Lead Melting

[lowbudget fishing]

i have never poured my own heads. ive always bought mine raw and painted them because i always read how lead melting is really dangerous to your health. but i go on you tube and see guys casting bullets outside with no mask on while melting. Im big on safety especially when im around with my uncle painting cars. but is the lead melting as dangerous as people say it is. I often think about buying a starter kit, but always change my mind at the last minute because i think of the risk of lead poisoning. It would be very helpful for your guys input on this, because i used to work on my uncles dirt race car and could probably get a 50lb hunk of lead for about free or dollar a pound

[toadfrog]

Well my friend its like this. Lead is toxic but if you use good safty guidelines it probably won't drastically affect you. Its effect can be cumilative or affect you quickly each person is different. so follow these guidelines and you should be ok. 1. melt lead in open air or with an exhaust of some kind. 2. Never get even a single drop of water sweat or any other moisture in hot lead. It will explode in a spray of hot metal. 3.Wear safty glasses 4. It would'nt hurt to at least wear a light pair of gloves. soft thin leather or cotton glove. all leadpots drip a little and gloves lessen lead contact with the skin. 5. Never smoke, eat, rub your eyes pick your nose ect. if your hands have been working lead. 6. When in doubt common sense prevails don't do it ASK the pros here. You have already got off to a good start. Good Luck

[Peterjay]

There's a story in the papers today about some children of Indian immigrants in the Boston area who are being treated for severe lead poisoning as a result of being in regular contact with lead-contaminated ceremonial spices and other powders. They didn't eat the stuff, it was absorbed through the skin. Lead is dangerous material to work with and lead poisoning is a brutal illness. Lead is particularly dangerous to children, since it inhibits the normal development of the nervous system, resulting in all kinds of learning and behavioral disorders. Don't believe anybody who tries to soft-pedal it. It's always cumulative in the body and it's always doing its damage, though some people may show recognizable symptoms sooner than others. The symptoms aren't always obvious, and are often attributed to other causes. If you have any doubts, ask your doctor about it. If you want to pour occasionally, doing it outside like Toadfrog said is the best way to avoid problems, as is keeping skin contact to an absolute minimum. I recently read on one of the striper forums about a couple of guys who sell hand-poured jigs and have gotten seriously ill - one of them was so sick he had to retire. Considering how cheap the raw heads are, I don't know why anybody would bother messing with the stuff at home. It's on its way out of the fishing tackle business anyway, and good riddance. There are less dangerous alternatives. Just my $.02 worth.

[Fatman]

Most of the heads you buy through tackle stores are lead, unless you specifically buy lead free heads you're getting real lead head jigs. I've been pouring 30+ years and I have no lead level when my blood is tested. Gloves, glasses, long sleeves, long pants, boots SAFETY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pure and simple. Why lead cause it's still cheap and still legal. I'm hoping someone will come out with a material that melts, pours and weighs the same as lead but is lead free but I haven't seen it yet available in to home melters at the same cost as lead.

If you want to pour, pour but follow the safety rules and enjoy your home made products. If you don't want to, just buy the premade heads and paint them, plenty of folks pouring and selling.

Fatman

There's a story in the papers today about some children of Indian immigrants in the Boston area who are being treated for severe lead poisoning as a result of being in regular contact with lead-contaminated ceremonial spices and other powders. They didn't eat the stuff, it was absorbed through the skin. Lead is dangerous material to work with and lead poisoning is a brutal illness. Lead is particularly dangerous to children, since it inhibits the normal development of the nervous system, resulting in all kinds of learning and behavioral disorders. Don't believe anybody who tries to soft-pedal it. It's always cumulative in the body and it's always doing its damage, though some people may show recognizable symptoms sooner than others. The symptoms aren't always obvious, and are often attributed to other causes. If you have any doubts, ask your doctor about it. If you want to pour occasionally, doing it outside like Toadfrog said is the best way to avoid problems, as is keeping skin contact to an absolute minimum. I recently read on one of the striper forums about a couple of guys who sell hand-poured jigs and have gotten seriously ill - one of them was so sick he had to retire. Considering how cheap the raw heads are, I don't know why anybody would bother messing with the stuff at home. It's on its way out of the fishing tackle business anyway, and good riddance. There are less dangerous alternatives. Just my $.02 worth.