Is this metal zinc?

Okay so, I ordered about 2 pounds of zinc off of ebay from a good seller. At first I suspected it wasn't zinc because it was really soft. Zinc is a soft metal but is it that soft? I asked the seller and he insisted greatly that it was melted from zinc wheel weights, however, I think otherwise because of this reasons. I experimented on the metal. I suspected lead because it leaves a residue on my bare hands after handling and because it's a tiny bit harder than lead, I also did the sound test by dropping the ingot, it did not make a blunt sound but more of a "ding". So I ruled out lead. Next, I got some zinc from a melted penny. Since I heard zinc reacts with acid to produce hydrogen, I took some metal form the ingot and the zinc from the penny and placed it in vinegar. After 1 hour, the zinc from the penny was producing hydrogen and turning into a black powder while the other did nothing at all. After a few days The zinc was totally dissolved and the other metal was still perfectly fine. Next I did a hardness test, I could not easly dent or scratch the zinc from the penny but I was able to dent the other metal easily. it's harder than lead but softer than zinc. The metal is a shiny gray color. Does anyone here know what it could be? (I haven't tried to melt it because I don't want to create toxic fumes if it is something other than zinc.)

Reply to
JoshAGS
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Do some googling to see what wheel weigh alloys are composed of.

Do a rough density check - stick your ingot in a jug & work out its volume (or measure?) weigh it down the post office. That might give you an idea if is close to the density of Zn.

The bullet makers here will know what its made from.

Reply to
just_me

The biggest ingot weighs 14 ounces and other zinc ingots of the EXACT same size weigh 10 ounces.

Reply to
JoshAGS

"JoshAGS" wrote in message news:5d383$5575177a$43de0cc0$ snipped-for-privacy@news.flashnewsgroups.com...

Weigh it suspended in and out of water. The difference in grams is its volume in milliliters. Zinc's density is around 7 grams per milliliter.

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If you need standard weights for a home-brew balance, US nickels weigh very close to 5 grams.

-jsw

Reply to
Jim Wilkins

Reply to
Ignoramus7853

More than likely it's a lead alloy. While there are zinc wheel weights they are not in popular use, lead and steel are the common ones,

As for the (I haven't tried to melt it because I don't want to create toxic fumes if it is something other than zinc.) Melting zinc CREATES VERY TOXIC fumes. Ask anyone about welding and working with galvanized metals.

Reply to
Steve W.

Melting zinc doesn't cause fumes until it gets very hot. When you see white smoke coming off it is too hot. Breathing the fumes will make you sick if you breathe enough but is unlikely to kill you. Eric

Reply to
etpm

Right. It causes "zinc fume fever," also called "metal fume fever," which has symptoms a lot like a bad flu. I had it once, when the wind direction changed on me and I didn't get out ot the way. It's not deadly, but it's really upleasant.

At a decent welding supply you can find throw-away masks made expressly for dealing with this, made by 3M. I forget what I paid for mine but it's not something you want to throw away in a hurry. I keep mine in a big zip-lock bag.

Lead fumes, on the other hand, can produce permanent neurological effects that are not nice.

Reply to
Ed Huntress

I got metal fume fever once when welding an alloy that I didn't know contained a bunch of zinc. I knew there was some from the way it was welding but didn't realize there were clouds of fumes coming out. My welding hood lens was just plain to dark. I felt really shitty for a few days and realized that I now knew what fume fever is like. Eric

Reply to
etpm

I just tested that and it does write on paper. Does this mean it contains lead?

Reply to
JoshAGS

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