Lead free wheel weights look like???

[FlyWhiteGuy]

What are "lead free" wheel weights supposed to look like. I don't want to throw them into a melting pot (I don't think).

What would happen if I did? (Toss it in the pot and if it doesn't melt it's steel?)

Do they look totally different from traditional, crimp-on, lead wheel weights? From my research it looks like they could look the same.

What are they made of? I've read: Steel, roofing materials, synthetic rubber, and industrial fibers and textiles.

[ZakAttackMan]

Steel will not melt at the same temperature as lead.

A magnet will tell you if they are steel as well.

[GW]

Zinc is another wheel weight material. Its non-magnetic, but zinc will melt at temperatures close to what melts lead and will definitely screw up your alloy

If the wheel weight is NOT magnetic, but you aren't sure what it is
Get a set of dikes/side cutters and try to cut it.
Zinc is a lot harder than lead. You'll have to really apply the pressure to cut in whereas lead will be easy to cut into.

[ireload]

I believe the lead wheel weight has Pb on it and zinc ....damn I forgot the element symbol for it. I hate it when that happens.

I agree with GW that zinc does screw up your alloy. I found out about it too late during my melt.

[twopatch]

Some of them are marked Zn. some are not marked at all. the ones with revits are Zn . Also if you drop them on the cement they will ring. lead will make a thud. sometimes even the stick on type come in zinc.

[twopatch]

Also sort them out before you melt. The stick on's are almost pure. the clip on's are harder. they contain tin,animony,and trace of arsnic.

[tujungatoes]

Zn markings, and/or riveted clips are a dead giveaway.

also for the longer ones, lead weights will bend a bit. zinc ones will just snap. lead weights will also mark paper(think pencil) zinc won't.

[Rule .308]

I believe the lead wheel weight has Pb on it and zinc ....damn I forgot the element symbol for it. I hate it when that happens.

I agree with GW that zinc does screw up your alloy. I found out about it too late during my melt.

You must have tried pretty hard to get zinc into your mix, if you pay attention to what you are doing and don't run your temps too high it is a complete non issue. Lead melts at about 625 and zinc is 780+. I run into zinc weights every single time I am making ingots from wheel weights and have yet to melt one into the pot. That is not to say that some do not work their way into the mix but they float on the surface of your melt like a friggen bobber, you would have to be a blind man to miss them. Different manufacturers make them in different ways, one of my main sources for this stuff is from a high end european dealership so I get a fair amount of zinc tape weights and they will usually have the Zn marking on them. When you are melting you stuff down you will have to scrape off the steel clips, you just scrape off the whole zinc ingots at that time too, no big deal.

[sargenv]

Here is a photo of Zinc stick ons and clip ons and one iron clip on.

The ones at the top are zinc and they have little 5's on them that cannot be seen. The one on the left is a clip on zinc weight showing the rivet to the backing clip, the 3 segment strip next to that is a zinc stick-on likely taken off a BMW rim. Then there is the clip on next to it labeled PP that has Zn next to it to the left on the actual weight. The next one down is an iron weight but you cannot make out the type which has Fe on it. The one below the Iron weight is a Zinc clip on showing the Zn clearly on the weight face itself. Then there are the zinc weights on the bottom that all clearly say Zn with their weights in I am assuming grams. 35 in the middle, 40 on the bottom, 50 on the top (group of three strips at the bottom).

Lead will melt at temps from the high 500's to the high 600's depending on alloy. Zinc melts in the 750-800 degree range. It is reccomended that you get yourself a thermometer that goes to 1000 deg F so that you can watch the temperature of your melt. Zinc will float on lead if you keep the temperature below the melting point of Zinc. If you melt zinc into your lead melt, it will later be obvious.. and there are ways to extract the zinc out of your melt, but the process is long and drawn out and can be found on the Cast Boolit forum. Ask me how I know

[Twinspool]

[ZakAttackMan]

I thought IR thermometers do not work because the surface of lead is reflective giving you inaccurate readings?

[Seesm]

WHy not zinc bullets...? :P

[tiko]

WHy not zinc bullets...? :P

Zinc bullet will be lighter and faster? So any metal can be used for bullet, the rich ones can use gold . Taurus sells copper bullets (not jacketed).

[Ugly Dwarf]

I believe the problem with casting Zinc is in it's surface tension, and that it does not fill out the molds properly. I have read about people casting with zinc (not zinc / lead alloys) but that seemed like more effort than I wanted to take on.

HERE is a good discussion on the differences of zinc vs. lead WW. If you've not been there before, Cast Boolits has a wealth of knowledge for new and old lead casters.

Pay attention to the differences when you come across zinc WW and you'll soon be able to easily spot them by touch, sight and / or feel. As mentioned above, look for clips that are rivited or glued on. All of the zinc "stick on" weights I've come across were stamped Zn (they also have a different color to them). I tend to discard anything suspect, since I'd rather lose $.25 worth of lead than screw up an entire batch of alloy.

Provided you monitor the temp of your pot and keep it below 650 degrees, you shouldn't have to worry about the zinc getting into your alloy, just skim it off. I use an RCBS thermometer, but I believe Lyman makes a less expensive model. I have not used an infrared thermometer, but believe I read reports that the reflective surface of the melt causes false readings. Some suggested you could take a reading on your cast iron pot or float a copper (NOT ZINC) penny for your readings... an old fashioned thermometer seemed easier.

Depending on the burner you're using (a propane coleman camp stove or the like), you may not even have to worry as they have a hard time getting a large pot that hot - I use a 100,000 BTU turkey fryer and have to turn the heat down at times.

Good luck and happy casting.

[juelz919]

some of it has a sign, i hit mine with a hammer and there is a different sound when it is something else..

but i dont stress over it too bad