science

I grew up fishing using lead split shot sinkers. The common practice is biting down on them to crimp them onto the line. Lead is still the standard. I don't want to think about how much of that is in my system.

I always put a condom on my gun for extra protection

You know, I don't think guns are very safe.

Pistol ranges largely indoors with running water.

Rifle ranges largely rural outdoors. No running water.

Is it possible the political divide in this country is people with lead poisoning vs. those without it?

Currently there is a push for hunters to switch to all copper bullets. The bullet technology has gotten good enough that solid copper bullets can be designed in a way to consistently petal and create big wound channels. They're obviously more expensive so I stick with lead for the range and practice.

At the learn to hunt deer class I went to they reviewed a study that showed that lead bullets fragment and shed when they hit the target. The study shot a hog cadaver (iirc), and noted that when they scanned the result they found lead up to 16" away from the impact point and that it was probably even further but their scanner was limited to scanning just that size. The class then demonstrated shooting an all copper bullet at a series of water jugs in a bullet trap to show how it petals.

All that to say, this is a current topic in the hunting community and people are switching away from lead. More and more manufacturers are making copper core bullets and they're coming down in price. If you're interested Barnes is the go to manufacturer for these right now.

Edit: Also bird shot moved away from lead a long time ago. It's not even legal to use it anymore.

Edit 2: Turns out lead bird shot isn't illegal to use, it's only outright banned for water fowl hunting. https://www.fws.gov/story/2022-04/nontoxic-shot-regulations-hunting-waterfowl-and-coots-us. You should also check your local laws, here in Wisconsin it's also banned for mourning dove hunting.

In 1991, the US Fish and Wildlife Service launched a nationwide ban on lead shot for waterfowl hunting to reduce the number of lead shot falling into waterbodies. Since the inception of dove hunting in Wisconsin in 2003, the DNR has prohibited the use of lead shot for hunting mourning doves on state-managed lands.

In my mind I just equated that with being banned all together. Who wants to study the law just to find out when they can use toxic shot?

Ohhhhh

I'm not surprised. People don't even wash their hands after using the rest room.

Since a few people in the thread seem to think lead ammunition is illegal in the US, it’s not. It’s only illegal for shooting waterfowl nationwide, and entirely banned in the state of California.

doesn't lead toxicity cause aggressive behavior? Seems like a pretty bad mix. Almost like you could hypothesize a correlation between our current political climate and lead exposure.

Wouldn't it be crazy if we could solve a big chunk of our political issues by just banning lead in stuff?

Oh so THAT'S where MAGA got the brain damage.

The sad part is that it's not that hard. No food or open drinks at the range, wash your hands/forearms with lead removal soap, change and toss your clothes/gloves into the washer with lead removing detergent. It's a ritual my household performs whenever we finish shooting and it means my preferred range clothes and gloves are always clean for the next visit.

Lead removal soaps and detergents are affordable and abundant. If you're exposed to heavy metals either through shooting or work then pick a few up.

Edit: also lead removal wipes! Super convenient when you're somewhere without water for washing. They come individually packaged as well.

Not washing up after shooting seems insane to me. My range even has warnings posted about washing your hands and not eating or drinking. There's even a sink in the back!

Shooting firearms is messy and dirty. You get all kinds of oils, fouling, lead, particulates on your upper body and hands. If there's no room at the range, I go home, clean my guns up depending on how much shooting was done, then wipe up and shower. My hands are visibly soiled after shooting a few dozen rounds.

Explains a lot

I am almost 40, I've been around guns since I was maybe 7 and I have never been warned about this before. I also have a PhD and am happy to make you feel stupid if that's your jam, but it seems like something we should be taught but aren't?

Of course we clean ourselves and our guns but I would never have said "hey hold on, I need to use an extra product before I eat my turkey sandwich". I don't prefer to smell like gunpowder, but I don't like smelling like a cow either and the cleanup was similar.

To be fair, they probably don't make a habit of practicing any hygiene behaviors, not just bullet related

Personally, I just never really thought about it. Mostly what you touch is the brass case anyway. I wash my hands pretty frequently, but that's not always an option in the woods.