Can lead be absorved by finger´s skin ?

Bruno Almeida · Post by **Bruno Almeida** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 5:39 pm

Friends,

Anyone had the curiosity to consult a doctor, dermatologist maybe, to asure that lead cant be absorved by the contact with the skin ?

Some stop-smoking treatments, for example, are based on adesives of nicotin to the skin.

Thank you, Bruno Almeida.

Ricardo · Post by **Ricardo** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 5:53 pm

Lead metal is basically not absorbed through the skin. However, if the lead is oxidized, the oxide can permeate the skin in minuscule amounts. This is not normally a hazard for shooters. The hazard comes from touching your eyes or mouth and, primarily, ingestion from not washing hands before touching food. Even lead metal (not oxide) ingested will react with body fluids and become a lead salt, which is the toxic "kind" of lead. On any given day, the amount ingested is minimal, but lead ingestion is additive and could become significant after a long time.

Spencer · Post by **Spencer** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 6:20 pm

More or less as Ricardo has posted, but:
- metallic lead will start to form an oxidised surface immediately on exposure to the air
- not NORMALLY a major risk factor for MOST shooters, provided good hygiene is followed, but the more you handle metallic lead the greater the exposure
- anyone handling scrap lead (e.g. cleaning bullet traps, recovering lead from the backstop area, casting, etc.) needs to take additional care!
- if you are handling metallic lead a lot, get a blood lead level taken regularly (it's a bummer when it becomes elevated - it can be reduced, albeit very slowly, as the lead quickly replaces calcium in the bones, becoming difficult to remove)

Bruno Almeida · Post by **Bruno Almeida** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 6:36 pm

Thank you for the answers and here goes another:

When the pellet hits the target it produces some fragments, is it possible, with those impacts, a session of 120 shots, be produced very small fragments ("lead dust") that remain suspended in the air for a little time with the possibility to be Inhaled if the shots are taken from a very close range ? Less then 3 meters, for exemple ?

Thank you, Bruno Almeida.

Spencer · Post by **Spencer** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 7:31 pm

anything is possible, but given the specific gravity of lead and lead oxide, unlikely

in any case for indoor ranges, airflow should ALWAYS be from the firing line to the target line

have to ask, why less than 3m to the pellet trap?

Bruno Almeida · Post by **Bruno Almeida** » Fri Jan 04, 2013 8:07 pm

Unfortunetly i dont have a target carrier for the regular olimpic target, i have a corridor with 9 meters in my home but i would have to live my position to change the target after avery ~five shots, so i prefer to not live my position and shot from a very close distance, in fact 2,65 meters, in my badroom :-), my rifle stays regulated for 10 maters and the target is reduced to 0,8 cm, so the impact is aways under the "black little ball :-)", in this point of impact i placed a strap made with cutted pistol targets and a nylon cord, i try to shot and note that the rifle doesnt move or at list moves as little as possible during the trigger release and see the point of impact that i try to keep in a ~0,7 mm of spread, after ~5 shots i pull the nylon cord and move the strap to a new surface, dont leaving my position.

Thats why i am concerned about Inhalation, the badroom stays closed during the shooting with ar conditioner on.

Thank you, Bruno Almeida.

BenEnglishTX · Post by **BenEnglishTX** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 12:10 am

Spencer wrote:- if you are handling metallic lead a lot, get a blood lead level taken regularly (it's a bummer when it becomes elevated - it can be reduced, albeit very slowly, as the lead quickly replaces calcium in the bones, becoming difficult to remove)

Second this. Since I started shooting almost exclusively indoors at a very busy range where the ventilation is merely good, I get tested every 6 months. I have other blood tests that are required on that schedule, so I just add on the lead test.

The only person I ever knew who had seriously elevated lead levels from shooting an air pistol was a guy in college who spent 6 hours a day on the range, every day. The range had *no* ventilation. He didn't pay any attention to washing his hands after shooting. Add all that together and it's not surprising he had problems. As for me, I go straight from the firing lane to wash my hands before I even tell the checkout counter my lane is clear. I've had no problems.

zuckerman · Post by **zuckerman** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 9:20 am

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/ ... k-gasoline

BenEnglishTX, so what have your lead levels been like since shooting and testing?
mine went up 3-4 mgc/dl for 60000 pellets in 3 years. effects? beats me, other than the CRS that I have always had that is getting slowly worse as I age...

BenEnglishTX · Post by **BenEnglishTX** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 10:58 am

zuckerman wrote:BenEnglishTX, so what have your lead levels been like since shooting and testing?

Those regular tests give me so many numbers to digest on more pressing problems that I don't remember my precise lead numbers, only that they are within tolerances.

Rover · Post by **Rover** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 11:00 am

If you are concerned about pellet "splash", get rid of the pellet trap and go with the simple box of rags (do a search) and eliminate the problem.

Bruno Almeida · Post by **Bruno Almeida** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 11:13 am

I forgot to mention, the botton of my pellet trapp is protected with old towells, the pellets never hit the metal, but each one hits the previous and i think those hits my cause a tiny suspension of dust of lean.

Spencer · Post by **Spencer** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 2:49 pm

you could buy a lead detection kit (usually available from paint retailers) and swab around the area where you place your pellet trap...

Bruno Almeida · Post by **Bruno Almeida** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 2:54 pm

Spencer wrote:you could buy a lead detection kit (usually available from paint retailers) and swab around the area where you place your pellet trap...

Good ideia, thank you Spencer.

zuckerman · Post by **zuckerman** » Sat Jan 05, 2013 3:32 pm

http://news.consumerreports.org/safety/ ... e-lea.html

consumer reports on testing lead testing kits...
Lead Check Household Lead Test Kit, $18.45
Lead Inspector, $13

rmarsh · Post by **rmarsh** » Tue Jan 08, 2013 7:41 pm

Place cardboard, cloth or thin plastic sheets over the front of your trap. I use cardboard and then use thumbtacks or paper binder clamps to attach targets. Place the targets in the same location each time and you should end up with a series of small holes. (depending on how good of a shot you are :) )

There are only the small pellet holes in the cardboard effectively stopping most dust that might rise from the pellets. I change the cardboard frequently as it gets shot up.

PCU · Post by **PCU** » Wed Jan 09, 2013 7:48 am

Good info in CMP's “GUIDE TO LEAD MANAGEMENT FOR AIR GUN SHOOTING” at http://www.odcmp.com/Comm/publications/ ... tGuide.pdf

jamesestormmd · Post by **jamesestormmd** » Wed Jan 09, 2013 9:44 am

Consider contacting the staff at the Bullet Bunker in the US. They make traps for every thing from pellets to 50 cal BMG. These traps have a resealing membrane through which the projectile travels before being stopped. This should reduce your lead worries.