I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap
commercially available device that will do this or something easy I
could make myself that can do it. I have come across a few commercial
devices, but so far price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find
something in the $50-100 range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

On Mar 7, 4:55*am, Bill Dobbins
wrote:
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would like to turn into shot. *I'm looking for either a cheap
commercially available device that will do this or something easy I
could make myself that can do it. *I have come across a few commercial
devices, but so far price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find
something in the $50-100 range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

CAN be done, there have been several gadgets built commercially over
the years to make shot. Pure lead will make poor shot, best thing to
do, like the last time this came up, is to swap your pure lead scrap
off to somebody with a whole bunch of lead wheel weights. Last show I
saw pure lead at, several years back, it was going for around $1 for a
small Lee-sized ingot. The muzzleloaders will thank you. Mixed lead
alloys are pretty common, pure lead scrap is not. And it's all going
to get tougher to find cheap.

As far as the gadget, one I saw was nothing more than a chunk of angle
iron, cut to a point and welded onto a thin rod that was welded to a
heavy base. The pointy end angled down. To use, you put a bucket of
water under the thing, park it above the bucket at a distance to be
determined experimentally and heated with a healthy propane torch.
Your lead alloy needs to be cast into thin-ish sticks first(more angle
iron). These are applied to the hot angle iron, the melted lead runs
down to the point and off into the bucket where the streams breaks up
and forms small spheres(or not) while cooling fast. You then get the
fun of drying the product, sieving it for size and running it over a
jump gap to catch the out-of round stuff for another trip, a LOT of
messing. Generally, arsenic was added to the commercial alloy to
encourage spherical shot, you'll probably not be able to do that
unless you've got a lot of once-used shot. This is why used shot is
pretty useless for bullet casting, the arsenic content messes up mold
fill-out. Not as bad as zinc contamination from the newer wheel
weights, but bad enough. One small zinc stick-on will contaminate
several hundred pounds of alloy to the point where it can't be used
for bullets, sort your scrap carefully.

There was a fancier sort that was electrically heated, had a pocket
for the lead that had several interchangeable nozzles to sort of size
the streams, worked exactly the same with the bucket of water. Cost a
lot more and really didn't work much better than the angle iron.
Haven't seen an ad for that for a decade or better.

There was a review of these things done 15 years or more back, the guy
ended up with some usable shot, but it took a lot of messing. Best to
make the acquaintance of the local trap club, most will mine their
fields periodically for the spent shot and sell it, either to members
or to a scrap company for making more shot. Also saw an article about
the same time about reusing fired shot, mixed small sizes patterned
pretty well, good enough for trap practice.

If it's buckshot you're after, you can get Lee gang molds for several
sizes or adapt a split-shot sinker mold so that the balls aren't
split.

Stan

"Bill Dobbins" wrote in message
...
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I would
like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap commercially
available device that will do this or something easy I could make myself
that can do it. I have come across a few commercial devices, but so far
price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find something in the $50-100
range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

In the good ole days shot towers were used, molten lead was poured
from a calculated height and the shot was formed by the time it hit the
water at the bottom of the tower.

On 2013-03-07, Bill Dobbins wrote:
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap
commercially available device that will do this or something easy I
could make myself that can do it. I have come across a few commercial
devices, but so far price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find
something in the $50-100 range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Ever hear of a shot tower?

The molten lead is poured into a container with a bunch of holes
in the bottom.

The lead pours out in a shower of small particles.

They fall some distance (perhaps 20-40 feet -- I don't know for
sure.

In the fall -- they drop and assume a spherical shape.

Then they fall into a pool of water at the bottom which cools
them quickly and locks in the spherical shape.

I'm not sure how consistent the size is, nor how close to round
they are -- but it might be a cheap way to do this, if you have a high
balcony to work from.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 12:02:02 +1000, "Why are people so cruel"
wrote:


"Bill Dobbins" wrote in message
...
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I would
like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap commercially
available device that will do this or something easy I could make myself
that can do it. I have come across a few commercial devices, but so far
price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find something in the $50-100
range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

In the good ole days shot towers were used, molten lead was poured
from a calculated height and the shot was formed by the time it hit the
water at the bottom of the tower.

The shot was formed and hardened before it hit the water. The water
was there mostly to keep the shot from pounding against itself and
winding up misshapen. Also to cool it, of course, but not to solidify
it.

There was a shot tower in Mass., near the NH border, where one of my
relatives used to work before WWII. I was a little kid when I saw it
but it was a lot higher than 20 feet, or whatever was mentioned in
this thread. It was a brick tower that looked like the industrial
smokestacks in the old Mass. industrial areas. It wasn't run
continuously. They only fired it up a couple of days each week.

I also watched my grandfather make cut shot when I was a little kid.
That's pretty foul stuff, but that's what a lot of people used when
money was tight. It dates back to the early days of flintlock fowling
pieces.

--
Ed Huntress

On Fri, 08 Mar 2013 03:19:03 +0000, DoN. Nichols wrote:
On 2013-03-07, Bill Dobbins ... wrote:
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap
commercially available device that will do this or something easy I
could make myself that can do it. I have come across a few commercial
devices, but so far price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find
something in the $50-100 range).

Ever hear of a shot tower?
The molten lead is poured into a container with a bunch of holes
in the bottom.

The lead pours out in a shower of small particles.

They fall some distance (perhaps 20-40 feet -- I don't know for
sure.

In the Sparks Shot Tower in South Philadelphia, the fall is (or
was) around 140 feet. The following webpage includes detailed
plans: http://www.workshopoftheworld.com/south_phila/sparks.html
(click on pictures about 2/3 thru the page). Plans are dated 1880;
tower was built in 1808. I went inside it once on a trip to Philly,
but the stairs up were closed off.

In the fall -- they drop and assume a spherical shape.

Then they fall into a pool of water at the bottom which cools
them quickly and locks in the spherical shape.

I'm not sure how consistent the size is, nor how close to round
they are -- but it might be a cheap way to do this, if you have a high
balcony to work from.
....
--
jiw

"Ed Huntress" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 12:02:02 +1000, "Why are people so cruel"
wrote:


"Bill Dobbins" wrote in message
...
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would
like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap commercially
available device that will do this or something easy I could make myself
that can do it. I have come across a few commercial devices, but so far
price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find something in the $50-100
range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

In the good ole days shot towers were used, molten lead was poured
from a calculated height and the shot was formed by the time it hit the
water at the bottom of the tower.

The shot was formed and hardened before it hit the water. The water
was there mostly to keep the shot from pounding against itself and
winding up misshapen. Also to cool it, of course, but not to solidify
it.

There was a shot tower in Mass., near the NH border, where one of my
relatives used to work before WWII. I was a little kid when I saw it
but it was a lot higher than 20 feet, or whatever was mentioned in
this thread. It was a brick tower that looked like the industrial
smokestacks in the old Mass. industrial areas. It wasn't run
continuously. They only fired it up a couple of days each week.

I also watched my grandfather make cut shot when I was a little kid.
That's pretty foul stuff, but that's what a lot of people used when
money was tight. It dates back to the early days of flintlock fowling
pieces.

--
Ed Huntress

There is an old method to make glass ball lenses where you start with a thin
glass fiber and melt the end briefly with a torch. The molten glass forms
into a nearly perfect glass sphere suspended by the unmelted fiber. The
balls is then easily broken off. In the old days they would make the fiber
by softening a rod and drawing it out in the middle. The size of the ball
depends on how much of the fiber was melted.

In any case, I wonder if a similar technique would work for lead. Line up a
row of snippets of fine lead wire and pass a torch across the row.
Probably not a quick way to process hundreds of pounds, though.

If you search Youtube for "lead shot machine" there are several there in
action to get ideas from. One sprays water on the molten droplets in mid air
so they harden before impacting the surface of the water where they
otherwise might flatten. Only a short drop is needed. Another seems to use
foamy water. Maybe the foam cools the drop before it impacts the surface, or
it just reduces the impact at the water surface.

On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 00:35:08 -0800, "anorton"
wrote:


"Ed Huntress" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 12:02:02 +1000, "Why are people so cruel"
wrote:


"Bill Dobbins" wrote in message
...
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would
like to turn into shot. I'm looking for either a cheap commercially
available device that will do this or something easy I could make myself
that can do it. I have come across a few commercial devices, but so far
price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find something in the $50-100
range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

In the good ole days shot towers were used, molten lead was poured
from a calculated height and the shot was formed by the time it hit the
water at the bottom of the tower.

The shot was formed and hardened before it hit the water. The water
was there mostly to keep the shot from pounding against itself and
winding up misshapen. Also to cool it, of course, but not to solidify
it.

There was a shot tower in Mass., near the NH border, where one of my
relatives used to work before WWII. I was a little kid when I saw it
but it was a lot higher than 20 feet, or whatever was mentioned in
this thread. It was a brick tower that looked like the industrial
smokestacks in the old Mass. industrial areas. It wasn't run
continuously. They only fired it up a couple of days each week.

I also watched my grandfather make cut shot when I was a little kid.
That's pretty foul stuff, but that's what a lot of people used when
money was tight. It dates back to the early days of flintlock fowling
pieces.

--
Ed Huntress

There is an old method to make glass ball lenses where you start with a thin
glass fiber and melt the end briefly with a torch. The molten glass forms
into a nearly perfect glass sphere suspended by the unmelted fiber. The
balls is then easily broken off. In the old days they would make the fiber
by softening a rod and drawing it out in the middle. The size of the ball
depends on how much of the fiber was melted.

I have done this. Or I tried. g It was for a high school science
project, making a van Leeuwenhoek microscope. I actually got some
pretty good ones.


In any case, I wonder if a similar technique would work for lead. Line up a
row of snippets of fine lead wire and pass a torch across the row.
Probably not a quick way to process hundreds of pounds, though.

Maybe. Somewhere around here I have some fine lead wire, used for
making weighted trout-fishing nymphs and streamers. If I think of it,
I'll give it a try sometime.


If you search Youtube for "lead shot machine" there are several there in
action to get ideas from. One sprays water on the molten droplets in mid air
so they harden before impacting the surface of the water where they
otherwise might flatten. Only a short drop is needed. Another seems to use
foamy water. Maybe the foam cools the drop before it impacts the surface, or
it just reduces the impact at the water surface.

Interesting. I remember the bucket and screens they used in that shot
tower in Mass. The screen was a plate with holes punched or drilled in
it, that rested or was bolted to the bottom of a big steel bucket.

--
Ed Huntress

On Mar 8, 6:54*am, Ed Huntress wrote:
On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 00:35:08 -0800, "anorton"





wrote:

"Ed Huntress" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 8 Mar 2013 12:02:02 +1000, "Why are people so cruel"
wrote:

"Bill Dobbins" wrote in message
...
I have a couple of hundred lbs of lead in sheet and block form that I
would
like to turn into shot. *I'm looking for either a cheap commercially
available device that will do this or something easy I could make myself
that can do it. *I have come across a few commercial devices, but so far
price is too prohibitive (I was hoping to find something in the $50-100
range).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Bill

In the good ole days shot towers were used, molten lead was poured
from a calculated height and the shot was formed by the time it hit the
water at the bottom of the tower.

The shot was formed and hardened before it hit the water. The water
was there mostly to keep the shot from pounding against itself and
winding up misshapen. Also to cool it, of course, but not to solidify
it.

There was a shot tower in Mass., near the NH border, where one of my
relatives used to work before WWII. I was a little kid when I saw it
but it was a lot higher than 20 feet, or whatever was mentioned in
this thread. It was a brick tower that looked like the industrial
smokestacks in the old Mass. industrial areas. It wasn't run
continuously. They only fired it up a couple of days each week.

I also watched my grandfather make cut shot when I was a little kid.
That's pretty foul stuff, but that's what a lot of people used when
money was tight. It dates back to the early days of flintlock fowling
pieces.

--
Ed Huntress

There is an old method to make glass ball lenses where you start with a thin
glass fiber and melt the end briefly with a torch. The molten glass forms
into a nearly perfect glass sphere suspended by the unmelted fiber. The
balls is then easily broken off. *In the old days they would make the fiber
by softening a rod and drawing it out in the middle. The size of the ball
depends on how much of the fiber was melted.

I have done this. Or I tried. g It was for a high school science
project, making a van Leeuwenhoek microscope. I actually got some
pretty good ones.



In any case, I wonder if a similar technique would work for lead. Line up a
row of *snippets of fine lead wire and pass a torch across the row.
Probably not a quick way to process hundreds of pounds, though.

Maybe. Somewhere around here I have some fine lead wire, used for
making weighted trout-fishing nymphs and streamers. If I think of it,
I'll give it a try sometime.



If you search Youtube for "lead shot machine" there are several there in
action to get ideas from. One sprays water on the molten droplets in mid air
so they harden before impacting the surface of *the water where they
otherwise might flatten. Only a short drop is needed. * Another seems to use
foamy water. Maybe the foam cools the drop before it impacts the surface, or
it just reduces the impact at the water surface.

Interesting. I remember the bucket and screens they used in that shot
tower in Mass. The screen was a plate with holes punched or drilled in
it, that rested or was bolted to the bottom of a big steel bucket.

--
Ed Huntress- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

The short drop into a bucket of water in the method I describe assures
that the lead is still molten when it hits, forms spheres from surface
tension as it hardens. Shot towers were typically 100 feet or more,
depending on the size of shot wanted. Bigger shot. more drop. Now,
most of the big stuff is swaged from extruded wire using a nail-header
type of machine and there's a centrifugal gadget for throwing smaller
sizes. Of course, if you've got a spare elevator shaft in a tall
building, you can play around with the original methods.

Stan