Lead is toxic?
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People have been shooting lead bullets for hundreds of years and hunting with them . So unless your sucking on them or breathing lead dust I think your safe. I reloaded ammo for years and shot competition air rifle for years handling lead pellets and never had any problems. There's guys I know that have been shooting air rifle competitions for 40 years and there in there 80s now with no problems.
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You wouldnt want it to enter the food chain.
Short term exposure is possibly not goi g to do harm. But repeated exposure could lead to the poasibility of long term health issues.
For cattys, and IMO, we dont dont need lead.
Short term exposure is possibly not goi g to do harm. But repeated exposure could lead to the poasibility of long term health issues.
For cattys, and IMO, we dont dont need lead.
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Common sense applies basically. Wash your hands once you've been handling it and before eating, dont breathe fumes if you are casting your own ammo. Dont go sucking on them other than that try not to get shot with any.
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I have had a lot of lead exposure and I'm doing okay at 56 years of age. I spent years shooting cast bullets in rifles and pistols. For a few years I was shooting competitive PPC and tossing around 10-12,000 rounds a year (casted). I have been airgunning for over 40 years. For many years I shot casted lead ammo from slingshots.
The only problem I had with lead was back in the mid-90s when shooting handguns indoors during the long Canadian winters. A group of 5 guys would burn through a couple hundred rounds of .38Sp each in around 2 hours (PPC). The range had a poor vent system and would get smoky quickly. We all had our lead levels checked and I was just into the warning level. My buddies were well into the dangerous levels. I eventually stopped shooting powder burning handguns indoors but kept with the airguns (indoors & outdoors). My lead levels dropped down to normal (almost zero).
As was said, wash your hands after handling lead... don't put lead in your mouth... don't breath lead dust or vapor.... only cast lead outdoors with a cross breeze or a fan.
The only problem I had with lead was back in the mid-90s when shooting handguns indoors during the long Canadian winters. A group of 5 guys would burn through a couple hundred rounds of .38Sp each in around 2 hours (PPC). The range had a poor vent system and would get smoky quickly. We all had our lead levels checked and I was just into the warning level. My buddies were well into the dangerous levels. I eventually stopped shooting powder burning handguns indoors but kept with the airguns (indoors & outdoors). My lead levels dropped down to normal (almost zero).
As was said, wash your hands after handling lead... don't put lead in your mouth... don't breath lead dust or vapor.... only cast lead outdoors with a cross breeze or a fan.
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I practiced and Prado every week. Don did work on my pistols. Do you remember South coast gun club. Use to practice silhouette there.
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Exposure to lead vapors and dust are the real dangers. I'm a Union Ironworker. We wear half-face respirators with P100 filters rated for lead dust & vapors on bridge jobs. You should be fine handling lead balls. If you're really concerned, buy a tub of D-Lead wipes to clean your hands after touching lead.
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Read up about lead poisoning: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lead-poisoning/symptoms-causes/syc-20354717
If you wash your hands carefully after handling lead airgun pellets or lead slingshot ammo, you should have no problems.
However, shooting firearms at indoor ranges can be a health hazard in terms of lead dust (Pb dust) - read this:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5379568/
(Quote) "Shooting at firing ranges results in the discharge of Pb dust, elevated BLLs, and exposures that are associated with a variety of adverse health outcomes. Women and children are among recreational shooters at special risk and they do not receive the same health protections as occupational users of firing ranges. Nearly all BLL measurements compiled in the reviewed studies exceed the current reference level of 5 μg/dL recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (CDC/NIOSH). Thus firing ranges, regardless of type and user classification, currently constitute a significant and unmanaged public health problem." :hmm:
If you wash your hands carefully after handling lead airgun pellets or lead slingshot ammo, you should have no problems.
However, shooting firearms at indoor ranges can be a health hazard in terms of lead dust (Pb dust) - read this:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5379568/
(Quote) "Shooting at firing ranges results in the discharge of Pb dust, elevated BLLs, and exposures that are associated with a variety of adverse health outcomes. Women and children are among recreational shooters at special risk and they do not receive the same health protections as occupational users of firing ranges. Nearly all BLL measurements compiled in the reviewed studies exceed the current reference level of 5 μg/dL recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (CDC/NIOSH). Thus firing ranges, regardless of type and user classification, currently constitute a significant and unmanaged public health problem." :hmm:
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OK, about lead, I worked at leaded glass, church windows and such, construction restoration, for 24 years, almost every day, small cuts from glass, handled lead every day, old lead, new lead, what you do is constantly keep hands clean, wash them, do not inhale fumes when soldering, or melting, keep hands off face, out of mouth, after I did this for around 15 yr or so, got curious, went to hospital
got scanned, checked out, all fine no problem. So made me believer in cleanliness.
But my boss, owner of the company, never kept his hands clean, handled lead with small cuts on hands, got lead poisoning after about 20 yrs of carelessness, he also got histoplasmosis, from rooting around old church windows and being in pigeon shit all the time, now he is in a nursing home in a vegetative state, but he was careless for 45 years, just be careful, stay clean, u b OK.
got scanned, checked out, all fine no problem. So made me believer in cleanliness.
But my boss, owner of the company, never kept his hands clean, handled lead with small cuts on hands, got lead poisoning after about 20 yrs of carelessness, he also got histoplasmosis, from rooting around old church windows and being in pigeon shit all the time, now he is in a nursing home in a vegetative state, but he was careless for 45 years, just be careful, stay clean, u b OK.
Thanks for the informed responses everyone. So I guess I'm not terrified to use it.
That being said, I'm aware that plenty of people hunt small game with steel. I've heard the arguments about lead hitting harder, less bouncing off stuff, less ricochet,etc. But when it comes to head shooting small game, would you argue lead absolutely ranks superior to steel?
I'm looking at hunting with 3/8 steel vs lead of the same weight right now
That being said, I'm aware that plenty of people hunt small game with steel. I've heard the arguments about lead hitting harder, less bouncing off stuff, less ricochet,etc. But when it comes to head shooting small game, would you argue lead absolutely ranks superior to steel?
I'm looking at hunting with 3/8 steel vs lead of the same weight right now
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