Northwest Fishing Reports

Is anyone else frustrated with hand-poured jigs that are underweight?
My 1/4 oz jigs only weigh a hair over six grams!
No doubt this is being caused by the lead I use; Mostly wheel weights, plus a 34 lb slab of unknown composition (garage sale).
I tried modifying a jig mold but ended up making it useless.
My second attempt was more successful (1/16 oz jigs) but the heads are not balanced -- one side is slightly larger than the other.
I could just accept the fact that all of my jigs are underweight, but I prefer to be more precise.
Has anyone else dealt with this?

I get my lead from old lead pipes my pops takes out of older houses (he's a plumber). Some of the pipes are put together with an alloy fitting, when I melt it down it doesn't melt, only the lead. My pot doesn't get hot enough to melt anything but pure lead. Are your molds getting all the filled up? Otherwise it just may be a case of a jig mold that's just giving a "close enough" design.

I was amazed to discover you can buy pure lead on E-Bay. I would have thought the shippping charges too high, put the PO does have it's "All you can ship for one flt rate" boxes so I guess that helps that issue. Search E-Bay and you'll find some OK prices, not as good as scrap lead of course. I make larger weights but don't need to worry about how precise the weight is.

Yea, ebay lead is a great deal! I got a small parcel in the mail the other day, and it was 20 pounds of little lead bars. Flat rate shipped for 5 bucks or something. I'm sure the post man carrying it was like, "seriously, what the hell is in this thing? A bunch of lead bricks?" hahahaha!

Ebay lead is a great buy vs scrap lead, as the lead you get on ebay is usually cleaned/fluxed and molded into small bars perfect for lead pots. If you have a bottom pour pot, you should always use clean lead in your pot as not to clog the small orfice the lead comes out of. If melting down scrap you should use rather large pot and clean the lead prior to any pour. Of coarse if making down rigger balls or such, you will need a large pot anyways. If you watch the auctions close you can get it down to about a buck a pound.

You can also buy it from the dive shops, or could back when I was diving. Shot or pig, sold by the pound for making weights to fit back packs and BC's. What is lead going for these days? Buck a pound? I've always just used tire weights, but they're going away (well lead ones) too.

I have seen as low as $1.50 a pound( I believe that was with s/h figured in) when buying say 20 lb on ebay. Retail it is $3.50 a pound at hook line and sinker in arlington and right about the same at cabelas. Again if using tire weights or scrap lead you have to go thru the hassle of fluxing/cleaning the lead. When you buy the little bars that fit in smaller pots more easily and should not have much weight loss, cleaning lead.

Last time I bought some scrap lead a couple years ago I believe it was around .40 a pound. Not clean but it got the job done for downrigger can weights.

I'm really looking for a cheap place to buy 00 lead buckshot for shrinktube slinkies. The problem is that the $10 slinky kits only make like 10 weights, and if you go to a gun shop or a place that sells shot shell reloading supplies the smallest amount you can buy is usually an 8lb bag. Anyone know where I can get smaller quantities?

lee makes a production mold for those, 18 per pour. part # 90486
I know that is not smaller quantity like you asked but might be the way to go.
try ebay I bet they have them.

That would be great except I'm an urban apartment dweller with a bedroom that is more like a tackle shop. I'm pretty sure the landlord would not be happy with me pouring lead in the apartment, but thanks for the info. I already have been forced to cure eggs and shrimp at my sister's house because the property manager got an odor complaint about the 30 skeins I had curing on my balcony

TroutSnipr wrote:That would be great except I'm an urban apartment dweller with a bedroom that is more like a tackle shop. I'm pretty sure the landlord would not be happy with me pouring lead in the apartment, but thanks for the info. I already have been forced to cure eggs and shrimp at my sister's house because the property manager got an odor complaint about the 30 skeins I had curing on my balcony

They'd probably have the EPA over if you started to pour on the porch.

natetreat wrote:Yea, ebay lead is a great deal! I got a small parcel in the mail the other day, and it was 20 pounds of little lead bars. Flat rate shipped for 5 bucks or something. I'm sure the post man carrying it was like, "seriously, what the hell is in this thing? A bunch of lead bricks?" hahahaha!

haha.. on the post man thoughts..