How to rule-out if there's lead in a pipe's alloy?

Question

I have a 2" diameter, 6" long pipe that I believe to be steel and want to use IF it is, heck I want to use it if it's OK to handle (ie not lead, arsenic etc..guess I can only rule-out so much!), it is very clearly a single-alloy pipe and has no markings (it is from a trunk of old car-parts, I suspect it was a suspension-spring housing or something similar, just a strong tube)

I'm usually able to comfortably distinguish metals but wanna be sure here, is there any ways to rule-out lead w/o getting a lead-test-kit? This tube:

is magnetic,
does not quickly rust (and shows bright-silver upon scratching; is hard-to-scratch)
is very rigid (no malleability, hard on the grinder, makes a sharp 'ping' noise when flicked not the dull 'bang' of tapping lead)

Can rule-out that it's not pure-lead but have no idea if such products are typically steel-alloys, pot-metal-alloys or what....the use-case would have me handling this pipe so I wanna find out for sure, I don't weld so was very psyched to find a piece of metal precisely as-needed for a project but gotta figure out if this metal can be safely held!

Lead can be held safely... Just don't eat it and wash your hands. If it is old, is most likely contains some trace amount of lead, as it was a common additive to make machining easier. — MadHatter, Jun 25 '20 at 04:35
@MadHatter write that as an answer, as it contains more info... — Solar Mike, Jun 25 '20 at 07:56
If it is thin, 0.05 to 0.10 " , it is likely a piece of exhaust pipe ( 13 % chrome probably). — blacksmith37, Jun 25 '20 at 18:32

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 25 '20 at 11:50

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Lead can be held safely... Just don't eat it and wash your hands. If it is old, is most likely contains some trace amount of lead, as it was a common additive to make machining easier.

answered Jun 25 '20 at 11:50

MadHatter

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score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jun 25 '20 at 21:36

Contact an accredited laboratory and ask what they would need as a sample. You may need to cut a short piece off the end of the pipes or by using a grinder, or similar, obtain separate ground samples of the pipes and send them to the laboratory.

Assuming you live in the US, the California Department of Public Health has a website with information. Use this as guide or contact the health depart where you live for more details specific to your region.

niels nielsen · Answer 3 · 2020-06-25T16:08:40.340

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your tests suggest that the pipe is just iron or steel and safe to hold. Certain special steel alloys called free-machining steel or ledloy have lead in them but they are not used to make pipe.

edited Jun 25 '20 at 16:08

answered Jun 25 '20 at 06:18

niels nielsen

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The comment suggests it can be held safely, if that is relevant should you add it to your answer? – Solar Mike Jun 25 '20 at 07:56
will edit right now. -NN – niels nielsen Jun 25 '20 at 16:08

blacksmith37 · Answer 4 · 2020-06-25T18:26:11.043

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Steels are ferro-magnetic except for annealed austenitic stainless steels. The only metal that is pipe material that is ( except for the occasional heat of monel). Pipe would never be made of free-machining leaded ( 0.1 % Pb) steels. What is your obsession with lead ? It was the choice for better grade water pipes from Roman times through most of the nineteenth century.

edited Jun 25 '20 at 18:26

answered Jun 25 '20 at 14:57

blacksmith37

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The word "plumber" is derived from plumbum , Latin or Greek for lead. So, someone who worked with lead (pipe). – blacksmith37 Jun 25 '20 at 18:40

How to rule-out if there's lead in a pipe's alloy?

4 Answers4