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Lead Moulds, Equipment & Safety Information

For decades lead has been used by anglers for fishing weights. In the fresh water side of the industry, lead has been replaced by a non-toxic material. This is to stop wildlife becoming poisoned by the small weights used. In the sea fishing side, lead weights from a couple of ounces up to a couple of pounds are used and therefore do not represent a problem.

As mentioned in the Terminal Tackle section there are many different shapes and sizes of weights used. All have a purpose though. They hold the bait close to the bottom of the seabed.

Making your own lead weights can be a cheaper option than buying them from your local tackle shop and can also make the experience of catching the fish more pleasurable because you made the weight yourself..

Below are a couple of lead moulds that can be purchased from shops or internet auction sites.

Safety Information

• ALWAYS wear safety glasses when melting lead. These can be bought from you local DIY store.
• Always ensure that your burner / stove is located on a stable, level surface and will not rock or move in any way shape or form. If you are using the kitchen cooker, so much the better but if your cooker is a gas cocker, ensure the pot stands are correctly located.
• When using the smaller portable burners, it is essential that it is stable and on a level surface.
• ALWAYS ensure that you have adequate ventilation when melting lead. A through draft is best with air coming in through a door and out of a door / window. Lead fumes are dangerous. Always wear a facemask. These can be purchased from all the major DIY shops.
• NEVER attempt to move a pot of molten lead. When you have finished making your weights / lures, always wait for the lead pot to cool down prior to moving it.
• A fire blanket and a powder fire extinguisher should always be on hand before you start melting. NEVER pour water onto molten lead, IT WILL EXPLODE VIOLENTLY spitting molten lead all over the place.
• Always wear heat resistant gloves when handling hot moulds. These can be purchased from you local DIY shop.
• It is best to mould leads on your own. Do not have a radio on, switch off your mobile and ask the family not to disturb you. If you are moulding with someone, establish a few basic ground rules i.e. do not talk to each other when pouring, do not talk to each other when handling hot moulds, in fact, do not talk when you are making leads. Focus on what you are doing and that alone. Decide what you are going to make before you start.
• Once you have started and made lets say 100 leads and your lead pot is getting low, ALWAYS ensure that the lead you are going to put in to top the pot up is dry. Lead is best stored inside at all times as rain will work its way into the folds and creases. When you put it into the pot, as it starts to melt the water runs into the molten lead and it will cause a minor explosion spitting hot lead all over the place.

Equipment

To melt and pour the lead you require equipment that can withstand the high temperatures involved. Stainless steel pans and ladels are in my opinion the best thing to use. Here are some pictures of the type of pots and ladels you require.

Gloves are an essential requirement. Ones that have an extended arm cover are best. They must also be quite thick to help combat the heat. These can be purchased from DIY shops or off the internet.

Goggles / Face Shield. Protection of the eyes is paramount. Goggles at the very minimum should be used and can be bought cheaply these days. A full face shield would be a better option but it comes at slightly more expense. What price do you value your face at?

Face Mask (Respiratory Protective Equipment - RPE) can be worn when the environment you are making the leads in is not sufficiently ventilated. Personally I would use one anyway whatever environment you are in. There are a vast amount of face masks available on the market. Some with removable filters and some with fixed. I personally have a half face mask with removable filters. These can be purchased from most DIY stores or the internet.

Cookers or Burners are used to melt the lead. You need to get the lead to 327.46 °C (621.43 °F) for it to melt. therefore you need something that can do that. A normal kitchen gas cooker can do this and so can the electrical version. In saying this the electrical one will take longer to heat up. Camping gas stoves/burners can also be used. These make it easier for making leads outside and therefore well ventilated.

Some such burners can be seen below.

Making Weights

• When starting up, place the lead pot on the stove and turn on the heat. Depending on the output of your stove / cooker it will take time to melt the lead. Once melted, you will find that there is a layer of scum/ rubbish on the top of the lead. This must be skimmed off thoroughly before you attempt to make anything as these impurities will cause defects in the finished surface of your leads / lure. Do this by using your ladle and tip the scum into a biscuit tin or metal bucket remembering that it is HOT. Place this tin / bucket somewhere safely away from children and animals so it can cool down.

• Now continue to heat the lead until you have a colour-hardened film over the surface. When this is achieved, the lead is at the correct temperature for pouring. The scum will begin to reform whilst you are working so periodically skim it off by repeating the process detailed above.

• Always heat your moulds prior to use. This can be done by placing them next to the stove or by pouring lead into them with and leaving it in the mould for a minute or two, removing the lead / lure and repeating it again. Do this three or four times and the mould will come up to the required temperature and the lead will pour properly, filling the cavity properly and producing a perfect moulding.

• From time to time, the lead will not run properly and you will end up with a miss shaped lead / lure. Simply remove and place to one side. Do not be tempted to simply drop it back in the pot of molten lead as it will splash and may cause injury. After a while, you will probably have a few miss shapes, these should be placed into the ladle and gently lowered into the pot. Then simply invert the ladle.

• When moulding pirks, do not use scrap sheet or pipe lead on its own. This will produce a very soft pirk that will bend very easily and you will find that you send a perfectly shaped Norway pirk down to the seabed at the beginning of the drift and at the end of the drift you will wind up a banana shaped pirk. Go to your nearest tyres centre and ask them for some scrap wheel weights. You may need to part with a few quid to buy 200 lbs of scrap weights but you will have an important ingredient for you pirks. When you get them home, pour a few pounds at a time into a garden sieve which is inside a bin liner and give them a good shack to remove all dust. Sort out rubber valves and any other rubbish there may be in there and pour the cleaned wheel weights into a bucket. When you come to melt down your lead put both scrap lead and wheel weights into the pot at 60% scrap lead + 40% wheel weights. Melt this down and skim the lead off thoroughly ensuring you remove ALL the floating debris before you start pouring. Now when you make your pirks you will have a pirk which will not bend. Test the first ones you make by dropping them into a bucket of water (well away from your lead pot). Once cool, try to bend them. If you can, add more wheel weights to the lead pot and repeat the process until you have a hard pirk. Too much wheel weight will make them too hard and they will become brittle allowing you to snap them when you try to bend them. A little practice will see you establish what the mix should be.

• When you have finished making your pirks or lures, set about cleaning them up with a file and remove all the burrs and sharp edges. Once done you can now powder coat or paint them as you wish. Simply prime your lures with a matt white primer, paint them with glow in the dark paint and when dry, apply the pre cut / shaped tape your pirk / lure to give a terrific fish catching finish.

• When powder coating pirks at home, it has been found that a very good finish can be achieved by heating the pirk then apply the powder coating from a large pepper pot.