Lead

Millie

Get on with your life!!!
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I was given a link to s women's site and some of the info was about lead. Do we need to take separate clothes to change into after shooting, including shoes? She said it's to keep the lead from getting in the car. Is there that much lead getting out really? It's kind of got me freaked out! Not enough to not shoot, just wondering....as always. I'm really keeping you hopping with all the questions! I'm not really a child asking "why?" a million times a day. Lol. How do you guys and girls deal with the lead issue?
 
The main thing is to just not eat or smoke while shooting and until after you wash your hands. The occassional range trip isn't going to pose an issue. Lead does get spread around pretty well inside of indoor shooting ranges, so just don't go licking the walls and you should be ok.

The main places people get in trouble with lead is when they smelt lead in a non-ventilated area and inhale it.


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The main thing is to just not eat or smoke while shooting and until after you wash your hands. The occassional range trip isn't going to pose an issue. Lead does get spread around pretty well inside of indoor shooting ranges, so just don't go licking the walls and you should be ok.

The main places people get in trouble with lead is when they smelt lead in a non-ventilated area and inhale it.


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Smoking.....still miss it!!!! Thanks for the reply.
 
lead exposure is mostly an issue if you shoot indoors. I reload therefore I handle more lead than an average shooter. I also smelt (melt) my own lead from various sources into ingots. But I do that outdoors, and I shoot outdoors and therefore the lead stays outdoors.
 
If you happened to be a nursing mother I’d encourage you to limit your shooting and to shoot at an outdoor range.

I do change shirts when I shoot indoors, but it’s because I’m usually coming from work in a nice shirt and brass bounces off the walls and leaves soot marks on them.

Hey one other thing just came to mind. Ever burn yourself with a curling iron? Well if you shoot a pistol, as opposed to a revolver, eventually a piece of hot brass will go down your shirt, or get between your glasses and your temple, the thing to remember is that you can’t allow yourself to react to it. It will cause minor damage whereas jumping about and likely swinging your loaded gun around the room while your finger is on the trigger and you’re trying to grab a piece of brass causes real problems. You probably won’t experience this this first time you go shooting, it happens to me less than once every thousand rounds at indoor ranges, but you just never know. Not trying to scare you, you just seem to be the sort of person that prefers to think things through.
 
Some day I will get my levels checked.
Then post all the awful things I do that are ill advised so that others can compare.

If you have small children in your life and shoot indoors taking a change of clothes might not be such a bad idea. For a few rounds outdoors a few times a month I think it's overkill.
 
lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way.

Behold, redneck gold!
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Some shooters have elevated levels but nearly all from indoor shooting, reloading (brass is nasty dirty), and/or casting, combined with lack of washing after. Don't touch anything you put in your mouth until after you wash.
 
A guy I know is in his 60s. He has reloaded/shot/instructed for the better part of his life and his blood levels are normal. Unless you're pregnant, common sense should be enough to keep you from having issues with lead.
 
If you happened to be a nursing mother I’d encourage you to limit your shooting and to shoot at an outdoor range.

I do change shirts when I shoot indoors, but it’s because I’m usually coming from work in a nice shirt and brass bounces off the walls and leaves soot marks on them.

Hey one other thing just came to mind. Ever burn yourself with a curling iron? Well if you shoot a pistol, as opposed to a revolver, eventually a piece of hot brass will go down your shirt, or get between your glasses and your temple, the thing to remember is that you can’t allow yourself to react to it. It will cause minor damage whereas jumping about and likely swinging your loaded gun around the room while your finger is on the trigger and you’re trying to grab a piece of brass causes real problems. You probably won’t experience this this first time you go shooting, it happens to me less than once every thousand rounds at indoor ranges, but you just never know. Not trying to scare you, you just seem to be the sort of person that prefers to think things through.
I do like to think things thru, but hot casings down my boob(s) had never occurred to me....so thanks a lot!!! Lol
 
Take some hand wipes and move on with your day.
 
If the indoor range has proper ventilation, this isn't a problem.

When you're done shooting, make a quick trip to the bathroom and wash your hands with warm, soapy water. 'Cause that's what you are supposed to do ANY time you're working on something where you might get dirty or germy, right? Work on your car, wash your hands. Do some weeding in your garden, wash your hands. Change the diaper on the baby, wash your hands. Take care of your sick child, wash your hands. No different.

Clothes...wash 'em just like anything else.

We're not talking about rolling around in Lead dust. We're not talking about Lead mining or Lead smelting, or even very much in the line of heavy exposure to Lead handling, outside of loading/unloading the firearms. We're not talking about exposing oneself to high enough levels of Lead to actually cause any long term health issues. Simple and reasonable precautions are all that it takes.
 
I wouldnt worry about it.

This!

My Dad has been casting, reloading and shooting for over 40 years. The State of NY called him last year and said his lead levels were slightly increased. Like .00001 too much or something. He laughed and said I hope so. The dimwit warned him about the health issues. My Dad said well if I make it another 40 years I'll be 121.
 
Take some hand wipes and move on with your day.
Good idea! I started carrying a tiny bottle of no rinse body wash in my purse after I picked up a container of chicken in the store and it leaked. I didn't have anything but Kleenex and that didn't do much for me. The no rinse has come in very handy, in its little spray bottle.
 
I keep wet wipes in my range bag.
And in most of my bags.
And car.
 
I was given a link to s women's site and some of the info was about lead. Do we need to take separate clothes to change into after shooting, including shoes? She said it's to keep the lead from getting in the car. Is there that much lead getting out really? It's kind of got me freaked out! Not enough to not shoot, just wondering....as always. I'm really keeping you hopping with all the questions! I'm not really a child asking "why?" a million times a day. Lol. How do you guys and girls deal with the lead issue?
Edit on original post: I guess as a cancer survivor, I might overreact slightly, sometimes, to a possible health issue in the making! Lol. All the responses have been great, and I'm OK with the possible amount of exposure!
 
Just got back the blood/lead results from my doc. Figured I would check them since I started shooting and reloading a bunch over the last few years. Normal levels are like 10.0 and mine are at 11.8. They want me to check in with the county health dept for treatment. Not sure what that's all about. Anyone else gone through this process?
 
Just got back the blood/lead results from my doc. Figured I would check them since I started shooting and reloading a bunch over the last few years. Normal levels are like 10.0 and mine are at 11.8. They want me to check in with the county health dept for treatment. Not sure what that's all about. Anyone else gone through this process?
The doctor that diagnosed you wants you to go to the county for “treatment” that’s fishy unless you’re homeless or a county employee.
 
The doctor that diagnosed you wants you to go to the county for “treatment” that’s fishy unless you’re homeless or a county employee.
My thoughts exactly. Just got the note tonight. Trying to get more info from doc before doing anything with the county.
 
Just got back the blood/lead results from my doc. Figured I would check them since I started shooting and reloading a bunch over the last few years. Normal levels are like 10.0 and mine are at 11.8. They want me to check in with the county health dept for treatment. Not sure what that's all about. Anyone else gone through this process?
Now that I've gotten to know the guys at my range pretty well, any lead questions I have I ask them, since they're around it all the time and get tested a lot! LOL.
 
Just got back the blood/lead results from my doc. Figured I would check them since I started shooting and reloading a bunch over the last few years. Normal levels are like 10.0 and mine are at 11.8. They want me to check in with the county health dept for treatment. Not sure what that's all about. Anyone else gone through this process?
In NC if your blood lead levels are higher than recommended it is reported to the county health dept, then the state. Been there done that...

Tom
 
Just got back the blood/lead results from my doc. Figured I would check them since I started shooting and reloading a bunch over the last few years. Normal levels are like 10.0 and mine are at 11.8. They want me to check in with the county health dept for treatment. Not sure what that's all about. Anyone else gone through this process?
They want to rule out water and other public safety issues. That's about it.

I literally clean hundreds of guns a week. Bare handed. Got all my levels checked during a health scare in April. Numbers were fine. So my opinion wash hands before eating or drinking, and try not to breath in too much dust and you should be good
 
I have seen recommendations to wash with cold water instead of hot - hot opens up the skin pores, letting in the lead. So that's what I have always done, but I don't really have a source for that any more.
 
I smelt lead, cast bullets, reload, and shoot. Lead levels are fine last time I had them checked. Main thing is you reload, WET tumble that brass. Using a dry tumbler is probably the most harmful think you can do if you are worried about lead. Tons of lead dust in that dry media. When you open it, separate it, even handle the "clean brass" after it comes out you are coating everything with fine lead dust. Had, clothes, reloading equipment, etc. Wet tumble, no dust. Just pour that nasty black water out and rinse your brass a couple times. Truly clean brass!
 
I was given a link to s women's site and some of the info was about lead. Do we need to take separate clothes to change into after shooting, including shoes? She said it's to keep the lead from getting in the car. Is there that much lead getting out really? It's kind of got me freaked out! Not enough to not shoot, just wondering....as always. I'm really keeping you hopping with all the questions! I'm not really a child asking "why?" a million times a day. Lol. How do you guys and girls deal with the lead issue?
Go to Amazon and by lead off hand wipes
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