Hey I figured that since I shoot slugs and they are a crap load of lead, and they dont good too fast, I could catch them, I built a box out of a steel electrical panal, about 6 inches of wood and some more steel plates. I went to the range put this thing out at 50 yrds and shot targets infront of it. After about 40 shots its began to put holes in the back but I manage to save a few slugs. I think that if I can clean the slugs off I would build another mentioning the fact that my dad works for an electrical company(plenty of boxes) But my question is how would you purify the lead that you catch, I got some slugs but they have woodchips in them and some paper from going through the box. I was thinking maybe melt it down and skim the crap off the top or something. Anyone go any ideas?

Mike.

Hey I figured that since I shoot slugs and they are a crap load of lead, and they dont good too fast, I could catch them, I built a box out of a steel electrical panal, about 6 inches of wood and some more steel plates. I went to the range put this thing out at 50 yrds and shot targets infront of it. After about 40 shots its began to put holes in the back but I manage to save a few slugs. I think that if I can clean the slugs off I would build another mentioning the fact that my dad works for an electrical company(plenty of boxes) But my question is how would you purify the lead that you catch, I got some slugs but they have woodchips in them and some paper from going through the box. I was thinking maybe melt it down and skim the crap off the top or something. Anyone go any ideas?

Mike.
Mike:

Aren't electrical boxes made more out of tin than solid steel?
Why don't you try using some plate steel. Like 3/16" solid steel. That should stop the slug and I would think that the lead would stick to the steel not the other way around.

If you need lead, yes, but..... Youll note other than melting shot or recovered bullets from dirt backstops, you dont hear us talking of this. To safely stop bullets, a metal box is not the best choice. You could set up a large gong at the 100 yard line made of steel. Slugs would safely impact and be recoverable. A dirt berm on a range that allows recovery would work. Shotgun slugs have more energy than you think. Splash or a ricochet from your box could kill you or someone else so I would not suggest it.

I have vivid memories from my cop days of firing 5 rifled slugs into an oncoming 73 vintage car carrying a lot of steel. I blew the engine apart and got 2 back in the passenger compartment happily missing the occupants. Car rolled to a stop. I never carried slug loaded shotguns after that reserving them for special use.

Even at full retail lead is less than $2 a pound.

First, I used to do what you are doing with a twist.
I used to shoot my muzzle loader into firewood prior to splitting, I would recove a quite a bit of it, the rest would be in the ashes which I sieved, just kept the wood separated after splitting and burned it all up after I cleaned the ash drawer. Second thing is when you recover the lead smelt it out doors over an open fire, get it hot enough pour into large molds, it won't be much of a problem when you recast it from a smelting pot.

Alright let me make a few things clear, first is that I just did it earlier today and it worked, the recovered slugs, I took them, melted them on concrete with a torch to burn all the big parts out then I bent the lead to the size of my pot(I use a little cast iron pot as my molding pot not the electric ones) and I put it in there, I melted it again, then skimed the top, It was perfectly clean lead. The box that I made stopped the bullets. It was a steel 100% sure on that box about 6 inches deep, the first layer from the bottom was about an inch of ply wood, then two steel plates, about 1/8 or 3/16" thick, then I put about 3 more inches of wood, and finally to the top of the box I screwed in a 1/2 inch plywood board to prevent anything from flying out. The slugs went right in. Hit the wood inside, some went through the first steel some didn't and then they stopped, a few went all the way threw, but that was towards the end when the whole box was ripped apart inside and the wood was no more than chips the size of a pencil. My new goal is to get another box, and about 3 more plates of steel or so, then I would put a piece of wood, screw the plates into it and then put something like styrofoam or something behind cardboard to prefent large richocet. I know that it wouldn't richocet because the slugs I saved this time turned out perfectly squshed and no parts missing. My original question was how to purify the lead but I maybe got a way now, but I wouldn't mind here more.

If you're worried about the wood chips and paper contaminating the lead, don't. Some people use sawdust as a flux to purify the lead. The carbon in the wood and cellulose will reduce some of the lead oxide into metallic lead and carbon dioxide.

I've fantasized about having a sawdust berm to catch the bullets for recycling. One could easily remove the lead by letting the wood float on water and the lead drop out in a large basin.

Lots of people use range scrap. They just pick up bullets out of the dirt berm, maybe wash some of the dirt off, and let the remaining dirt just float to the top of the lead. It works.

-91

If you're worried about the wood chips and paper contaminating the lead, don't. Some people use sawdust as a flux to purify the lead. The carbon in the wood and cellulose will reduce some of the lead oxide into metallic lead and carbon dioxide.

I've fantasized about having a sawdust berm to catch the bullets for recycling. One could easily remove the lead by letting the wood float on water and the lead drop out in a large basin.

Lots of people use range scrap. They just pick up bullets out of the dirt berm, maybe wash some of the dirt off, and let the remaining dirt just float to the top of the lead. It works.

-91
If you wash them, either be sure they are dry BEFORE YOU PUT THEM IN THE POT!! Dropping even a little water in a pot of molten metal WILL, I REPEAT WILL, cause a steam explosion. Lucky i was wearing an apron and long pants. I still had to scrape lead off my boots.
The alternative is to put them in a cold pot so the water evaporates as the metal comes up to temp.

mikeg1005; Hi there, I admire frugality. Yes, I salvage my lead also.
Some of the posts made it clear that your o.k. with "purifying" your salvage.
It seems to me that you are missing some of the most IMPORTANT info these guys have been trying to tell you. Basicly shooting steel is NOT ALWAYS SAFE. There are many things to consider and a lot of experiance would help you see that.
For just one example. I've shot at a steel plate and had the bullet come straight back and strike me in the face. I was lucky, the slug was smaller than when it left the muzzle and going a lot slower but it still drew blood, and hurt.
We all love to experiment and no one is trying to dissuade you from that, but please be carefull.
Pepe Ray

I Dig Slugs And Bullets Out Of The Berms At The Local Range, And When I Get 2-3 Quarts I Melt Them With A Coleman Stove And A Ss 3 Qt Pot (for Lead Use Only). After Everything Is Molten Drop A Piece Of Parafin/candle Wax/marvelux/bullet Lube Into The Pot. When It Smokes, Throw In A Lit Farmer Match And Let It Catch Fire. While On Fire, Stir Well, Then Scrape The Black Junk Out That Floats To The Surface. It Leaves A Soft/medium Hard Lead. Add A Little Tin/antimony If You Want Harder Bullets.
I Have A 3/4" Plate 24 X 24 That I Tilt To Deflect Bullets To The Ground. Heavy, But It Works.

mikeg1005; Hi there, I admire frugality. Yes, I salvage my lead also.
Some of the posts made it clear that your o.k. with "purifying" your salvage.
It seems to me that you are missing some of the most IMPORTANT info these guys have been trying to tell you. Basicly shooting steel is NOT ALWAYS SAFE. There are many things to consider and a lot of experiance would help you see that.
For just one example. I've shot at a steel plate and had the bullet come straight back and strike me in the face. I was lucky, the slug was smaller than when it left the muzzle and going a lot slower but it still drew blood, and hurt.
We all love to experiment and no one is trying to dissuade you from that, but please be carefull.
Pepe Ray

I TOO HAVE HAD A BULLET COME BACK AT ME. 25 YDS AWAY, I SAW IT COMING AND COULDN'T GET OUT OF THE WAY IN TIME. CAUGHT ME IN THE BELLY, RIPPED MY SHIRT. IT LOOKED PRETTY GRUESOME FOR A WEEK OR TWO.

I have an old lumber pile(rough cut, half rotted) that I have shot at for 20 years or so(it's really more of a sawdust pile now). It's at my parents farm and every few months when I am home I tear it apart for lead. 1 more trip and I'll have it cleaned up. We have a new dirt pile we are shooting into now.

The wood and dirt burns up, flux the mix with beeswax and skim the top and it gets pretty clean for casting.

Lots of interesting bullets in there, 22's, buck/bird shot, round balls from .490" to .600", 58cal minies, 45's, variety of 25 to 32 cal jacketed, 50 and 54 cal REAL bullets, 12ga slugs, .410 slugs, and .590" conicals. There is a lot of lead out there!!