Author Topic: Cost Of Wheel Weights? (Read 2181 times)

1sourdough · « **on:** October 28, 2009, 11:12:54 PM »

I was at a small local garage the other day. I ask if he had any old wheel weights for sale. He said he would sell for the current scap price of $25 for a 'heaping' 5 gal bucket. I have a good supply of lead for what I cast so I told him, thanks & I have enough for now. I know prices shot up then came back down some. What do you think of the $25 price for a bucket of wheel weights?

Terbltim · « **Reply #1 on:** October 29, 2009, 12:41:59 AM »

I almost bought a bunch of lead from a guy that had tons [literally] saved up but had to move and get it out of there. I thought he just wanted it gone but when I got there he wanted money.
He said he could load it on a trailer and get it weighed for me.
I told him that if he went to that much trouble he should just sell it to the scrap yard.
He did that and got 9-cents/lb !! (Scrap lead, mostly cleaned and much of it melted into ingots.)
The guy made some decent pocket money.
That was this past springtime.

Dezynco · « **Reply #2 on:** October 29, 2009, 12:53:04 AM »

My guess is that a bucket of wheel weights weighs around 150 pounds. That would put $25 per buck a little on the high side. You might offer $15.00 per bucket at most. Keep in mind that there's a lot of good shootin' in a bucket of wheel weights, but if you pay too much this time, you'll be paying too much next time, and the next.

If you could weight the bucket of wheel weights, offer .08 - .10 cents per pound. Sounds reasonable for "scrap".

skarke · « **Reply #3 on:** October 29, 2009, 01:14:24 AM »

If you can get it for anywhere near that, buy it. Scrap WW being sold in Houston are selling for much more. The big tire chains won't sell to individuals, because the battery recyclers have contracts on the stuff. One tire shop gives me theirs, but now I seem to be competing with another caster who races me to the shop to get the lead. It's hardly worth it. I have a metal supplier here in Houston that sells premixed hardball for about $1 per pound. I still have about 150 lbs of wheel weights, but the hardball is cheap enough, and I like the ingots they make for me.

AtlLaw · « **Reply #4 on:** October 29, 2009, 06:40:53 AM »

I'd gladly pay $25 for a bucket of wheel weights!

If I could find any anyplace other then a scrap dealer.

They want a LOT more then that!

1sourdough · « **Reply #5 on:** October 29, 2009, 06:46:36 AM »

I plan to buy a 45 cal mold on my next order with Midway. Maybe next time I am near his shop I will check into the wheel weights. I was trying to conserve $ the other day when I was at his shop. It sounds like the price is right.

Steve P · « **Reply #6 on:** November 03, 2009, 07:32:28 AM »

5 gallon bucket will net you 100-120 lbs of lead, if it is heaping full. I picked up two buckets earlier this year for $70 and was smiling all the way home. Usually sell for $40-50 per bucket, IF you can find it. For $25 per bucket, I would have given the guy my number and had him call every time he got a bucket full. Pretty soon the zinc and steel weights are going to be the only ones available......

Steve

teamnelson · « **Reply #7 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:03:37 AM »

I've shared on here before that I've been blessed to get 2 5 gal buckets full for free by hitting up our local base auto hobby shops. If you've got a DOD ID card, I'd encourage you to look into that. Found another guy who claims he can clear 10lbs of lead in a couple hours snorkeling/free diving off the North Shore without working hard. Sounds like fun to me! Every now and then I'll see an ad on craigslist for dive weights for cheap - I'd think under a buck a pound for that might not be so bad.

BCB · « **Reply #8 on:** November 03, 2009, 12:08:53 PM »

I have gotten them cheaper, but with the way things are going today and if I really didn't have a bit of a surplus supply, I would pay $25 for a heaping 5-gallon bucket...

Let's do some math...

If you get 100 pounds of clean lead after the smelting of the 5-gallon bucket of wheel weights, that is 25¢ per pound…

Now then there are 7000 grains per pound so that equals 0.00357¢ per grain…

Let’s just assume you are casting 250 grain boolits. That equates to 0.89285¢ per boolit…

That equals 44.64¢ for a box of 50 rounds—that is only the boolit of course…

So, maybe $25 per 5-gallon bucket ain’t all that expensive!!!

Good-luck…BCB

gypsyman · « **Reply #9 on:** November 03, 2009, 01:21:51 PM »

In todays world, that would have been a heck of a buy! Look at it in this prespective. How many box's of 100 count bullets would it take, to fill the bucket about 3/4 full. Considering you'll lose some weight to the wheel clips.(not much!!) 35-40, maybe more. At $18 a box for factory made bullets, that's a minimum of $630. I don't think I would have passed it up. IF, you can find lead ingots at a gun show, their usually running $1 apiece. Even if you would just smelt it down, cleaned it and ingoted it out, you could probably get $125 or more. gypsyman

Racer X · « **Reply #10 on:** November 03, 2009, 02:04:52 PM »

I think the price has come down, but the problem is finding anyone willing to sell them anymore. I paid $35/bucket recently and am happy to be able to get them. Alot cheaper than hand-cast bullets at $20/hundred. One day, we won't be able to get them at all, or they will all be zinc.

beerbelly · « **Reply #11 on:** November 03, 2009, 05:19:36 PM »

I bought some a few months ago at the scrap yard for eight cents a pound. I am getting a little low, so I guess I will see what they are getting now.
Beerbelly

1sourdough · « **Reply #12 on:** November 13, 2009, 07:51:39 AM »

O.K. guys, I went back today & the shop still had the heaping bucket of wheel weights. It's a tall 5 gal bucket filled to the brim. I'm a fairly strong guy but I couldn't get it up into the trunk. I had to slide the seat forward & put it on the back floor. That is one heavy bucket. I think my body will be O.K. for next weeks IL deer hunt. Anyway, now I guess I'll get a 45 acp mold to go with my others. I still have other lead but will use some of this 1st. How will the hardness be for moderate 45 acp loads? I was looking at the Lee 200 grn 'tumble lube' design.

jhalcott · « **Reply #13 on:** November 13, 2009, 11:52:45 AM »

I like a little bit hardwer than ACWW for the .45ACP. The bullets have to slide up the feed ramp with out "galling", or deforming too much. I HAVE used ww for the .45acp with no problems in the past, but those guns had polished ramps! Lyman #2 (BHN15) alloy has worked for me even in unpolished guns

1sourdough · « **Reply #14 on:** November 14, 2009, 02:05:36 AM »

Now I've read than a teflon coated muffin pan works well to cast ignots? Has anybody tried that?

Terbltim · « **Reply #15 on:** November 14, 2009, 03:03:35 AM »

Quote from: BCB on November 03, 2009, 12:08:53 PM

That equals 44.64¢ for a box of 50 rounds—that is only the boolit of course…
So, maybe $25 per 5-gallon bucket ain’t all that expensive!!!
Good-luck…BCB

All correct, as long as your time counts for nothing.
I cannot count my time as worth nothing, even for my own purposes.
This makes it hard to calculate the real cost of those bullets 'cause we all are doing other things while we wait for the stuff to melt.
Sometime ago I did the math and figured that my bullets wouldn't be much different from commercial bullets if I had to "make a living" by selling them, (assuming I could sell all that I made.)
The part that made me feel better about it all was the incalculable "satisfaction" I get from making my bullets exactly the way I think they should be to serve my needs best.
That is what cannot be calculated in dollars.
Genuine satisfaction is worth whatever it costs.

beerbelly · « **Reply #16 on:** November 14, 2009, 05:54:29 AM »

About six mounths ago I bought wheel wheights for .12 cents a pound at the local scrap yard. Guess I should have bought a lot more than I did!
Beerbelly

teamnelson · « **Reply #17 on:** November 14, 2009, 07:02:17 AM »

Quote from: 1sourdough on November 14, 2009, 02:05:36 AM

Now I've read than a teflon coated muffin pan works well to cast ignots? Has anybody tried that?

Been using a cheap muffin pan sprayed with Pam ... actually only sprayed it once and have made 5 dozen ingots on that pan. Make sure you get the one where the cups are pressed from the same sheet as the whole pan. I've seen the other kind pop out. Find the dirtiest one at the thrift store;)

1sourdough · « **Reply #18 on:** November 15, 2009, 09:54:37 AM »

I was just testing today & made 16 ignots with a muffin pan. I sprayed it a little, wiped it off & they fell right out. I just have a small Lee pot, so it's slow. It seems like there are some of those zinc types mixed in the bucket. I can tell with some, others if they don't melt right away. I didn't even get 1/4 of the bucket sorted. It is also a little cool out, maybe not ideal temps.

I just googled lead wheel weights. It looks like a bunch of states are banning them, starting with CA 1 Jan 2010. I wonder how much harm a lead WW does if it falls off & goes on the ditch?

I weighed my 16 lead 'muffins', they are 31.5lbs, with not 1/4 of the bucket smelted.

teamnelson · « **Reply #19 on:** November 15, 2009, 03:22:32 PM »

I realize not every family teaches their kids not to put things in their mouth they find in a ditch, so perhaps it is necessary after all. I'm making all the ingots I can now in anticipation.

Terbltim · « **Reply #20 on:** November 17, 2009, 01:50:43 AM »

Quote from: TeamNelson on November 15, 2009, 03:22:32 PM

I realize not every family teaches their kids not to put things in their mouth they find in a ditch, so perhaps it is necessary after all.

I think families that are not teaching their children correct and/or incorrect behavior is natural selection at work.
The rest of human race should not have be inconvenienced by the foolishness of dimwits.
They should be allowed to die of their own stupidity.
Seat-belt and helmet laws, ditto.
The ONLY beneficiary of such law and regulation is the Insurance industry.
Sad but true.

blhof · « **Reply #21 on:** November 18, 2009, 02:09:10 PM »

It's truely amazing, since in the 60's lead was in the gasoline, in most house paints and the tooth paste tubes were made of lead until the early 70's and yet many of us older gents are still around and relatively lead free. When I lived in south Fl; I collected sinkers under bridges in the keys as well as rods, anckors and assorted lost dive gear. I melted about 40 lbs into muffins after 3 years of collecting to take to my next base. I still also have about 100 lbs of ww muffins left, that I got from various tire shops for free years ago, I guess I'd better start stocking up again.