lead

Benefits of fabricating things from lead:

• Lead is one of the lowest melting-point metals available.
• Lead has been, and continues to be, safely used for roof flashing and stained glass.
• Lead is rather easy to shape with basic hand tools.
• Lead is fairly easy to weld too. Usually it's done with oxy-acetylene, but (TODO: research this and confirm) it may be able to be welded with oxy-propane.

Obviously the major downside is the intense health issues. The methods of exposure are: [1]

• Inhalation of fumes, such as from leadwork welding.
• Ingesting materials containing lead, such as lead paint, or lead dust left over after drilling or cutting solid lead. This includes swallowing contaminated materials, as well as inhaling fine particles.
• When organic lead compounds are touched, they can be absorbed through intact skin. Solid lead is okay to touch however.

Fabricators who work with lead usually take these precautions: [1] [2]

• When welding or soldering, maximize ventilation, and wear (TODO) to avoid the fumes.
• If you do any operation that could create dust — sawing, sanding, drilling, etc. — be extremely careful to not spread the dust around, and make sure it's vacuumed/mopped up immediately.
• Better safe than sorry: (The evidence behind these is unclear, but these practices are widespread among fabricators.)
  • Fabricators should always wear gloves. End-users should avoid touching solid lead.
  • Decontamination — Fabricators should wash their hands after using it, to avoid carrying trace amounts away.
  • Decontamination — It's worth changing your clothes afterwards, if there's chance of carrying lead dust.
  • Decontamination — If fabricating a small part, put down plastic sheeting first. Afterwards, carefully wrap it up and throw it away.