metallic coating on steel?

[Rusty4242]

Got a peice of steel plate, 1/2 x 6 x 9, that I preped with my angle grinder prior to welding on this splitter I'm building. . Had sort of a reddish ( red lead?) hard coating over a metallic coating(plating) of a lighter color than the steel underneath . Ground it all off of areas to be welded, but was wondering what the metal over the steel could be. Didn't look like galvanizing. Wasn't cryataline looking. I hope it wasn't cadmium. I did wear a dust mask and used a fan for ventilation. The plate is stamped with 6P2 in 1/2 inch hight letters. What do you think?

 

[GuglioLS]

Based on the intelligence of the last few of your posts, I can say with 100% certainty it was Lead paint. (J/K)

No really, it probably was lead paint, especially if it was Red Good that your wearing a mask when you sand or grind.

Larry