Wednesday, December 18, 2013

The End of Lead Bullets?

That's what Fox News is trumpeting, that lead bullets will be a thing of the past in several years.
Whether by state or federal regulation, or by market forces, lead bullets will be all but phased out within a few years in favor of so-called green bullets, experts say. While many believe that this will help the environment by keeping lead from contaminating groundwater, others say switching to copper-based bullets will cost hunters and sportsmen more and have little effect on the environment.
Yeah, right.  They're not taking into account the hundreds of thousands of us who cast our own bullets from lead scrap.  I'm not likely to stop that any time soon.  I've heard good things about the all-copper bullets from places like Barnes and Nosler, but I don't have any intention to stop using lead bullets.   If it's plumbous, I'm apt to make bullets from it.

6 comments:

Prairie Patriot said...

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the Missouri plant was not going to be the death knell of lead ammo for the simple fact that the vast majority of lead in ammunition was from recycled lead from several factories across our nation.

Wish I remember where I had read that...

Old NFO said...

It's really a question of when more states will outlaw lead ammo... THAT is coming IMHO.

Anonymous said...

I have molds for most of the handgun calibers that I shoot,and a 12ga slug mold.While I have several hundred pounds of scrap lead in the garage I'd accept more from anyone who offered it.I also believe that there will be a push by the antigunners to outlaw lead bullets but I'm likely well enough supplied for the rest of my life.

Termite said...

It's horse-crap. Junk science.

Turkey buzzards aren't in danger of dying out from eating deer killed with lead bullets, more are killed by cars/trucks hitting them on highways while eating roadkill.

There are occurances of waterfowl dying from lead shot ingestion, but it requires specific conditions, namely a hard bottom in shallow water.

Rivrdog said...

P.P., the figure is that 95% of domestic lead use is supplied by recycling. The other five percent came from that little smelter and Mexican smelters. Under NAFTA rules, those imports have to be allowed in.

Considering that there are millions of old lead batteries around yet to be recycled, no shortage is likely. Price rise? Likely, especially with scare stories like Fox News'...

skizzums said...

your missing the point guys, i agreew ith what Rep congressman Alan Wert was aying, that this isnt the nail in the coffin, its just the beginning

step 2 is steep taxes on importation of lead
step 3 epa upping its regulation on companies that use lead in their products, whereas most comanies will not be able to afford the cost and still make a profit over lead alternatives

will this effect us folks in the next five years?? no, probably not, but if we keep the liberal trend going, our grandchildren will never see the stuff

luckily us shooters are resousceful, and we will innovate and gravitate to different materials and still make our own bullets out of something, but the point is its all unnecessary, studies prove that lead bullets do cause a contamination of water or wildlife
and we start press molding tungsten powder into molds, then they will come up with an epa hazard for that too