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Hey, I am new to this cool forum and I had concerns/questions pertaining to possible lead rot that seems to be present on 4 OOP Ruglud's Armoured Orcs that I own. I had originally bought these models from a fellow gamer back in the 90's.

My apologies for not finding a preexisting thread which already deals with lead rot, but I keep getting a message that says,"This thread is over 3 months old.....people will be irritated...etc."

Yes, so I was stripping old miniatures to repaint/sell when I stumbled across the 4 OOP Ruglud's Armoured Orcs.

The pewter has not only turned a dark grey on roughly 1/3 of each of the models, but it also feels as though there is a grainy/rough layer above the original lead/pewter in these areas whose thickness varies from area to area, and from miniature to miniature. If I run a needle across these miniatures a darkish grey powder comes off and I can then see shiny pewter underneath. I will have to add some photos later on as visual evidence as I currently lack a Photo-bucket or other online account to link photos.

I am bringing this to the attention of those in this forum in an effort to unearth rather or not these miniatures are suffering from this affliction, being how I do not want to unknowingly handle something that is quite possibly toxic and/or sell defective/faulty/toxic miniatures to people on eBay (as I have shifted my focus to Vampire Counts/Slaanesh/Dwarf armies).

And well, being how a lot of you not only have extensive experience with tabletop models, but a plethora of knowledge that is invaluable to all those who have a tabletop gaming hobby I just decided to sign up and utilize the awesomeness of this global community.

Well, thanks for your time and I look forward to any posts that might help to shed light upon what is going on with these models and what course of action I should take in the matter. Peace.

That is probably not lead rot as it is pewter pest. It often occurs when inferior metals are used in a casting and then that metal is exposed to air, temperature, and moisture. It's no more toxic than the material that it is forming on. If those figures are lead then it would be as toxic as the lead. Either way I wouldnt eat it.

Probably don't want to sell this stuff as it is not in a good enough condition for most people as it has this affliction. If you can salvage it, you might paint it up for your own amusement. You might be able to give it to someone if it is in decent enough condition, but making a sale with it is probably out of the question.

A bit of oxidation on white metal models isn't uncommon, after a while. Just take some fine steel wool to them and they'll be good as new. I do this as standard practice with metal models, even if they've been freshly removed from the blister. A degree of surface oxidation is inevitable and may not actually take much time or abuse to start forming - actually, I've yet to come across a metal model that looks as good out of the package as it does after a quick polish.

I wouldn't be terribly concerned about toxicity, either. Granted, there's no harm in taking reasonable precautions (disposable dust mask, safety glasses, gloves, etc.), but I wouldn't consider them a necessity, by any means. Generally, when doing things by hand, the risks are negligible if you avoid snorting, swallowing, and/or grinding the material into your eyes. If you sweep your workspace and wash your hands when you're done, you won't even have to contend with the worst of the common ailments associated with the task - a faint lingering metallic odor.