Unusual Q for Hunting Forum

Calibos

I hope the mods don't mind me asking this question here seeing as its not hunting related but I figured you guys would be the guys to ask about Lead shot price and availability.

I've a big telescope that needs to be balanced with counterweight. There are only some small areas on the telescope that I can mount counterweight without the weight stopping the full range of telescope movement etc.

Thus I need to concentrate as much weight as possible into as small a footprint as possible. So, I figure Lead will be better than the cast iron barbells I tested with.

I also need this weight to be formed into an irregular shape to maximise the amount of weight I can fit in an irregularily shaped space. So I figure Lead shot little ballbearings inside a container made in the shape I need.

So does anyone know where I would get about 25Lb's of lead shot and how much it might cost?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give.

Tackleberrywho

Calibos wrote: »

I hope the mods don't mind me asking this question here seeing as its not hunting related but I figured you guys would be the guys to ask about Lead shot price and availability.

I've a big telescope that needs to be balanced with counterweight. There are only some small areas on the telescope that I can mount counterweight without the weight stopping the full range of telescope movement etc.

Thus I need to concentrate as much weight as possible into as small a footprint as possible. So, I figure Lead will be better than the cast iron barbells I tested with.

I also need this weight to be formed into an irregular shape to maximise the amount of weight I can fit in an irregularily shaped space. So I figure Lead shot little ballbearings inside a container made in the shape I need.

So does anyone know where I would get about 25Lb's of lead shot and how much it might cost?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give.

Fishing weights??


http://www.cabelas.com/weights.shtml

declan1980

Calibos wrote: »

I hope the mods don't mind me asking this question here seeing as its not hunting related but I figured you guys would be the guys to ask about Lead shot price and availability.

I've a big telescope that needs to be balanced with counterweight. There are only some small areas on the telescope that I can mount counterweight without the weight stopping the full range of telescope movement etc.

Thus I need to concentrate as much weight as possible into as small a footprint as possible. So, I figure Lead will be better than the cast iron barbells I tested with.

I also need this weight to be formed into an irregular shape to maximise the amount of weight I can fit in an irregularily shaped space. So I figure Lead shot little ballbearings inside a container made in the shape I need.

So does anyone know where I would get about 25Lb's of lead shot and how much it might cost?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give.

you might have a better chance getting it in a fishing tackle shop than anywhere else. i'd think breaking open shotgun cartridges to get the lead could get you into trouble, as you would also have a rather large quantity of powder on your hands too:eek:

declan1980

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

Fishing weights??


http://www.cabelas.com/weights.shtml

we were thinking the same thing but you were a bit quicker on the draw tack:D

nice1franko

I didn't think cartridges contained lead any more because of environment and heath & safety issues.

.17hmr

would roofing lead not do the same thing you could get it at your local building suplyer

Grizzly 45

Could also try some engineering and shot blasting companies.They do occasionaly have micro bbs in stock for special applications.While it proably will not be lead ,it will be possibly be bismuth[Which supposedly has the same chacteristics as lead shotgun pellets] or steel,[which doesnt]and is safer to handle in bigger quantities considering lead is toxic.

sfakiaman

Could try the gun shops in NI where reloading is allowed, there would be no problem bringing lead shot into ROI.

Sparks

Or any tyre balancing shop, they'll have adhesive-backed lead weights. They won't give you the large bulk of the lead you'd need, but for fine-tuning, well, that's exactly what they're made for:

Calibos

DOH!!

Didn't realise reloading cartridges wasn't allowed here. No 25Lb bags for $15 like in the US then (Found on some American sites after posting the question here)

Fishing weights are probably not a goer because of the bigger shot size. What I gain in weight in density of lead over the barbell weights I probably lose in the air space in between all the fishing lead shot.

Roofing lead though!! Thats a good idea! Soft and cutable with a tin snips so I can layer it to form the shape I need while not wasting space on air gaps.

Thanks a million lads. Given me lots to think about.

Sparks

You know, if you had a blowtorch and good ventilation (can't stress that bit enough, unless you like the idea of serious health problems - and a mask would be a really great idea too), you could melt the lead quite easily and form it into any shape that was convenient for a counterweight...


...btw, can you post a pic? Not that it'd help, I just used to be a bit of an astronomy geek

doyle61

Pm sent

CJhaughey

You can make shot yourself, like Sparks says make sure you are using proper PPE.
Get a an old tin, a baked bean one will do at a pinch but the wider it is the better.
Make a lot of small holes in the base with a nail I find a wooden backstop is best.
Punch from the inside out.
Suspend the can over a water bath, a cut off drum or an old bath would be fine.
heat your lead and pour it into the can, it will drip out ala a garden watering can and as the shot falls into the water bath it will cool and harden.
Don't let water anywhere near the molten lead container on the heat source, its very dangerous. and in the same vein the lead you melt should be very dry.

ejg

Depleated Uranium would have a higher density but is hard to come by.:)

Tungsten or tungsten carbide mostly has a higher density than lead
and maybe a larger milling or turning company will part with the worn
tool bits.
edi

Grizzly 45

CJhaughey wrote: »

You can make shot yourself, like Sparks says make sure you are using proper PPE.
Get a an old tin, a baked bean one will do at a pinch but the wider it is the better.
Make a lot of small holes in the base with a nail I find a wooden backstop is best.
Punch from the inside out.
Suspend the can over a water bath, a cut off drum or an old bath would be fine.
heat your lead and pour it into the can, it will drip out ala a garden watering can and as the shot falls into the water bath it will cool and harden.
Don't let water anywhere near the molten lead container on the heat source, its very dangerous. and in the same vein the lead you melt should be very dry.

And get yourself up a very high tower too!:)
What CJ is describing is correct insofar as the method of making shot.But for the lead pellet to form 100% and consistently round is height.If you have a look at the old prints of gunworks you see the so called shot towers.Usually 80/100ft high.
They poured the lead through the correct grade of sieve at the top of the tower and it fell into a water bath below for a final shock cooling.Where it came out perfectly round.You know the height isnt right when your lead pellets look like frozen water drops.

Croppy Boy

Some time ago, I saw bags of shot in John O'Briens in Waterford. It is used as ballast for diving.