I often think that I am as nutty as I am from my first job at age fourteen.
Saturday mornings I used to melt lead type and cast it into ingots for the
linotype machine on our hometown weekly newspaper. If I remember the paper
sold for ten cents. Anyway every Saturday morning I would go to a
windowless unventilated room and fire up the gas flame. The lead type was
thrown in the melting pot and then you added a flux to remove the ink and
impurites as the lead melted. A great green cloud would emerge from the pot
when you did that and of course, pre-OSHA, you just breathed it in. Then
when the lead was clean and melted, you poured it into molds that made long
rectangles with a eye on the top so it could be hung from the chain on the
linotype machine and lowered into that melting chamber as needed while the
guy typed. All this for a magnificent sum of 25 cents an hour which I was
saving to buy parts from Almquist Engineering in Pennysylvania for the '50
Chevy I was working on in our backyard. Interesting memories triggered by
this subject! The lead in my system probably compliments the asbestos in
the lungs compliments of Uncle Sam's submarine service so I thank the Good
Lord I have lasted this long.
regards, John
-----Original Message-----
From: John Beckett <landspeedracer@email.msn.com>
To: Keith Turk <kturk@ala.net>; land-speed@autox.team.net
<land-speed@autox.team.net>
Date: Sunday, July 30, 2000 8:57 AM
Subject: Re: Smelting Lead
>You forgot to mention how the fumes (from melting the stuff in the open)
>poisons brain cells. Very nasty stuff.
>
>John Beckett
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Keith Turk" <kturk@ala.net>
>To: <land-speed@autox.team.net>
>Sent: Saturday, July 29, 2000 9:54 PM
>Subject: Smelting Lead
>
>
>> Had an opportunity yesterday to learn somethings about smelting Lead
>for
>> Ballast and thought I would pass along the knowledge.... anything past
>this
>> little jewel is more then I know....
>>
>> I acquired my Lead from Paul Chism and it wieghted 560lbs in Two
pieces...
>> just ask My Tail gate) anyway it was poured about 25lbs at a time and
>> flaked off Pretty easy.... and one of the 4" thick pieces I cut up into
4"
>> X15" strips with a Skill saw....( I could have melted it in half with a
>> Propane torch also) anyway one of these Bars was going under my legs and
>I
>> wanted it flatter... so I got ahold of my local Blacksmith buddies and he
>> gave me some basic Lessons....
>>
>> Lead is Molten at 600 degrees and Pours really easily.... you can stick
it
>> in a Cast Iron kettle and melt it with a Oxy Acetelene rig if you wanted
>to
>> but we used a simple Coleman Camp Stove with white gas once it was hot we
>> skimmed the Dirt off the top with a ladle... and proceeded to pour it
into
>a
>> flat Pan I brought....
>>
>> There are some MAJOR warning's .... Lead has some VERY nasty stuff in it
>> especially if it was used in Batteries.... something about Cyanide.. and
>> even if a drop of sweat gets into the pot it could cause a steam
>> explosion.... and pouring it on one's self is very Nasty.... oh and once
a
>> Pot is Used for LEAD it CAN NOT BE RE-USED... Period except of course to
>> melt more lead....
>>
>> Interesting day.... Keith
>>
>
>
>
|