End of lead wheel weights

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  • Last Post 15 January 2010
circle141 posted this 05 October 2008

This is to let every one know that the US goverment and car mfgs. are moving to end lead in wheel weights. This may happen as soon as the next 12 months.

They are replaceing lead with zinc and steel. Buy what you can, now.

 

 

                                                               Mike Circle

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Paul Tummers posted this 16 October 2008

We have this problem already over here, only trucks still have lead weights for balancing.

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CB posted this 16 October 2008

The EPA announced today that they want 90% of the lead used in industry to be removed from the environment quickly, don't know how soon that will be.

Jerry

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LeadHead posted this 16 October 2008

Where in the h*ll does EPA think they are going to put 90% of the lead.....??? 

Government “people” come up with all these “pipe dream” ideas without any idea of the logistics...................................... 

 

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CB posted this 16 October 2008

Iwill be recycling the lead in my back stop and getting all I can from other sources.

I may have to break down and buy solids.

 

Jerry

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Paul Tummers posted this 17 October 2008

LeadHead wrote: Where in the h*ll does EPA think they are going to put 90% of the lead.....??? 

Government “people” come up with all these “pipe dream” ideas without any idea of the logistics......................................  They certainly will not have it loaded in shotgun shells for Dutch hunters- also abandoned:X!!Now they are attacking the use of zinc shot too, and are looking for alternatives for the use of zinc and lead for plummery and rain waterpipes etc.It looks to me, they are looking for alternatives for everything over here, even for the native Duth people.  

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ubetcha posted this 17 October 2008

I work at a GM dealer service department and I have already seen steel wheel weights on the vehicles.I'm trying to hoard all the lead one I find

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Largom posted this 07 November 2008

                Went to tire shop today to get new tires for wife's SUV also got 1 1/2 buckets of WW. The shop owner told me the new wheel weights will be plastic containers filled with sand. Said he has attended seminar on installation of these weights.  It would not surprise me if Gov. does'nt outlaw posession of lead.

      Larry

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CB posted this 07 November 2008

http://www.leadfreewheels.org/>http://www.leadfreewheels.org/

 

Chrysler, Wheel Weight Makers Agree to Eliminate Lead Oakland, CA - The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) today announced it has reached a legal agreement with Chrysler and the three largest producers of automobile wheel bearing weights, requiring the companies to end the use of leaded wheel weights in California by the end of 2009. The landmark agreement marks the first-ever legally binding statewide rule phasing out lead in wheel weights in the U.S., and will end the annual release of 500,000 pounds of lead into the environment in California, which occurs when wheel weights break off of automobile wheels. http://www.leadfreewheels.org/release20080724.shtml>Read more...

Lead isn't dead, but steel is the real deal From http://www.tirebusiness.com/>http://www.tirebusiness.com - The majority of wheel weights are still made of lead. That won't last forever, however. Environmental concerns are changing the landscape of this once unchanging and seemingly unalterable market because lead is a highly toxic chemical targeted for reduction by the Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.leadfreewheels.org/release20080715b.shtml>Read more...

Industry's still moving to get lead out of wheel weights From http://moderntiredealer.com/>http://www.moderntiredealer.com - WASHINGTON-The tire distribution business may not be hurrying to get the lead out of wheel balancing weights, but it definitely is moving in that direction. BADA, the wheel weight manufacturing division of La Vergne, Tenn.-based Hennessy Industries Inc., has launched a Web site,http://www.steelwheelweights.com/> http://www.steelwheelweights.com, that touts the environmental benefits of steel wheel weights in general and BADA's steel weights in particular. http://www.leadfreewheels.org/release20080715.shtml>Read more...

Legal Action Cites Chrysler, Producers for Continuing Use of Lead-Based Wheel Weights Oakland, CA - The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) today initiated legal action to stop the sale of lead-based wheel weights in the state of California, due to the threat of lead pollution to the state's waterways from wheel weights that fall from cars and trucks. CEH notified the major producers of wheel weights and Chrysler, a leading auto maker, that the lead-based weights are illegal under state's safe drinking water law. While other auto makers have eliminated or are moving away from the use of lead wheel weights, Chrysler continues to use the lead-polluting product for most of its new U.S. car models. http://www.leadfreewheels.org/release20070823.shtml>Read more...

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firescout posted this 08 November 2008

Dan Willems wrote: http://www.leadfreewheels.org/>...The landmark agreement marks the first-ever legally binding statewide rule phasing out lead in wheel weights in the U.S., and will end the annual release of 500,000 pounds of lead into the environment in California, which occurs when wheel weights break off of automobile wheels... Hmmm.  I might have to start combing the roadsides for casting material...Anybody ever done that?   Most of the tire shops around here are reluctant to give away used wheelweights, as they can get up to $80/bucket (5 gal) for them from recyclers.Has anybody here ever obtained wheelweights from auto wrecking/salvage yards?

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CB posted this 08 November 2008

I buy lead and scrap metal from a salvage yard that is about 15 minutes from my place. The price varies depending on how good of friends you are with the crew at the yard.

Beer gets the price down now and then. Not much beer, but a big price break can happen for your generousity.

 

Jerry

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JetMech posted this 08 November 2008

I know there's alot of vets here. Try the auto craft shops on any post/base. I can usually get all I want with no problem.

Bill :coffee

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JetMech posted this 09 November 2008

Yesterday I went to every tire shop in town.

Goodyear dealers were all made to sign a binding aggreement that lead WW will only be disposed of thru an authorized hazardous waste company. They can't give/sell to anyone else.

Walmart/Sams Club, Brigestone/Firestone, Goodrich, AAFES, and every other franchise have to turn in old weights to order new ones.

Independants (3 that I went to) clean, repaint and reuse  them. One dealer would sell them for $90 for a 5 gal. bucket! One sold me some @ $0.50 a lb. The only reason I bought them was it was a cash deal, he weighed the box at 40# and all I had was $15. He took it. Got lucky 'cause when I weighed it later, it was actually 60#.

Farmer's Co-op - $25 / 5gal bucket.

Junk yard will sell @ $10 a bucket if I pull them. I'll be out there next weekend.

I honestly had no idea until you guys started this thread. Thanks for the heads up. Get 'um where and while you can, folks.

Bill

 

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Retro Fit posted this 11 June 2009

I just bought a 5 gal. bucket of WW this afternoon. The first I'd heard of non lead WW's was when I was separating the stick-on's from the clamp-on's and noticed the shiny, light in weight, zinc coated iron ww's. About 3% of the bucket that I paid $20.00 for was the new iron ww's. Here in the peoples republic of California, I've noted a major drop in component retailers and components (primers, powder, etc.)in general as of the last few years. Now this? If I didn't know any better (which I don't) I would say that this drop in the amount of available ammo and re-loading components is being done on purpose. I find it very hard to believe that lead wheel weights dropping off passing cars could have any effect on the quality of our water supply. Am I imagining this whole thing or does anyone else see a growing problem here?

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codarnall posted this 12 June 2009

The zinc ones are marked Zn, (wonder why) Iron ones Fe a magnet finds them in a hurry. 'A' for aluminum Al must refer to Al Gore and crowd. I trashed a batch of WW's with Zn and was so mad I diluted it in concentrated sulfuric acid to leach out the zinc. I was pissed. Total overkill but demonstrates you can't even dissolve lead in H2SO4, and the tree huggers worry about dissolving lead in water (that's H2O Al). We're screwed! --Charlie

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tturner53 posted this 12 June 2009

Retro, as a fellow Californian I also see the pattern you refer to. But it's not new. The attack against hunters and shooting sports in general has been relentless, I believe it started in earnest with the release of the movie Bambi, which dramatically changed the hunting regulations here ever since. Politics took over science. The antis will never let up, you can't stop them, you can't kill them. (I stole that line from 'Terminator'.)  But we have to fight them, just as relentlessly as they fight us. According to national polls public opinion is in our court more than ever, we have to join and support the California Rifle and Pistol Association, they work hard to protect OUR rights. And if you don't belong to the NRA, you need to sign up now. Not to change the topic, but does anybody know what the penalty is for shooting a condor? Would we still have 1/3 of the state designated condor range, even though they don't occupy a fraction of that range, if there were no condors? I'm not advocating anarchy, just trying to get some input.

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ubetcha posted this 12 June 2009

I guess that explain road  kill.It must be that all those animals are just waiting along the side of the road for wheel wights to fall of of the passing vehicle so they can run out and eat them.Only they don't bother to look both ways and SPLAT:shock:

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offhand35 posted this 13 June 2009

Dollar Bill, I see your post was from last Nov.....Even last spring <2008>, I encountered the EXACT same scenario that you found, every shop was committed by contract to recyclers......I finally discovered a source of lead that as it turned out I was visiting almost every week! The only commercial range in CT also has an indoor range for 22lr only, and sells the collected range scrap for $0.12/#. After dross removal, fluxing and cleanup, yield from a 200# 5gal bucket is approx 85#. This is about 40% recovery of usable lead too soft to register on my LEE hardness scale, essentially pure lead. This was a nice Sunday afternoon's work.  Now it is ready to add 1# of 95/5 tin/antimony solder per batch of 20# for handgun, or a couple #'s of foundry type to make #2 alloy for rifle. I hope I don't have to get any more creative than that for a good while.....

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GL49 posted this 13 June 2009

The tire stores have finally figured out what they have. The last one I stopped at to check for wheelweights wanted seventy-five dollars for a five gallon bucket. Who knows how much of that would already be steel or zinc. ( Or lug nuts and tire stems). Are recyclers committed to sell their weights to a specific buyer, or, how can I become a recycler?

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JetMech posted this 13 June 2009

It looks like the price went back up. A few months ago, the spot price for scrap WW was $0.11/lb. The local tire stores still wanted $75-90 a 5gal bucket. When I told them to go ahead and sell them to their recyclers, one call back and sais $40 a bucket was fine with him!

Checking today, the spot price is $0.26/lb, so the price has more than doubled.

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corerf posted this 13 June 2009

Yes it seems as though the end of Calif. free WW has come. And the volume of other metal mixed in the WW has tripled in the last few months. Once a law is passed in CA, it's in stone, Condors or not. Kids are eating 50 year old paint and the lead poisoning is from WW, didn't you know that?? Some xickhead in a biology dept at UC Davis or Berkely will find that there is lead still in the air and it is coming from WW disintegrating while we drive and so the WW will be gone soon. You know so much of the WW excess goes into the ocean via the storm drains and into the landfills due to tire companies disposing of the WW illegally (since there is no legitamite demand for used WW that I have been able to find... NOBODY uses used WW for ANYTHING and.... since they get no money out of them when the WW company shows up with a big green truck to pickup the old ones and sell them new ones.... Horsexhit... My good Governor is an xss and has the previous mentioned substance for brains. Once a CA law is here, well were gonna have to ressurect Howard Jarvis from the grave to get ANY law flipped. I'll start the prayer vigil today, all are invited. Gees I hate where I live. I work FOR the richest individuals in CA, they all have xhit for gray matter. It's not the money that does it to them, it's typically the more educated they are, the more they know about topics that they have not been formally educated in. You know a State without a crisis is not worth living in. I farted last week and I got flagged for terrorism due to methane release and got rousted by a liberal. Almost incarcerated. I guess a can of Bush beans might soon be on the FBI most wanted list now. So much for a good bar-B-que.

I think my salvation is in question.. I am pissed.

I appologize for the venting. I can't even spell right now, look at the above typos.

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tturner53 posted this 13 June 2009

I'm frustrated and mad too,'they' come at us from every direction. If you like dirt bikes, for instance, your rights to ride are always under attack. And so it goes, one thing after another. But, in spite of the looney tunes, this is a great  state, easily the best. Unfortunately, that's why so many “people” come here and stay. That said, harness all that frustration and GET IN THE FIGHT! I complain too, but that doesn't help, only action matters. The simplest way to fight back is support an established organization like the California Rifle and Pistol Association. Without them we would not have 1/4 the rights we still have. The CRPA is by far the most effective thing we have in California. I've seen our lobbyist at work at the capital many times, and the CRPA works hand in hand with the NRA . We may soon have to beg permission to buy ammo and loading equipment, the law is in the works. I've said it before on this forum, GET IN THE FIGHT or accept the screwing you get and know you didn't even resist. If your buddies got jumped at a Raiders game, would you hide and “ whine oh that's just awful"  or would you GET IN THE FIGHT!? We have the numbers to win, but too many of us would just rather hide and whine and try to hoard ammo stuff, like that solves something. If you don't at least belong to the NRA you really don't deserve to own a firearm. You're dead weight on the people FIGHTING the fight for you. The enemy is definitely organized, the only chance we have is to be organized too.

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corerf posted this 14 June 2009

I will have to research the CRPA and make a decision! I have been storing a big can of whipxss for the state in which I reside currently. I just need to spray it thru the proper organization. So it goes, Ill have to join the organization so that the liberal monies I earn can be funneled and sprayed properly as to be most effective.

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WILDCATT posted this 14 June 2009

what I want to know where is this hazard material going??? back into the ground.???some how I think its going to rebound in there faces.

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tturner53 posted this 14 June 2009

Maybe I'm paranoid, but I think the whole thing was cooked up to come after our ammo big time. I don't believe they give a rat's @#& about lead in the environment. They just hate us, especially since the Heller decision. The NRA is kicking butt all over the country and the sissies are pissed and want to get back at us.

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hunterspistol posted this 14 June 2009

Ubetcha is right on track there! That's exactly what they're preaching and, it can't be right. Sounds like animal rights to me-

 "I guess that explain road  kill.It must be that all those animals are just waiting along the side of the road for wheel wights to fall of of the passing vehicle so they can run out and eat them.Only they don't bother to look both ways and SPLAT:shock:"

 After seeing some of the new coloring book propaganda, that's not really far from the agenda being promoted.

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amb1935 posted this 15 June 2009

I live in Louisville, KY. Honestly, this is the biggest city by far in KY, and also the most liberal. Luckily we are a small enough city that I can drive 15 minutes and be in the middle of nowhere where noone cares what the heck you do. I recently bought WWS for 25c/lb from a Chevron tire shop. One Chevron owner (an older fellow) told me he couldn't help me out because he gave all his lead to his buddy who casts bullets. So, I found another Chevron and the owner was more than happy to sell to me. I went to probably ten different tire shops to try and find WWs. When I talked to a guy at Firestone, he got super awkward and told me that the WWs “are already taken care of.” Whatever that means, he looked and me and spoke like I was trying to do something shady. I just recently have gotten into casting and reloading and I'm in love. I'm only 24 years old, and I cringe to think that maybe one day there will be laws preventing me from participating in my favorite hobby. “From my cold, dead hands.” I would honestly be tempted to move to Texas if the ever secede.

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KenK posted this 15 June 2009

circle141 wrote: Buy what you can, now.

 

 

                                                              Mike Circle

That's the bottom line folks.  There is no political solution.  I feel confident we will be able to buy all the lead we want, or can afford to pay for, in our lifetimes but the days of free to dirt cheap wheel weights are coming to an end.

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axman posted this 15 June 2009

I stopped at a couple of tire shops today and hit it pretty good. One fellow said he had to send all weights back per regs. but after a few min. of conversation and found he use to own a couple of 45-70's when younger he gave me a 80lb bucket.

The others were just as generous and I would up with 280lbs for around $11.00 from 4 shops.

I gave the ex 45-70 owner a 12 pack of pop for the guys in the shop.

I am not trying to brag as I normally pay .10 per pound for weights.

All of the fellows that have posted are right as they are getting harder to find and if you want some of the scrap stuff you better get talking to your local shops and make it worth there while to help you out.

One fellow had a full 5gal but he said that he absolutely had to send them back to corporate as they monitor how many he sends them and no amount of persuasion and money could change it. Thanks   Jim

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tturner53 posted this 16 June 2009

Got a 1/2 bucket of wws today at Big-O. The manager wouldn't give up anymore than that because he casts for his 9mm and 380. I don't want to admit how much I paid, but now you guys got me in a panic. Some of them are shinier(cleaner looking) but appear normal otherwise and are marked “AL", “AW", and “AL-MC". Anybody know what these markings mean? I've looked all over this forum but can't find any reference to the meaning. One more question, trying to avoid buying a thermometer, any idea of the temperature range on a Lee Production Pot? Mines about 25yrs. old, bottom pour 10 lb., still going strong. Maybe I should add Richard Lee to my heros list.:shock:

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GL49 posted this 17 June 2009

My guess is that the AL, AW and AL-MC are weights suitable to be placed on aluminum and magnesium wheels, they won't discolor as an ordinary WW. Some of them seem to have a “plastic” coating on them, I melt them and shoot them. At first, I kept all the AL and AL_MC weights separate , but they seem to melt and cast the same. You'll know if you find a steel or zinc weight, they are lighter, brighter, and will float if you keep your pot just warm enough to melt the weights when you add them. When you pick them up, you can almost “feel” that steel and zinc are harder and lighter. I own a Lee Pro-20 pot and keep it just warm enough to fill out the molds when I cast. I cast fast, cast cool, and haven't had any problems. Thermometer?, I just keep it hot enough to cast steadily, and generally have to turn the temperature on my pot down as it empties. Maybe someone with more casting experience will disagree, but this works for me

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tturner53 posted this 17 June 2009

GL , that's what I wanted to know. I'm paying more attention to my wws nowadays, and will be smelting them down at a lower temperature, then make ingots for the Lee pot. My 'generic' alloy is kept in a big cast iron pot that I heat up on a Coleman stove, use that one for ladle casting, save the good stuff for the bottom pour. I just keep adding to the cast iron pot when it gets down, the alloy is probably never the same for long, kinda like stew. Since I joined the CBA recently I'm getting more particular, these guys aint foolin' around when it comes to competition.

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GL49 posted this 23 June 2009

I've never tried competitive shooting, except to see who can knock over the most Campbell's soup cans at 25 yards, me or my 15 year old son. I can tell you without a doubt that young eyes will beat years of practice. We usually shoot a coffee can full of 44's (loaded down to 44 spl) and another of 38's in an afternoon, so quantity is a bit more important than absolute sameness bullet to bullet. If it looks good as it drops from my 6 cavity Lee molds, its good enough to use at the ranges we shoot. I cast wheel weight alloy for my 32 acp, 9mm, 38/357, 44 and 45 acp. If I want them harder, I just drop them in water from the mold, size them and then wait a couple of weeks. so far I haven't had leading problems when used with a good lube, but I still am learning. Check out www.lasc.us for good articles on cast bullets

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ubetcha posted this 27 June 2009

The letters such as Al,AW,and MC are indication of a style to fit a certin design of rim.For instance most GM alloy wheels use a MC style.These are lead weights with a coating to prevent corroson to the alloy rim

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tturner53 posted this 27 June 2009

Thanks Ubetcha, it sounds like you know what you're talking about. In the short time I've been a member I've been getting a crash course on cast bullets and alloys. Learned more in the last few months than in the previous several years.

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tturner53 posted this 29 June 2009

Scored today on stick-on ww. Stopped at a recycler on my way home from work, he had a barrel with 140 lbs. of stick ons at .20 cent a pound. Even loaded it in my truck with a forklift! Assuming that's mostly pure lead I can mix it with regular ww to make a softer alloy. What would be the bhn of 50-50 stick-ons and regualar ww?

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Rumplestiltskin posted this 15 July 2009

Thanks for the info Ubetcha, that makes sense. tturner53, it all depends on the ratio of the mix. I'm pretty sure mixing some clip-on WW with a bunch of stick-on WW will make your mix harder, not softer; especially if you drop them into water from the mold.

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Dicko posted this 27 December 2009

tturner53 wrote: I'm frustrated and mad too,'they' come at us from every direction. If you like dirt bikes, for instance, your rights to ride are always under attack. And so it goes, one thing after another. But, in spite of the looney tunes, this is a great  state, easily the best. Unfortunately, that's why so many “people” come here and stay. That said, harness all that frustration and GET IN THE FIGHT! I complain too, but that doesn't help, only action matters. The simplest way to fight back is support an Hey, guys, I'm a relative newbie and only just found this thread.   You think you've got problems, you should see what we go through in South Arica.   I'm a bit nervous to get into politics because that's not what this forum is about.   Let me just say that politics is what is screwing you (and the rest of us) and offer some pointers.   To start with, I'm sure y'all remember Senator Bill Richardson ?   He wrots a great little book called “Confrontational Politics."   Do yourselves a favour whether you live in California or elsewhere, get a copy ASAP.   You'll learn a thing or two about how to handle the leftist “do gooders." 

Yes, I can tell you from personal experience as a pro gun activist for several years that only action will get you anywhere.   Yeah, I know you shouldn't have to, but that's how it is.   They will take you to pieces bit by bit as they have done to us here.   We came close to successfully resisting because of a huge effort by a handful of us, and we lost only because we didn't have enough guys willing to get their hands dirty.   The lesson was that we could have won if enough guys had fought.

My observation of the US is that it has enough people still committed to freedom to win these battles.   Let me mention one particular pointer to that.   In Anglo Saxon countries like UK, Canada, Australia and NZ, typically 2% of voters are paid up members of political parties.   I'm told that it is more like 30% in the US.   That indicates a much bigger willingness to participate.   You guys can win this, but only if enough of you take part in the action.  

You can start by voting out the sitting government, or at least delivering some shocks in marginal seats.   Then get to work on the bureaucrats.   Its a big undertaking, but my gut feel is that you have the resources and willingness to fight that we did not, at least in sufficient numbers.

Start with Bill Richardson's book, then call him and ask him what advice he can give you.

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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curator posted this 27 December 2009

500 lbs of “purchased” wheel weights were smelted in my back yard on Saturday. The yield was 320 lbs of alloy, 50 lbs of stick on weights, yet to be melted and 180 lbs of steel clips, iron, zinc, and pot metal weights plus assorted valve stems and detritus. Only the small scale repair shops will still sell their scrap wheel weights around here.(S.W. Florida) The chains all claim contractual obligations with recyclers. Metal recycling yards want $.75 to $1.00 per pound of assorted trash with a few wheel weights thrown in.

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Changeling posted this 01 January 2010

They don't give a dam about lead being used for wheel weights. They just don't want bullets being made.

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corerf posted this 01 January 2010

Gun control, at it's highest. +1 changeling

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Tazman1602 posted this 06 January 2010

Changeling wrote: They don't give a dam about lead being used for wheel weights. They just don't want bullets being made.

+1 Changeling. I guess this means the guns are coming out of the safe and my buckets of WW are going in.

SO FAR up here where I live we don't have that problem YET but it's coming. Maybe you'll see me on an episode of “Hoarders” some day with WW buckets stacked to the ceilings............

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jppr26 posted this 14 January 2010

i had to pay 25 bucks for a one gal. bucket with half steel and half lead WW at less-shwab two weeks ago, never again, whent to a ma and pa shop today and got half a 5gal bucket for 10 bucks, i asked the guy there if any were steel, he said that they aint gona switch till they have to, im gona call some local recking yards tommarow about WW, i might find a mother load in one of them.

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Tazman1602 posted this 15 January 2010

I'm luckier in my area JP, I"m still paying $20 a bucket for a full five gallon bucket and I'm buying every one I can get my hands on. At the rate you paid you're better off to go the the antimony man or http://www.leadandbrass.com>www.leadandbrass.com and buy material direct from them.

Art

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