“It seems to me that one recycled car battery would provide enough lead for one person for a lifetime. 40 or 50 pounds”.
I can recall reading on various reloading forums that there is a danger of cadmium poisoning if you were to use the lead from car batteries. They recommended against it, suggesting that you contact local scrap yards for recycled lead (lead pipes and roof sheathing from old houses, etc.).
I’d bet a lot of redneck reloaders would use car battery lead anyhow. Cadmium produces a toxic vapor when heated to the melting point of lead, so if cadmium alloyed lead must be melted, it shouldn’t be done in confined quarters and breathing of the vapors should be strictly avoided. There’s probably also a jillion environmental laws against it, but who’s checking?
“I can recall reading on various reloading forums that there is a danger of cadmium poisoning if you were to use the lead from car batteries.”
I’m pretty familiar with the chemistry involved in car batteries, and cadmium isn’t there.