal that the lead was cast on. In the end, I ruined set of jeans and tennis shoes, and determined it was far more work than it was worth. Shortly after that I began collecting wheel weights from auto shops and tire dealers, I usually got them for free. While I do not think that the cautions given here are not well intended, I can tell you from personal experience that batteries can be subjected to lead reclamation. I would not recommend it, it is risky, nasty, pollution generating job. Save yourself some misery and skip the lead acid battery reclamation project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CenTX Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Or is it (for now) not worth the effort? I'm an industrial water chemist, and I've been in the largest lead acid battery recycler in North America. I would strongly discourage you from tearing one of these batteries open on your own for the following reasons: 1) The batteries are full of acid and could severely burn someone. Acid burns are typically much worse than temperature related burns; they just keep burning you much longer than temperature related burns and can result in severe scarring (I've seen it and experienced it; you don't want any of this) 2) The acid that you're dumping has a lot of heavy metals in it that could add to lead contamination of our potable water. Recycling plants run their acid waste through sophistocated waste water treatment plants to remove the heavy metals before the water is released to the environment. 3) If you did dump the acid in the drain, it can generate a tremendous amount of heat when it mixes with water; the result is a boiling mess of acid and water. I'm all for recycling and the creative re-use of materials, but in this case you are better off leaving them to someone that recycles batteries for a living. When we needed lead for making bullets, we always used to ask tire shops for their used wheel weights, and our small town newspaper for used line type. With lead prices going way up, they probably won't be as forthcoming as they used to be... Be safe! Another source of lead is indoor ranges. In the late 70s-early 80s I was a co-owner of an indoor range. The lead would build up and cause splash back if we did not remove the build up. We would melt it and mold ingots for bullet casting or mould it into diving weights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I've been reading up in the various sources for cast bullets for the last few months. There is quite a bit of thrift and ingenuity going on...yet they all caution STRONGLY against messing with batteries for lead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GW45ACP Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 (edited) You'll likely have strontium and cadmium in modern battery lead alloys. They are extremely toxic if not handled properly. The can also contain copper, iron and calcium making the alloy poorly suited for casting. Edited May 12, 2008 by GW45ACP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slflr Posted May 13, 2008 Author Share Posted May 13, 2008 Thanks to all who posted. I'll let the pros handle recycling my batteries. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Front Man Posted May 13, 2008 Share Posted May 13, 2008 Where did all those lead tooth paste tubes go from my youth? Should have saved them! FM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cas Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 "Salvaging lead from batteries can be hazardous to your health. The "maintenance free" batteries are not like the older lead plate batteries. The ones these days have calcium and other alloying elements in them. The danger comes when alloys containing calcium are melted with those containing antimony and arsenic (such as in wheelweights). Compounds are formed in the melt which becomes mixed with the dross. When the dross is discarded, if it comes in contact with moisture highly toxic gases can be released. For instance, an alloy containing calcium mixed with wheeweights will have a silvery-looking scum that forms on it fairly quickly. It tends to cling to the ladle and often ends up in the mold. In the melting of these two alloys small crystals are formed and a reaction can occur. Two of the most common reactions are: 2Sb + 3Ca=Sb2Ca3 or 2As + 3Ca=As2Ca3 Neither one of these compounds can be fluxed back into the alloy and will become dross. The danger lies in what happens to the discarded dross. If moisture is introduced, the calcium oxidizes for form lime while the hydrogen combines with the antimony or arsenic to produce either stibine gas or arsine gas. Both are actute poisons. The gases are heavy and will lie in low places, such as the bottom of a garbage can. As little as 50 parts per million of arsine can impair the function of the blood or cause pulmonary edema. A few breaths of it can be fatal. Calculations show that 1 pound of the above alloy can produce about 0.1 cubic feet of gas. If trapped in a garbage can, it could prove a fatal dose should one inhale it after taking the lid off. It would only take 0.3 cu. ft. of such gas to contaminate the air in an average basement or garage. It is best not to mess with melting down batteries. " The above information was gleaned from "CAST BULLETS" by Col. E.H. Harrison, article "Battery Plates: Bad News For Casters" by Dennis Marshall, page 116. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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