Lead filled bench tubes?

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 9:24 pm

jcraigie wrote:Hey, I fixed all the figures and I did say rough. I'm measuring by proxy (12 yo son over the phone) so the measurements may not be "exact".

If you can measure yours and let me know the ID I'll do the math withthe official JPG measurements.

Nev mind! '12 yo' explains it all!:D

jcraigie · Post by **jcraigie** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 9:26 pm

JPG40504 wrote:Nev mind! '12 yo' explains it all!:D

He tries hard and does his best i can't ask anything more.

beeg · Post by **beeg** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:14 pm

jcraigie wrote:Not bad for weight, but that's a crap load (technical term) of lead to melt and pour.

HOW wood ya plug the one end to hold the melted lead? Wood the hot lead warp the tubes?

jcraigie · Post by **jcraigie** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:31 pm

beeg wrote:HOW wood ya plug the one end to hold the melted lead? Wood the hot lead warp the tubes?

The melting point of lead is about 620 deg F, so I don't think I would use a "wood" plug:D . I was thinking of using a steel disc with jb weld to hold it. wrap a wet towel around the end of the tube and pour in about an inch of lead, let that cool (doesn't take long) then add the rest of the lead as I got it melted. I'm 90% sure that there would be no effects to the tubes, the remaining 10% is I think it may cause some heat discoloration, but it wont get anywhere near hot enough to damage the tubes (unless you filled the whole thing in one pour maybe, but I can't melt that much at once)

P.S. I do have an extra set of tubes so if I trash one I have a replacement waiting so that makes it easier to take the plunge.

pennview · Post by **pennview** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:46 pm

I went to the Rotometals web site, where it states that a cubic inch of their reclaimed led shot weighs .24 pounds. So, the formula for the volume of a cylinder is pi times radius squared times length (3.142 x .875 squared x 48), which equals 115.5 square inches. That times .24 equals 27.7 pounds, and since the inside of the tubes is less than 1.75, 25 pounds of reclaimed led shot ought to fill a tube. The tubes are over 48" long, but you'll need to plug the ends to keep the shot inside, so that's why I settled on 48".

jcraigie · Post by **jcraigie** » Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:54 pm

The lead should set in about 20 to 30 seconds so the plug is not really a big deal. The cubic inch they state is for solid not shot so the shot actually takes up more space to ge thte same weight.

Ed in Tampa · Post by **Ed in Tampa** » Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:25 am

I say stop playing games fill the buggers with plutonium it is heavier than lead.

If you do it right you might even be able to generate your own electricity while you are at it.

jcraigie · Post by **jcraigie** » Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:09 am

Hey, I didn't thik about that, I ordered the plutonium, it's being delivered by guys in a black SUV in about an hour:eek: LMAO

reible · Post by **reible** » Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:37 am

jcraigie wrote:Hey, I didn't thik about that, I ordered the plutonium, it's being delivered by guys in a black SUV in about an hour:eek: LMAO

Better that then being delivered by an A-10 WARTHOG.

pennview · Post by **pennview** » Tue Aug 30, 2011 8:33 am

Before I'd spend the money on lead, I'd buy a few bags of sand and put them on the bench tubes or distribute the sand in some other way. I'd also make some sort of clamping devices to tie the bench tubes and way tubes together, making the Shopsmith more rigid and likely to handle larger or out of round turning blanks.

Jcraigie, lead weighs .4092 pounds per cubic inch. Rotometals says it's shot weights .24 pounds per cubic inch, so I'd have to assume it's not solid material they were talking about.