Homemade weights for us working class folks!

[Deac in the Wake]

Just a tip that's worked very well for me:

If you have a food saver/vacuum sealer, you can use the bagging material (usually tough, freezer-grade plastic) as your lead bag. Once the correct weight is in, vacuum seal the bag (I do it repeatedly along the seams) and then slide it into the protective fabric bag. Reduces air inside (though this is just not a problem when diving) but it also keeps the shot relatively compressed. It's more rigid than soft-shot but certainly less than hard weights.

If you have a problem with the bags losing vacuum, I've had success with simply vacuuming baging twice (one bag inside a second, both vacuum sealed).

Just an FYI. Good thread.

 

[NSMEDIC]

When I first strated 10 years ago I did my open water with soft lead..would love to make my own. Like to take my belt and make pouches that can slip on and off my belt..nothing permanent

 

[Doc]

Molding your own: Handling molten Lead is 1000x more dangerous than any issues from Lead contact or leaching into water.

If you screw-up, molten Lead can exhibit almost explosive characteristics. (DAAquaMaster tells us that above)

Stick to using lead shot (like Lockdown reminded us), buy it at most any gun shop or trap/skeet ranges in 25# sacks. The size called #8 is about the size of a ballpoint tip, but the common sizes of #7.5 thru #9 - they will all be about the same for our purposes.

Tie them up in a couple of layers of pantyhose. The issue of Lead leaching is just this side of irrelevant.

 

[diver 85]

Find you some lead, buy a 3lb mold, & git wit it.......-My Father reloads & over 20 years ago I did that ie made almost 50 3 lb ones......All are still in great shape & working perfectly too...

 

[Mopar]

I have used ziplock bags with rocks, washers, even old nuts and bolts. I just weighed them out. Now I have real weights from a LDS. I did this to get my weight correct so I did not buy alot of extra weight I will not need.

 

[netdiver]

I read your DIY on the weights, and you did a good job. I do strongly suggest buying the ready made nylon bags made specifically for this instead of plastic storage bags.

It's good to see people contributing. However, I feel like I'm missing something.

You can buy new soft weights online on eBay for $100 w/ shipping and that provides 52 lbs of weight in a sealed nylon pouch. 4@6lb + 4@4lb + 2@3lb + 2@2lb + 2@1lb. That would cover my girlfriend and I for any configuration we've been diving in. We only dive wet up to 5ml of neoprene.

You can buy used soft weights on eBay, Craig's list, etc for each even cheaper. Less than half of that cost.

Time invested. Less than 5 min shopping online.

Risk from playing with and handling lead. None.

If you invested $80 as stated, the total savings over buying new would only be $20. But then that was based on using ziplock bags which I'm not keen on. I would need something more durable such as a nylon bag and the fact that the ones above are sealed is a bonus, although I'm not sure that actually has any real benefit.

To make those weights yourself you would need to invest significant man hours to buy all the materials and assemble the weights. Plus the first few one would make would probably be practice and mistakes.

Plus the health risk of playing with lead to make them, although I can't quantify that or know whether its a real risk.

If you buy used soft weights instead you would actually be spending more money to make your own. It only takes 5 min. once a month to search eBay or Craig's list to continue buying weights super cheap.

I just don't see the economics of making your own weights.

If the argument is "I'm a DIYer" then enough said. It's a hobby and you don't need to justify any cost. Hell, I spend all kinds of cash on doing something myself if I enjoy it even though there is a much cheaper route.

 

[Trimix2dive]

I have never seen anybody use weight lifting weights as dive weights put into a ziplock bags in their dive pockets.

 

[JPENDERGRAST]

Problem: I'm tired of spending too much money on weights, and I would love to make my own, but this, that, and the other keep me from doing it.

Solution: Buy a steel tank.

 

[Aigtbootbp]

I've been casting bullets for years and have made my own dive weights. I used a mold I purchased online for around 15 bucks. A lead melting pot is not needed. you can smelt lead (or my favorite, wheel weights) in the mold itself. For a heat source a simple 10 dollar walmart special hot plate will work.
Simply fill the mold with wheel weights, turn on hot plate and wait. Once the wheel weights have melted skim off the steel tabs and dross off the top. Remove the mold from the hotplate and place on a flat level surface. After ten minutes or so use a pot holder to list the mold, flip it over and bang it against a hard surface (I use a piece of 2x4) the newly cast weight will drop out.
It is as simply as that.
Total cost for me was
Mold, 15.00
Hotplate 10.00
Wheel weights, free
I have somewhere around 30-40 lbs of dive weights for this price.
I have a lead smelter but it is not nearly as convenient as simply use the mold as a melting pot.

ETA;
There is no hazard from "inhaling lead fumes" since the temperatures lead is cast at is way below the temp fumes would form. The biggest danger is from handling lead and then smoking/eating/drinking with contaminated hands. As stated above the cast boolits website is a gold mine (pun intended) of information on the casting of lead.

 

[Lockdownx99]

The vacuum sealer is probably the best idea. thanks for the input.

as far as the money savings are concerned, it was going to cost me around 5$/lb. so for 25lbs, i would have paid $125. thats just for me. i have to equip my wife as well so another 15-20 lbs would have costed me around $100. im up to 225 for something that cost me a total of $80. i think that is a great savings. of course everyone finds a deal, but when you need that deal by next weekend, things just cant wait. plus i like to make things my own and this was a great opportunity to create something.