SpecBase

Lead Round Tube Weight

Mass per metre and per foot for lead round tube at 11,340 kg/m³ (ASTM B29 (UNS L50049, chemical lead)). Every figure is for the section as drawn. A 6 m length of this size weighs 30.1 kg (67.5 lb per 20 ft).

Mass / length
5.023kg/m
3.375 lb/ft
Cross-section
443.0mm²
0.6866 in²
Reference size
50 × 3mm
D, t
Density
11,340kg/m³
0.4097 lb/in³
6 m / 20 ft length
30.1kg
67.5 lb

At the reference dimensions (D = 50 mm, t = 3 mm) this section has a cross-sectional area of 443.0 mm², giving 5.023 kg/m (3.375 lb/ft). Against carbon steel's 7,850 kg/m³ that is +44.5 % — the same section in steel would be 3.477 kg/m.

Calculate your own dimensions → Pipe and hollow sections

Round Tube — formula and derivation

Area of a round tube

A = π/4 · (D² − d²), d = D − 2t

A = π/4 × (D² − d²), where D is the outside diameter, d the inside diameter, and d = D − 2t for wall thickness t

Worked through with the default dimensions:

A = π/4 × (D² − d²)d = 50 − 2 × 3 = 44.0 mmA = 0.785398 × (50² − 44.0²)A = 0.785398 × 564.0A = 443.0 mm²
D
Outside diameter
t
Wall thickness — Must be less than half the outside diameter.

Weight follows from the area with no further geometry: m = A × 10⁻⁶ × ρ, where A is in mm², ρ in kg/m³ and m in kg/m. At 11,340 kg/m³ that is 5.0232 kg/m for the reference size above.

Lead round tube — size series

Lead round tube — mass per unit length (kg/m · lb/ft)
Outside diameter 1.0 1.5 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 8.0
12 mm 0.392 kg/m · 0.263 lb/ft 0.561 kg/m · 0.377 lb/ft 0.713 kg/m · 0.479 lb/ft 0.962 kg/m · 0.646 lb/ft 1.140 kg/m · 0.766 lb/ft 1.247 kg/m · 0.838 lb/ft 1.283 kg/m · 0.862 lb/ft 1.140 kg/m · 0.766 lb/ft
16 mm 0.534 kg/m · 0.359 lb/ft 0.775 kg/m · 0.521 lb/ft 0.998 kg/m · 0.670 lb/ft 1.389 kg/m · 0.934 lb/ft 1.710 kg/m · 1.149 lb/ft 1.959 kg/m · 1.317 lb/ft 2.138 kg/m · 1.436 lb/ft 2.280 kg/m · 1.532 lb/ft
20 mm 0.677 kg/m · 0.455 lb/ft 0.989 kg/m · 0.664 lb/ft 1.283 kg/m · 0.862 lb/ft 1.817 kg/m · 1.221 lb/ft 2.280 kg/m · 1.532 lb/ft 2.672 kg/m · 1.795 lb/ft 2.993 kg/m · 2.011 lb/ft 3.420 kg/m · 2.298 lb/ft
25 mm 0.855 kg/m · 0.575 lb/ft 1.256 kg/m · 0.844 lb/ft 1.639 kg/m · 1.101 lb/ft 2.351 kg/m · 1.580 lb/ft 2.993 kg/m · 2.011 lb/ft 3.563 kg/m · 2.394 lb/ft 4.061 kg/m · 2.729 lb/ft 4.845 kg/m · 3.256 lb/ft
32 mm 1.104 kg/m · 0.742 lb/ft 1.630 kg/m · 1.095 lb/ft 2.138 kg/m · 1.436 lb/ft 3.099 kg/m · 2.083 lb/ft 3.990 kg/m · 2.681 lb/ft 4.809 kg/m · 3.232 lb/ft 5.558 kg/m · 3.735 lb/ft 6.840 kg/m · 4.596 lb/ft
40 mm 1.389 kg/m · 0.934 lb/ft 2.057 kg/m · 1.382 lb/ft 2.708 kg/m · 1.819 lb/ft 3.954 kg/m · 2.657 lb/ft 5.130 kg/m · 3.447 lb/ft 6.234 kg/m · 4.189 lb/ft 7.268 kg/m · 4.884 lb/ft 9.120 kg/m · 6.128 lb/ft
50 mm 1.746 kg/m · 1.173 lb/ft 2.592 kg/m · 1.742 lb/ft 3.420 kg/m · 2.298 lb/ft 5.023 kg/m · 3.375 lb/ft 6.555 kg/m · 4.405 lb/ft 8.016 kg/m · 5.386 lb/ft 9.405 kg/m · 6.320 lb/ft 11.970 kg/m · 8.044 lb/ft
63 mm 2.209 kg/m · 1.484 lb/ft 3.286 kg/m · 2.208 lb/ft 4.346 kg/m · 2.921 lb/ft 6.413 kg/m · 4.309 lb/ft 8.408 kg/m · 5.650 lb/ft 10.331 kg/m · 6.942 lb/ft 12.184 kg/m · 8.187 lb/ft 15.675 kg/m · 10.533 lb/ft
76 mm 2.672 kg/m · 1.795 lb/ft 3.981 kg/m · 2.675 lb/ft 5.273 kg/m · 3.543 lb/ft 7.802 kg/m · 5.243 lb/ft 10.260 kg/m · 6.895 lb/ft 12.647 kg/m · 8.498 lb/ft 14.963 kg/m · 10.055 lb/ft 19.380 kg/m · 13.023 lb/ft
89 mm 3.135 kg/m · 2.107 lb/ft 4.676 kg/m · 3.142 lb/ft 6.199 kg/m · 4.165 lb/ft 9.191 kg/m · 6.176 lb/ft 12.113 kg/m · 8.139 lb/ft 14.963 kg/m · 10.055 lb/ft 17.742 kg/m · 11.922 lb/ft 23.085 kg/m · 15.513 lb/ft
114 mm 4.026 kg/m · 2.705 lb/ft 6.012 kg/m · 4.040 lb/ft 7.980 kg/m · 5.362 lb/ft 11.863 kg/m · 7.972 lb/ft 15.675 kg/m · 10.533 lb/ft 19.416 kg/m · 13.047 lb/ft 23.085 kg/m · 15.513 lb/ft 30.211 kg/m · 20.301 lb/ft
168 mm 5.949 kg/m · 3.998 lb/ft 8.898 kg/m · 5.979 lb/ft 11.828 kg/m · 7.948 lb/ft 17.635 kg/m · 11.850 lb/ft 23.370 kg/m · 15.704 lb/ft 29.035 kg/m · 19.511 lb/ft 34.628 kg/m · 23.269 lb/ft 45.601 kg/m · 30.642 lb/ft

Rows: outside diameter (mm). Columns: wall thickness (mm). Computed for Lead at 11340 kg/m³.

Round Tube — cross-sectional area (mm²)
Outside diameter 1.0 1.5 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 8.0
12 mm 34.6 49.5 62.8 84.8 100.5 110.0 113.1 100.5
16 mm 47.1 68.3 88.0 122.5 150.8 172.8 188.5 201.1
20 mm 59.7 87.2 113.1 160.2 201.1 235.6 263.9 301.6
25 mm 75.4 110.7 144.5 207.3 263.9 314.2 358.1 427.3
32 mm 97.4 143.7 188.5 273.3 351.9 424.1 490.1 603.2
40 mm 122.5 181.4 238.8 348.7 452.4 549.8 640.9 804.2
50 mm 153.9 228.6 301.6 443.0 578.1 706.9 829.4 1,055.6
63 mm 194.8 289.8 383.3 565.5 741.4 911.1 1,074.4 1,382.3
76 mm 235.6 351.1 465.0 688.0 904.8 1,115.3 1,319.5 1,709.0
89 mm 276.5 412.3 546.6 810.5 1,068.1 1,319.5 1,564.5 2,035.8
114 mm 355.0 530.1 703.7 1,046.2 1,382.3 1,712.2 2,035.8 2,664.1
168 mm 524.6 784.6 1,043.0 1,555.1 2,060.9 2,560.4 3,053.6 4,021.2

Area is a property of the geometry alone, so this table is the same for every material. It is what you enter into a stress calculation; the mass table is what you enter into an order.

How to read this table

Each row is one nominal size. Because the area is computed from your dimensions rather than read from a mill table, a non-standard size is just as accurate — put it into the calculator above rather than interpolating between rows.

The same round tube in every material

Geometry is fixed and only density changes, so this table is the whole material-selection question in one view. Lead is highlighted. The percentage column is against carbon steel, which is the figure most quotations are built on.

Round Tube at D = 50 mm, t = 3 mm — mass in every material
Material Density kg/m³ lb/in³ Mass / length kg/m lb/ft vs carbon steel
Carbon Steel 7,850 0.2836 3.477 2.337 +0.0 %
Stainless Steel 304 8,000 0.2890 3.544 2.381 +1.9 %
Stainless Steel 316 8,000 0.2890 3.544 2.381 +1.9 %
Stainless Steel 316L 8,000 0.2890 3.544 2.381 +1.9 %
Stainless Steel 430 7,700 0.2782 3.411 2.292 -1.9 %
Aluminum 6061-T6 2,700 0.0975 1.196 0.804 -65.6 %
Aluminum 5052-H32 2,680 0.0968 1.187 0.798 -65.9 %
Aluminum 7075-T6 2,810 0.1015 1.245 0.836 -64.2 %
Copper C11000 8,940 0.3230 3.960 2.661 +13.9 %
Brass C36000 8,500 0.3071 3.765 2.530 +8.3 %
Bronze C93200 8,800 0.3179 3.898 2.619 +12.1 %
Titanium Grade 2 4,510 0.1629 1.998 1.342 -42.5 %
Gray Cast Iron 7,200 0.2601 3.189 2.143 -8.3 %
Lead 11,340 0.4097 5.023 3.375 +44.5 %
Rigid PVC (Type I) 1,400 0.0506 0.620 0.417 -82.2 %
HDPE (PE 100) 960 0.0347 0.425 0.286 -87.8 %

Same geometry throughout, so the only variable is density. Carbon steel is highlighted as the baseline.

A note on using this table for costing: mass is not price. Aluminium is roughly a third of steel's mass here, but per kilogram it costs several times more, so a straight swap rarely saves money — what it buys is reduced load on a structure or a vehicle.

About lead

The densest material in the catalogue at 11,340 kg/m³ — 44 % heavier than carbon steel — and used precisely for that. Lead sheet is specified for acoustic and radiation shielding, where the performance metric is mass per unit area, so a sheet weight table is not an incidental output here, it is the design input: 1 mm of lead is about 11.34 kg/m². It is also extremely soft and creeps under sustained load, so it is normally supported, not self-carrying.

Density
11,340 kg/m³ = 0.4097 lb/in³ · 1.4446× carbon steel · typical spread ±1 %
Specification
ASTM B29 (UNS L50049, chemical lead)
Equivalents
EN PB000 · GB Pb1
Typical uses
Radiation shielding · Acoustic and vibration isolation · Roof flashing and damp courses · Battery plates
Weight-relevant caution

Heavy-metal hazard: machining, welding and dross handling require controls. Creeps under its own weight at ambient temperature.

About round tube

Hollow sections are the most efficient way to buy stiffness by weight, and the numbers are stark: a 50 mm outside diameter tube with a 3 mm wall has the same area as a 22.6 mm solid bar — about 20 % of the mass — but its second moment of area is roughly 2.4 times larger. The catch is local: a thin wall buckles and dents long before it yields, so tube is chosen for stiffness and stability, never for where impact or crushing is expected.

When ordering

Specified as outside diameter × wall thickness. State the standard (e.g. EN 10219) and whether the tube is welded or seamless.

Download this data

Lead round tube — CSV

Both buttons below read the tables rendered on this page, so the file matches what you are looking at. The full catalogue — all 16 materials across all 10 sections — is on the downloads page.

All materials (CSV · 16 × 10 pages)

Fields are quoted per RFC 4180, with a UTF-8 byte-order mark so Excel reads the mm² and · characters correctly. Blank lines separate the weight matrix from the area matrix.

Frequently asked questions

How much does lead round tube weigh?

At the reference dimensions (D = 50 mm, t = 3 mm) a lead round tube of this size weighs 5.023 kg/m, or 3.375 lb/ft. The table above lists the figure for every standard size so you can read your size directly instead of scaling.

How is the weight of round tube calculated?

Weight is cross-sectional area × length × density. For this shape the area is A = π/4 · (D² − d²), d = D − 2t. At the reference dimensions that gives 443.0 mm², and multiplying by lead's density of 11,340 kg/m³ gives 5.023 kg/m. Nothing is looked up in a table — which is why a non-standard size is calculated just as accurately as a standard one.

Why does lead weigh more or less than steel?

It is heavier than carbon steel for the same section — about 44 % heavier at 11,340 kg/m³. Density is the only variable: the cross-sectional area depends purely on geometry, so a round tube of the same dimensions has the same area in every material and the mass simply scales with density. In this case the ratio is 1.4446× carbon steel.

What is the cross-sectional area of a round tube?

The area depends only on the dimensions, not on the material, so it is identical whichever material you select: at the reference dimensions it is 443.0 mm² (0.6866 in²). That is the number you would enter into a stress or deflection calculation, and it is why changing material on this page never changes the area column.

Does a lead round tube weigh the same as a lead part of a different shape?

No, and the difference is larger than most people expect. At equal nominal size, a square bar is 27.3 % heavier than a round bar, and a hollow section is typically 60–80 % lighter than the solid bar it replaces. Weight follows area, and area changes faster than dimensions do — which is exactly why this needs calculating rather than estimating.

Should I use Lead weight or carbon steel weight for costing?

Use the material you are actually buying. At 11,340 kg/m³ against carbon steel's 7,850 kg/m³, the same round tube differs by 44.5 % in mass. On a per-metre quote that is invisible; on a fabricated tonnage it is the difference between a margin and a loss. This page computes the steel figure as 3.477 kg/m for comparison.

Other materials, same round tube

The same geometry in every material, so the only variable is density.

Other Lead sections

The same density applied to every shape the site covers.

Reference data and tools

Data source and method

Round Tube area from A = π/4 · (D² − d²), d = D − 2t. Mass computed as area × length × density at 11,340 kg/m³ (ASTM B29 (UNS L50049, chemical lead)). No weight on this page is copied from a published table — which is why figures can differ in the last significant digit from a mill's chart calculated at a nominal density.

  • Elementary plane geometry. The circle, polygon and hollow-section area formulas.
  • ASTM material specifications for each grade named in the material entry (A36, A240/A276, B209/B211/B221, B152/B16/B505, B265/B348, A48, B29, D1784, D3350).
  • BIPM / NIST definitional constants: international inch = 25.4 mm, foot = 0.3048 m, pound = 0.45359237 kg.

Dataset version 2026.09.1 · dimensions last verified against source 2026-09-21. Found an error? Report it — corrections are issued with a version bump.