Tierra Cast Findings

Tierra Cast Fine Silver Plate Antiqued Gold & Antiqued Silver Jewelry Beads & Findings:

Pewter

Pewter is a metal alloy, traditionally between 85 and 99 percent tin, with the remainder consisting of copper and antimony acting as hardeners. Lower grades of pewter may contain as much as 60% lead, giving them a bluish tint.

The Federal Trade Commission and the American Pewter Guild define pewter as a "metal alloy product of which the chemical composition shall be not less than 90% Grade A Tin, with the remainder composed of metals appropriate for use in pewter."

TierraCast uses an alloy called Britannia, composed of 92% tin, 7.5 % antimony and .5% copper. Tin is refined from ore that contains other metals, including lead. A chemical process is used to remove the lead, but trace amounts still remain. Although all pewter contains trace amounts of lead, the term "lead free pewter" is used to describe pewter that meets the stringent FDA standard of less than .05% (or 500 parts per million) lead content in pewter in contact with food.