Dental X-ray Lead

[Rod Lassey]

I've got some X-ray lead, that came from the local hospital. It was in the form of small containers with lids. Been using it, and my impression is that it's somewhat harder than pure lead, but not as hard as wheelweights. Now, it doesn't seem to make any difference in my rifle (prb), but using in my smoothbore was another story. There I don't patch, just use blanket wads, and I found that the ball must be absolutley dead soft--I suspect the ball upsets to fill the bore, and if it doesn't upset properly, then accuracy suffers.

I'm going to try the X-ray lead in hollow-based 405 grain 45-70 bullets, which need to be a bit harder that pure lead, and see how it works.

Rod

 

[vikingsword]

Just finished melting down about 38pds of dental x-ray lead, and found it to be the softest lead i've ever seen.I'm taking advantage of this now cause everybody tells me there going to laser x-ray's soon and there will be no more lead coming from them.

 

[gooddw]

Do you know who the mfg was?

 

[vikingsword]

Sorry! They had already stripped the lead sheets out of the holders,and they were very greatful for someone to take them off their hands as where we live, you have to pay a heavy disposal fee to get rid of it legally, and they were only too happy to let me take it off their hands.

 

[burgessrudy]

I stopped by my former dentist office and asked them about it. They have already converted to digital x-rays and don't use lead.

 

[J.D.]

it doesn't seem to make any difference in my rifle (prb), but using in my smoothbore was another story. There I don't patch, just use blanket wads, and I found that the ball must be absolutley dead soft--I suspect the ball upsets to fill the bore, and if it doesn't upset properly, then accuracy suffers.

That doesn't make sense to me. Every other smoothbore I have owned, or smoothbores owned by friends shoots ATM lead, anything that melts, as well or better than pure lead. I seriously doubt that pure lead upsets to fill the bore in your gun. It doesn't in any other gun, so why would it happen in yours?

IMHO, there is something else going on with your gun, or with your load. Or, maybe you just had a bad day at the range when you shot those balls cast from harder lead.
J.D.

 

[buttonbuck]

anyone weigh their cast round balls? that should tell ya what it is. I think I will invest in a scale before buying a hardness tester. If they are not pure enough for the 54 or the 32 cal guns to the smoothbore they go.

 

[No Deer]

I got a bag of dental lead from my dentist. I cast up a batch of .60 balls for my trade gun. They came out larger than when I use pure lead. I have not measured either kind so I don't know how much different, but I know that they loaded harder into my trade gun and significantly changed my point of impact for the same sight picture. I used up most of the ones I cast, and threw away the few I had left. I suppose that if I wanted to practise a lot with the dental lead balls that I could adjust to them, but it was just not worth the effort to me, not at this time anyway.

 

[buttonbuck]

What kind of mould did you use I just bought a lee in .60 cal. I hope I do not run into the same issue as the fit for greeen mtn sb is tight, had to really work to just get in the 60 cal rb someone had cast I think using a lyman mould.

 

[Russianblood]

It's not the mould, it's the lead. alloyed lead doesn't shrink as much as pure lead does when it cools. Moulds that are designed for pure lead have the shrinkage factor already built into them.

 

[No Deer]

I have a lyman steel mold.

 

[mike alexandre]

Have just melted my 10 lbs of dental lead and yes it was dirty - certainly as dirty as any roofing lead I've used. However once I'd got rid of the initial dirt the lead seems very good. I think there must have been a plastic film over the lead I couldnt see.