Post by: Three Hawks on March 24, 2009, 12:33:04 AM
It's a good idea to do this out of doors while wearing a respirator. Even better, get the smart aleck know it all teen age block head down the street to do it. Just tell him it can't be done.
When drilling go slow and use a lube, kerosene's good.
Three Hawks
Post by: Hank in WV on March 24, 2009, 06:00:08 AM
Post by: Fletcher on March 24, 2009, 04:38:59 PM
Probaly the case for some of those attorneys windwaler was talking about in his recnt just for laughs!
Post by: Uncle Russ on March 24, 2009, 05:57:56 PM
:lol
As dangerous as it is, many old timers, myself included, played with it for many years, during our own formative years, and it was all without any noticeable ill effects.
At one time I had a half-pint jar full of the stuff. That little jar must have weighed an easy 10# and about every kid in El Paso County, at one time or another, dropped their "steel ball" in it as it was "supposed" to give better english for position while shooting marbles.....shooting marbles was a dead serious game back in the day.
It made pennies look like dimes and you could quite often fool the sweet old lady at the General Story and get a soda pop or "grapette" for all your cheating effort.
It also made horseshoe nails look like silver bullets when they were flattened and used as arrow heads.
With a quick dip, Lead round ball looked to be pure silver, and it was really cool to always have a few on hand in case you ever run into a Werewolf or three.
It also made old worn out knives look like brand new, and best of all it would wipe out a colony of fire ants, as well as a patch of Blackberry briars with less than a spoon full.....yep, this old Mad Hatter's stuff had many uses other than treating hats, and filling thermometers.
How did it do all this fun stuff?..... It was magic, of course.
Uncle Russ...
Post by: R.M. on March 24, 2009, 06:03:46 PM
Post by: rollingb on March 24, 2009, 06:09:22 PM
Post by: Uncle Russ on March 24, 2009, 06:11:04 PM
I figured everyone could see that the properties of Mercury involved in the hardening process could well be attributed to the fact that it is magic, pure magic.
:lol
Uncle Russ...
Post by: Hank in WV on March 24, 2009, 06:16:41 PM
Post by: Riley/MN on March 24, 2009, 06:28:02 PM
Quote from: "RussB"
...and it was all without any noticeable ill effects...
Umm, noticeable by whom??
Post by: Uncle Russ on March 24, 2009, 07:09:52 PM
Quote from: "Hank in WV"
Altough I didn't have quite as good of an imagination as you Russ, I too played with mercury as a kid. I still use it today in a manometer to sync. multi-carb engines to measure vacuum in inches of merc. I believe I also have about a 1/2 pint left. I was just wondering about the quenching process using it.
Hank, now don't you tell me you've never slain any dragons, saved any maidens in distress, fired "silver bullets" in your rifle gun, or saw any Werewolves while growing up.
In the early 1940's this country was full of such things! Big, Mean things, things that only a young boy with a good imagination could work out and over come.
:rotf
Maybe ol' 3-Hawks will enlighten us a bit on how this works when he gets back to this thread.
I am, and always have been, totally amazed at the reaction of some folks when Mercury or Lead is mentioned.
You would think it was the most venomous stuff ever created, causing instant death, blindness, and severe mental retardation that would affect generation upon generation of those who even glanced at it sideways....
I do not disagree with the Government Warnings that accompanies both Lead & Mercury. But I do disagree with the fear tactics that often come as a means of enforcement. But then, maybe it's necessary, I am not one to say.
I'm sure the cribs my kids had when they were babies were all painted with lead based paint. I'm sure breathing fumes from a lead pot when casting is detrimental to ones health, I am also sure that Mad Hatters Disease is very real and the Government had every right to step in with guide lines on the usage of Mercury.
The thing I do not agree with is their being so adamant on it effecting everyone in the same way as their most extreme cases show...it just ain't that way.
Although Mercury and Lead poison can come from the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the water we bathe in, it is all to often the shooter, caster, and mechanic or "smith" that carries the burden of blame....it just ain't that way.
Rant over!
(I hate to get started on subjects like this because I don't know when to quite....that's when laughter is truly the best medicine)
Uncle Russ...
Post by: oomcurt on March 24, 2009, 07:16:49 PM
Post by: Fletcher on March 24, 2009, 07:26:01 PM
When I was about 20, I took about 20 old mercury wetted relays that were supposed to have been HAZMAT'd and tore them apart. I put the Mercury in a chemical jar. (Still have some of it)
I then took some of my .41 Magnum Hollow point pistol rounds and carefully drilled a .25" hole into the hollow point just to the base of the bullet. Then I filled the hole with Mercury just to the apex of the hole. I then carefully soldered a 1/4" steel ball onto the top of the bullet sealing in the Mercury and provided a 'ram' for the hydraulics I was endeavoring.
(I did all this outside with good ventialation)
Then I took the pistol to an old farm field and took careful aim at an old wooden fence post about 15 yards away (about a foot from the top) Looked around - aimed - fired........
The top of that fence post blew off like it had been set with C-4!
I had to try on a couple more - same Dramatic results. Then I went hope quite proud of myself.
I will not say how many rounds I did this to, how many I may have left, or the address of that now toxic waste site.
If you do not hear from me again check with my wife and kids to see if men in black suits hauled me off.
Post by: Gordon H.Kemp on March 24, 2009, 07:30:56 PM
My father always had a quater pint or so in the shop. If I'm not mistaken it was used when making babbit for main bearings and connecting rod I think it was also used to find color when panning gold.
Post by: Mike Ameling on March 24, 2009, 10:44:12 PM
So here dentists are putting mercury in you mouth - without the full cautious health studies to make sure none leaches out into your system - especially when in contact with some foods/liquids.
Yeah, I think I could still find my little bottle of ... quicksilver ... if I needed to. Fun stuff to play with - especially when you "freeze" some.
Ah, the little ... toys ... we used to play with.
Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands
p.s. Who needs depleted uranium rounds when you have a little mecury and some steel drillbits around?
Post by: BEAVERMAN on March 24, 2009, 11:37:16 PM
Post by: Three Hawks on March 25, 2009, 02:05:27 AM
I do think, as Russ does, that far too many folks tend to panic when the words "heavy metal" are used. Because he knows I cast bullets, work with pewter and shoot, my doc tests me for lead about every six months. So far I'm well below "average" whatever that is.
[size=150]"WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE !!"[/size] Bullfeathers.
RE: compact fluorescents. I have at least 250 incandescent lamps of varying wattages, most in 130v. Those tend to last for at least five years. Enough to last me the rest of my life. The rest of Y'all are on your own. I recommend stocking up on 'em. A 75w 130V lamp gives about the same light as a 120V 60w and lasts five or more years in a similar application. Do your own math.
Three Hawks.