# What is the heaviest metal available to consumers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 8, 2006, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611 "2006-02-08T22:52:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2006, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/41 "2006-02-10T00:04:13Z")
> [@Duke of Rat](#): > > Slight hijack… > > Can’t you shift some gear forward in the plane and get away from having to use any dead weight?? > > /slight hijack Probably not, at least in my experience. One trick is to design them with a overlength nose, but few kits do that, certainly none that are intended to be “scale”. Using a heavy alloy doesn’t buy you much unless you have no room for ballast. without having to move your battery aft. However, putting the ballast as far forward as possible does require less of it. I haven’t seen them in a while, but you used to could buy extra-heavy brass prop nuts for exactly this reason. You could cast lead-shot epoxy mix into a spinner. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2006, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/42 "2006-02-10T02:57:03Z")
> [@Q.E.D.](#): > > [Not anymore](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bismuth). > > Ok, so it’s not going to set off any radiation alarms, but still. 😉 A 19-quintillion year half life? Did they watch a gram of it for 10 years, and _1_ atom fissed? It is strange that [sup]209[/sup]Bi is so stable, when some of its cousins have a half-life of minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2006, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/43 "2006-02-10T03:23:18Z")
> [@Duke of Rat](#): > > Slight hijack… > > Can’t you shift some gear forward in the plane and get away from having to use any dead weight?? > > /slight hijack Even better is building a light tail section; with good planning and a bit of know-how it´s easy to scrap a lot of unecessary weight from a typical model plane airframe. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2006, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/44 "2006-02-10T03:34:11Z")
Bingo. Conventional wisdom is that every gram of weight you add to the tail will require many times that in the nose to balance. We do try to put the gear as forward as possible, but often you have no choice for things like aileron/flap servos which are mounted in the wing, often behind the CG. Weight is not always a bad thing. It’s not uncommon to intentionally add many ounces of weight on a big day to get more momentum going and penetrate the wind better. “Lead sled” I’m talking high performance gliders here, btw. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2006, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/45 "2006-02-10T03:37:21Z")
Also meant to mention that space if often at a premium, especially up in the nose, hence the search for a particularly dense material. ---
**Author:** ![SciPhi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SciPhi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciPhi)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/46 "2016-09-19T19:50:07Z")
This is an old thread, but I thought I’d add this since it answers the OP’s question and this thread has a pretty high ranking. This site has exactly listed the densest metals: > **[Metals and Alloys - Densities](https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/metal-alloys-densities-d_50.html)** > > Densities of some common metals, metallic elements and alloys - aluminum, bronze, copper, iron and more. Formatting has been lost in pasting but it’s readable. They are obviously not listed in order. On the left is the metal and to the right is their density (in case that wasn’t obvious. Based on this list, I would say brass would probably be the most practical. But what do I know? Metal or Alloy Density (kg/m3) Actinium 10070 Admiralty Brass 8525 Aluminum 2712 Aluminum - melted 2560 - 2640 Aluminum - 1100 2720 Aluminum - 6061 2720 Aluminum - 7050 2800 Aluminum - 7178 2830 Aluminum bronze (3-10% Al) 7700 - 8700 Aluminum foil 2700 -2750 Antifriction metal 9130 -10600 Antimony 6690 Babbitt 7272 Barium 3594 Beryllium 1840 Beryllium copper 8100 - 8250 Bismuth 9750 Brass - casting 8400 - 8700 Brass - rolled and drawn 8430 - 8730 Brass 60/40 8520 Bronze - lead 7700 - 8700 Bronze - phosphorous 8780 - 8920 Bronze (8-14% Sn) 7400 - 8900 Brushed metal 7860 Cadmium 8640 Caesium 1873 Calcium 1540 Cast iron 6800 - 7800 Cerium 6770 Chemical Lead 11340 Chromium 7190 Cobalt 8746 Constantan 8920 Columbium 8600 Constantan 8880 Copper 8940 Cupronickel 8908 - 8940 Delta metal 8600 Duralumin 2790 Electrum 8400 - 8900 Eroded metal 7860 Europium 5243 Gallium 5907 Germanium 5323 Gold 19320 Hafnium 13310 Hatelloy 9245 Indium 7310 Inconel 8497 Incoloy 8027 Iridium 22650 Iron 7850 Lanthanum 6145 Lead 11340 Light alloy based on Al 2560 - 2800 Light alloy based on Mg 1760 - 1870 Lithium 534 Magnesium 1738 Manganese 7440 Manganese Bronze 8359 Manganin 8500 Mercury 13593 Molybdenum 10188 Monel 8360 - 8840 Neodymium 7007 Nichrome 8400 Nickel 8908 Nickel 20 8090 Nickel 200 8890 Nickel silver 8400 - 8900 Nickeline 8770 Nimonic 8100 Niobium 8570 Osmium 22610 Palladium 12160 Phosphor bronze 8900 Platinum 21400 Plutonium 19816 Red Brass 8746 Silver 10490 Sodium 971 Solder 50/50 Pb Sn 8885 Stainless Steel 7480 - 8000 Steel 7850 Tin 7280 Titanium 4500 Tungsten 19600 Uranium 18900 Vanadium 5494 White metal 7100 Wrought Iron 7750 Zinc 7135 Zirconium 6570 Yellow Brass 8470 ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/47 "2016-09-19T20:21:22Z")
Heavy metal zombie, and the OP never got the correct answer: The best nose weight is a lighter tail. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/48 "2016-09-19T20:28:12Z")
> [@David\_Simmons](#): > > I’m a firm believer in industrial safety but I don’t think it’s necessary to go overboard. > > Thousands of printers and Linotype operators handled tons of lead in type-metal (lead, tin and antimony) and breathed the fumes from the melted metal for many, many years. I would be interested in seeing life expectancy data showing that they suffered great harm. Ingested lead, such as in lead based paint, can be injurious to small children who tend to eat everything they touch. However adults aren’t growing and rapidly developing bone and such and their brains are fully developed and in fact are usually on a downhill curve. > > Reasonable precautions: Don’t eat it. Don’t handle it all day and then lick your fingers, or drink the water you wash your hands in. Up until about 2 years ago, I had a Linotype and a companion Ludlow Typograph and used, er, screwed around with 'em almost every day. I got my blood tested yearly and never had any lead presence. Metallic lead is just not skin soluble, and you’d only have dangerous fumes if you ran the crucible insanely hot. The casting process would stop working properly long before you hit that spot. Sorry for the hijack. In the spirit of the thread, I’ll note that my darts are 80% tungsten, 20% dunno. Find a set at a thrift store and there’s a cheap source of dense metal. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/49 "2016-09-19T20:48:46Z")
> [@RandomLetters](#): > > Gold is quite a bit denser then lead (19.3 grams/cm^3 vs 11.4 for lead) , and while expensive, it is something that a person can obtain by a quick trip to most malls. > > Gold is also fairly soft, making it easier to work with then many of the other dense metals like osmium, iridium, tungsten, or platinum. How much money can you afford to lose if your plane flies over a tree line and never reappears? ---
**Author:** ![Bones\_Daley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@Bones\_Daley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bones_Daley)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/50 "2016-09-19T21:24:52Z")
The most interesting new use for tungsten carbide IMO is in the production of high-end slides (bottlenecks) and picks for guitarists . [http://www.wolframslides.com](http://www.wolframslides.com). I have held in my hand the Wolfram slide owned by Martin Simpson, and it is unbelievably heavy … anybody who has seen him play doesn’t need to be told what a superb tone it delivers. If I could afford it I would order one tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/51 "2016-09-19T21:34:09Z")
> [@Bones\_Daley](#): > > The most interesting new use for tungsten carbide IMO is in the production of high-end slides (bottlenecks) and picks for guitarists . [http://www.wolframslides.com](http://www.wolframslides.com). In case anyone’s curious about the name, _wolframite_ is the main ore of tungsten, and the reason for the chemical symbol W. I have a little cylinder of tungsten, about two inches across and two inches tall. It weighs about 4 lbs. Lead would only be just over 2 lbs. Aluminum feels like silver-colored plastic in comparison. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/52 "2016-09-19T22:34:44Z")
Tungsten is clearly the way to go. Sorting the chart that **SciPhi** posted by density, the top entries are ```auto Iridium,22650 Osmium,22610 Platinum,21400 Plutonium,19816 Tungsten,19600 Gold,19320 Uranium,18900 ``` Except for tungsten, these are all considered precious metals, with prices in the hundreds of dollars per ounce. Tungsten is pretty close to the top but only costs about $20 per pound, in bulk. I have a cool little machined tungsten sphere about 1" in diameter that weighs over 5 ounces and cost me about $20. I once visited the [Long Now Foundation](http://longnow.org/) workshop in San Francisco where they had some of the components of their 10,000 year clock on display. There was a tungsten pendulum bob, about 4 inches in diameter, that weighed over 20 pounds. When I first tried to lift it, I thought it was bolted to the table. –Mark ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/53 "2016-09-19T22:44:43Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Duke of Rat** : > > Heavy metal zombie, and the OP never got the correct answer: The best nose weight is a lighter tail. **Ale** , in post 43. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/54 "2016-09-19T22:46:13Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > I once visited the [Long Now Foundation](http://longnow.org/) workshop in San Francisco where they had some of the components of their 10,000 year clock on display. There was a tungsten pendulum bob, about 4 inches in diameter, that weighed over 20 pounds. When I first tried to lift it, I thought it was bolted to the table. I’ve touched the same bob that you have 🙂 (I might have a slight obsession with tungsten). There are light and dense materials out there… but tungsten is the only one (given that it’s the only one I’ve handled significant quantities of) that feels _abnormally_ heavy. Like, as you say, it’s been bolted to the table–or that you’ve been transported to a high-gravity planet. It has tremendous _momentum_ as well. After playing with a chunk of tungsten for a minute or so, it starts to feel normal. But afterward, everything else feels abnormally light, like it’s been replaced by a cheap plastic replica. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/55 "2016-09-19T23:01:37Z")
Not commonly available when the OP was posted but now all over the place are tungsten carbide rings for a few bucks each. Density - 15.63 g/cm³ ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/56 "2016-09-19T23:18:14Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > **Ale** , in post 43. Huh, even replying to me. I must be losing it. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2016, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611/57 "2016-09-20T04:27:57Z")
OMG want!!! But you can buy a perfectly useful guitar for the price of the that slide. Engineering toolbox is a great site. It distils a huge amount of useful informations into a useful lump. On the aviation side, one would note that depleted uranium and tungsten counterweights are commonly used in aircraft of all sizes. Typically on control surfaces to tune resonant modes away from the F word. (For any aeronautical engineer the F word is Flutter. ) famously the first few 747s built had a few hundred kilograms of depleted uranium in the engine pylons to help tune the wing twisting. In racing yacht design depleted uranium and tungsten were used in the keel bulb. For the same draft the centre of mass is lower than if lead is used, and the surface area, and thus drag, smaller. They were banned in an effort to keep costs down, although they remained in use on those boats built with them before the rule change. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-heaviest-metal-available-to-consumers/343611.md?page=2)