Casting bullets, a cautionary tale.

[Dolomite_supafly]

Let me start by saying casting is fun and makes shooting less expensive. It is also very satisfying to know you took raw materials, or what is essentially that, and created a bullet from scratch. It is another facet of reloading that is just a normal progression for most people who shoot a lot and reload.

 

With that being said use precautions if you cast anything using lead. Do whatever you can to minimize exposure. And if you do cast make sure to check your levels to ensure your precautions are enough. I thought mine were enough but they were not. The test costs less than $100 and ensures you know exactly where you stand.

 

What happened to me:

 

I have been casting for about a year. I have never really spent more than 20-30 minutes every week or so casting. I have always felt fine and I did take precautions by wearing a mask. That is the way I have been casting for this past year.
 

Then things changed the first week of January when I got a new bullet mold. It was of a bullet I designed for use with the 300 Blackout. And
because I was so excited about the caliber, and my new mold, I needed to cast morethan I have even cast before.

At this time I substantially ramped up my casting. And I think it was during this time I increased my exposure beyond safe levels. I did make sure to wear a mask most of the time, but not all the time. I was always outside for all of my casting and almost always had a breeze so I thought I didn’t need to wear a mask. I never wore gloves either and routinely touched the lead but I always made sure to wash my hands before touching anything else. When done casting I always took a shower immediately afterwards. I will say that the times I was working with “clean” lead I rarely wore a mask because I thought there were no concerns with working with clean lead. I thought I was doing enough to keep myself safe.
 

By the end of second week or so I began to feel not right. Iwas nauseous almost every day and for most of the day. On top of this I just didn’t feel well and was just lethargic. I had muscle aches as well as having a short fuze when dealing with people. I thought it was because of the weather or I was getting sick or maybe a reaction to my medications I take.

I really didn’t think it might have been the lead exposure until a little over a week ago. I was making ingots from wheel weights. I made sure to always wear a mask because it produces a lot of smoke but there were times when I would step outside to check and get some smoke in the face. It was only a brief moment so I thought it was nothing to worry about or I would try to hold my breath which never worked.
 

The day after making ingots I woke up and had a “tick” in my chest. When it first happened I got really scared as it took me to my knees but stopped almost as quickly as it had come on. I spoke to some nurses as well as looked up symptoms and all indicated it was not life threatening. And it subsided really quickly over the next day or two but it was still there. It did not correlate to my heartbeat but it was a painful “tick” so I went to the doctor. He said it was not related to the heart but could have been an aggravated nerve ending in my chest. I explained to him I suspected my lead exposure because of how I had been feeling and he said it would take a lot to get enough to show up. But we agreed a test would clear up any confusion.

 

Now that I look back my symptoms all matched lead exposure. I had my nausea, nerve problems, irritability and now that it has been a week and a half since I cast last the ringing in my ears has subsided substantially. And the day the doctor took my O2 saturation it was low. And even to this day I feel like crap.

The test was done last Friday and I got the call today. 4 units is where you lead exposure becomes a concern and mine was at 10 units. It was not high enough to warrant chelation therapy but it is concerning. And this test was taken at least a week after my last casting session. The doctor said the levels were likely higher then than they are now because blood replaces itself faster than anything else in the body. Now I am taking activated charcoal to help prevent further exposure even though it has been a week. Between that and time the symptoms should subside.

I am going to be using a range hood to duct all fumes out of the area. I also plan on using a full face mask, gloves and covering as much of my skin as possible. I was complacent before but never again as lead is bad news in any amount.
 

I am telling you this to keep you from casting but so you can prevent exposure to lead. Do what you can to prevent ANY exposure to lead or lead fumes. Do not become complacent even if only for a moment. And finally to keep the feds out of your hair because I found out that the CDC requires the feds to be notified if I show elevated lead levels during the next test.

Casting is a fun pastime that reduces the cost of our hobby substantially. But it must be done safely.

 

Dolomite

 

 

 

[Will H]

Scary stuff man.  Glad you are recovering.

[Raoul]

Well holy crap. Glad you caught it in time to minimize the physical problems.

[10-Ring]

Glad you caught it before it got really bad.  I'm just getting into reloading and want to start casting eventually but I want to do it safely.  I'm wondering if and how it really can be done safely. 

[Dolomite_supafly]

Just make sure to pull air from the pot and away from you. And if you touch it use gloves.

 

Dolomite

[VERO1]

A friend of my fathers killed himself by casting fishing weights several years ago.  He did this for his retirement income.  Unfortunately he wore no type of protective gear, smoked and drank beer while melting down tire weights for sinkers.  It got him! 

[MarkInNashville]

Damn man! I sincerely hope your levels reduce quickly and that you have no lasting effects from this! It was awesome of you to tell your story to try to help others. I will say a prayer for you.

[GlockSpock]

Dolomite, so I take it that over the next few weeks and months through your "cleanse" period, your lead levels should drop back to acceptable/normal with no major adverse longterm affects? Or is it too early to see?

[Dolomite_supafly]

Doctor didn't seem to indicate any permanent damage.

 

Dolomite

[GlockSpock]

My wife also says Cilantro is great for detoxifying heavy metal, which is good for me because I love the stuff and use it to supplement lettuce on sandwiches, etc!

 

[url="http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/cilantro-chelation-therapy-heavy-metal-detox.html"]http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/cilantro-chelation-therapy-heavy-metal-detox.html[/url]

 

Just a thought.

Edited February 13, 2013 by CZ9MM

[Peace]

Wow. Thankful you caught it and have a handle on it. Feel better soon!

[Caster]

Ventilation peoples, ventilation. Get a small manicurist fan or other high efficiency fan and DRAW air from you. DO NOT blow air on yourself. Always have a fan pulling air away from you.

Don't eat, drink or smoke until you have washed your hands and wash them OFTEN.

Now, personally, I don't wear a mask when casting but when smelting down wheel weights, if you don't wear a respirator you are a fool.
The smelting process will expose to a myriad of fun stuff besides lead. Burning paint and grease. Many wheel weights have arsenic in them (the good ones do).


It'll never happen to you.......until it does! Be safe.

[Jamie Jackson]

Dolomite.

 

Darn Dude! I'm glad you're Ok and I really appreciate your sharing this. For me and a shooting Buddy, it couldn't be more timely.

 

We "harvested" four 5 gallon buckets of lead from an indoor range recently. We wore masks, work gloves and I wore a sweat shirt. I was covered in lead dust by the time we were through. And I showered as soon as I got home...but the exposure even then was disconcerting for me.

 

I plan to cast my own, and of course will do so outdoors...but extra precautions will definitely be taken.

 

Thanks for the insight and suggestions Dolomite.

[ArmyBrat61]

I use a Czech M10M gas mask when I'm smelting....gives the wife the willies but keeps me breathing! I have plenty of extra filters too....

[garethsk]

Wow, thanks for the heads up. Good luck with your recovery.

[RED333]

WOW, thanks for the info Dolomite.

[Sam1]

What would be your suggested way of prolonged exposure for doing this, if there was a need for it? Would a better rated mask (if there is one) help, or using gloves?

[mike243]

Prayers sent for a speedy full recovery,also thanks for the heads up on casting using lead.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I think the two biggest things that would have prevented it would have been making sure the fumes were being pulled away from me and the use of gloves. I did neither.

 

Dolomite

[Guest GimpyLeg]

Just out of curosity, do you have a temp gauge you use while casting/smelting/melting?  If so, what do you run your temps at?

[Dolomite_supafly]

I don't have a temp gauge yet. I am getting ready to build a PID. I did have a IR thermometer but it was erratic.

Dolomite

[dcloudy777]

Glad to hear you're gonna be okay, and you"ve given us some excellent advice.  Be careful with spent primers too, the lead styphanate is very, very easily absorbed through the skin.

[Oh Shoot]

Wow, Dol...

 

Good catch on reading your own symptoms.

[buck1032]

Wow, very scary stuff. And a huge Thank You for sharing your story for us to learn from. I havent cast if a few years and dont really plan to start up again unless I actually have to. I still have a lot of lead and my gear in case that need does come about I will have to remember your lessons learned. 

Edited February 14, 2013 by buck1032

[Dolomite_supafly]

Again, casting is a great hobby and can significantly enhance the enjoyment of our sport. It can reduces costs by 90%+. This wasn't meant to sway anyone away from casting but to inform that there are risks. And just like we are safety conscience when doing anything else with risks, like handling our firearms, skydiving or when driving, we need to be safety conscience when casting.

 

I felt what I was doing was good enough because I did wear a mask anytime I was cleaning lead and wore a mask about 50% of the time when casting clean lead. With the exception of a couple of times when I got a face full of smoke, from a distance, I felt my exposure was minimal. I am going to rethink a few other ways I may have been exposed. I did touch lead with my bare hands and that will change now. I suspect that may have contributed just as much as, if not more than, inhalation.

 

In the end I am going to treat lead like it is a dog turd and try to avoid smelling or touching it.

 

Dolomite