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Pouring lead and tin?
kevin d -
Saturday, February 2, 2008 - 9:32pm
Casting Complete newbie here, sorry y'all. Ive been making 2-dimensional sculptures, using a soldering iron and stained glass solder, for a few years. The solder is 60/40 tin/lead. I am interested in mixing a batch of these metals and getting a little more creative, but I have a couple questions.  Lead and Tin
johndach -
Friday, February 22, 2008 - 12:47pm
Kevin, I just saw your post and wanted to answer a bit. I don't know where you live, but Roto Metals in the San Francisco area sells tin and int alloys, they might even have the 60/40 pre alloyed if you are interested. As for lead, if car/truck tire weights are pure enough for you, you may be able to get used weights from a tire selling/changing company. I got 3 5 gallon buckets for a couple of pieces of smoked salmon. We have purchased tin ingots from Roto for pewter castings. Zinc is another metal used in stained glass came and is relatively low melting temp though higher than lead or tin. Both the lead and zinc have potential health problems if not worked with properly but I am sure you are aware of this already. Just as an aside, there are some VERY LOW MELTING metals that are somewhat available that almost melt in hot water. I cannot remember the names of them but they were/are used in some foundry operations and a bit in the jewelry trade. I bet someone on the list will know what I am talking about. Best of luck. Post and keep in touch with the list. John Dach » reply  John, White's metal and
Rich Waugh -
Friday, February 22, 2008 - 6:24pm
John, White's metal and Britannia metal come to mind as ones that melt at very low temperatures. Perhaps those are the ones you were thinking of? » reply  on low temp metals
workhorse -
Wednesday, March 5, 2008 - 1:51am
Hi, I actually did some experiments with low temp metals before I started working in a proper foundry. First, Atlas metals in Ohio is a decent source. You can get lead free low temp casting metals in 1/2 cubes (shipping these days is a drag). Someone on this thread suggested Britannia metal which as I recall is another name for Antimony. Tin is easy to melt. I used to do small impromptu casts by melting it in a cast iron pan on my little gas range in Italy. The combination of the two (tin and antimony) in the form of lead free pewter is preferred only because the Britannia metal imparts better flow to the metal, which makes for better casting. One more thing, for the sake of immediate satisfaction, I have been carving simple reliefs into soft fire brick and casting the metal. Quick, dirty, fun. Hope this helps. » reply |
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ArtMetal
Lead and tin?
Hope I didnt scare everyone off with the word "lead". Just thought someone in here might have started out that way, since these two metals have such low melting points, and can safely be handled with proper care. I am realy interested in experimenting with all different types of metals, but I am familiar with the finish that I can get from this 60/40 mix, and am attracted to the low melting point, so any advice or info I could get would be great. Im not looking for all the answers, just enough for me to create a little heat, and experiment a little. Thanks.