call me childish, but i enjoy loading and unloading my shotgun. It's the next best thing to shooting it. Hunting permits are expensive (well the permits aren't but "buying" deer or other animals is) , so I'm going to hold off on that for a while. But there are these lead warning about shells I've read. Is it true you can get lead poisoning from handling shells? Also, is it legal to shoot trees? Can I do this without the whole town running toward the sound of the shot or the cops giving me trouble? it's hard to find a "middle of nowhere" where i live.
You will only acquire lead poisoning if you overly suck your fingers with lead on them, eat without washing your lead-covered hands, get it into an open wound, or if you let it linger on your skin for hours upon hours. Ingestion is the typical means of lead poisoning: a.k.a. Lead Paint never killed anyone, but eating it can make you sick. It can also be ingested through the nose if it become airborne. Some older spray-paint contained led and if you used it without a mask and breathed it, it would get in your lungs and cause problems. This is also a good reason to make sure any indoor range you attend has a good, forced ventilation system.
Shooting trees on private land is legal, so long as it is allowed by owner and it is legal to discharge a firearm in that location. Shooting trees on public land is illegal.
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Don't let their ignorance and hate intimidate.
You will only acquire lead poisoning if you overly suck your fingers with lead on them, eat without washing your lead-covered hands, get it into an open wound, or if you let it linger on your skin for hours upon hours. Ingestion is the typical means of lead poisoning: a.k.a. Lead Paint never killed anyone, but eating it can make you sick.
Shooting trees on private land is legal, so long as it is allowed by owner and it is legal to discharge a firearm in that location. Shooting trees on public land is illegal.
i'll be sure not overly suck my fingers. So can I shoot in my backyard? How do i find out if it is legal to shoot in my location? I'm actually going to be moving soon, so i shouldn't shoot any trees back there, any ideas for targets?
I am not sure what that warning pertains to? If you handle brass loaded with lead bullets, lead can surly transfer to your hands, which you then may ingest when you eat your sandwich later. But washing your hands takes care of that. As far as getting lead transfer from a shotgun shell, sounds pretty iffy to me.
If you are worried about it, get a lead test with your next physical. Mine gets thrown in for free if I tell them I may have had exposure. Mine was a 5 last time, and I donated blood since then, so assuming I am down to a 4 (heh).
Someone else will have to handle the tree issue. I am pretty sure destroying vegetation on City/State/Fed owned land is a crime in my state, but not 100% on that issue.
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well there are a lot of things to consider with the trees. If you shoot a tree, it has a high probability to ricoche off to one side or the other, as well as splinter the wood and send those splinters flying. General rule is that if you are shooting in fairly flat land, if there is a reasonable belief anyone is within 1000 yards within 60 degrees of the direction you are shooting, it isn't really a good idea.
Laws will dictate your ability to discharge your firearm in whatever location. Check State, County and City/Town laws. If you will be living on federal land (a.k.a. National Park land), federal laws will dictate.
You should also, morally, take responsibility to ensure wildlife safety. No need to cause lead poisoning to a woodpecker if you can avoid it.
If you are legally able to discharge your firearm wherever you may be, I suggest getting a large box and packing it tight with newspaper, perpendicular (UP & DOWN as if you were reading it) to your line of shot. Wetting the newspaper will also aid in creating a solid backstop. Store the box in an outbuilding or something when not in use so as to protect wildlife.
This works well for a centerfire rifle cartridge. Perhaps others can provide a good option for shotgun fire.
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Don't let their ignorance and hate intimidate.
you generally get lead poisoning through consumption of contaminated foods and water
(ie romans using lead water pipes, or when canned foods first came out they had lead in the cans, i think thats why one of the many expeditions to the arctic failed or almost failed)
You can inhale it in closed quarters such as indoor firing ranges. Some of the older members on this forum that engaged in lots of indoor shooting might test high with lead. Once it is in the body it never leaves to my knowledge.
Im referring to lead pistol shooters I have heard of, esp pilots that noticed something amiss at high altitudes. When tested for lead they were found high. Most indoor shooting ranges are ventilated to get rid of the lead gas vapor created from shooting lead.
I'm not an expert in this and only relaying what others with pilot buddies have told me.
a box of newspapers sounds like a good idea. I know it works very well for .22 and 7.62x39 if you pack it thick enough. For a shotgun I don't see why it wouldn't work. It'd just tear up a little sooner.
You can inhale it in closed quarters such as indoor firing ranges. Some of the older members on this forum that engaged in lots of indoor shooting might test high with lead. Once it is in the body it never leaves to my knowledge.
Im referring to lead pistol shooters I have heard of, esp pilots that noticed something amiss at high altitudes. When tested for lead they were found high. Most indoor shooting ranges are ventilated to get rid of the lead gas vapor created from shooting lead.
I'm not an expert in this and only relaying what others with pilot buddies have told me.
I think it leaves your body, just very slowly.
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Why would you want to shoot defenseless Trees ??? Thats just Wrong !
It is Illegal to shoot inside of most city Limits in America...
+1 if your within city limits you will be in big trouble, and probly labled a wacko unjustly
not sure if someone else mentioned it or not, i didnt see itif they did but prolonged exposer to lead can also make you insane, this takes LOTS of lead over a period of time but it is a real danger.
at least thats what ive always been tought.
Last edited by squirrelblaster; 03-13-2008 at 09:25 PM.
Hey, I breath lead for 11 hours a day, and I'm fine.
Sucklead, what do you do? are you around a solder machine?
We all need to be aware of the these elements, mercury, lead, cadmium, chromium, they are every where in our daily activities. The new "green" light bulbs contains mercury, you don't want to break these in your home.
Some leads melt at a low 302/312°F and the blast will vaporize on the lead down the barrel and the primer, use to have a small amount of mercury which will be in a hot vapor also. The blood will pick up these H=heavy M=metals in the lungs. The HM's will remain in our bones, hair and body parts for a very long time, we don't past it like food and water.
Check the RoHS codes/laws web sites.
The big deal to replace the regular gas with the no lead gas back in the '70's, was to reduce the chances of children getting brain damage [no, they use hair spray, dust be gone, spray paint in a can, etc. to get their brain damage] just watch what you are doing, don't eat or drink around this stuff, don't put your dirty fingers up your nose, in your mouth or ears---don't it either. Git the lead out! go do some shooting,
Last edited by LakerDad; 03-14-2008 at 12:34 AM.
Reason: updates
Gawd, when I was a kid we all had lead melting kits for casting lead toy soldiers and other things, we made fishing weights, we played with mercury, on and on. None of us have died yet, and I'm 52.
a box of newspapers sounds like a good idea. I know it works very well for .22 and 7.62x39 if you pack it thick enough. For a shotgun I don't see why it wouldn't work. It'd just tear up a little sooner.
that sounds like a good idea, but the same restrictions prbly apply unless no one hears it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by squirrelbaster
+1 if your within city limits you will be in big trouble, and probly labled a wacko unjustly
is there any land in america that isn't a named city? except maybe the nevada desert and mountain ranges like the sierras. seems like an awful lot of trouble to find a place like this just to try out my damn gun. can't go to shooting ranges, i don't think and skeet shooting is almost as expensive as hunting.
Since the lead pellets are encased in plastic and you do not actually come in contact with the lead, I doubt if you would have any concerns, however, I have heard that with lead poisoning, you may obtain an uncontrollable desire to shoot trees. Please do not shoot trees. Make you some targets as mentioned above. City limits are usually a no no, and shooting toward neighbors most likely end up with some bad ju ju coming your way. Find a range or family or friend with some land that will be OK to shoot on. Be safe and considerate to others and you should be OK. Good Luck!!!
***************************************************** All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing
