Shot (pellet): Difference between revisions

{{shortShort description|Type of ammunition}}

'''Shot''' is a [[collective noun|collective term]] for small ballsspheres or pellets, often made of [[lead]]. These have been projected from [[Sling (weapon)|slings]] since ancient times and were the original [[projectile]]s for shotguns and are still fired primarily from [[shotgun]]s and less commonly from [[grenade [[slingshotslauncher]]s, [[riotwhile gun]]it's andless commonly used in [[grenaderiot launchergun]]s, although. [[shotShot shell]]s are also available in many pistol[[handgun]] calibers in a configuration calledknown as "[[birdshot]]", "[[rat- shot]]", or "[[snake shot]]".

Lead shot is also used for a variety of other purposes such as filling cavities with dense material for weight and/or balance. Some versions may be plated with other metals. Lead shot was originally made by pouring molten lead through screens into water, forming what was known as "swan shot", and, later, more economically mass-produced at higher quality using a [[shot tower]]. The ''Bliemeister method'' has supplanted the shot tower method since the early 1960s.

Producing lead shot from a shot tower was pioneered in the late 18th century by William Watts of [[Bristol]] who adapted his house on Redcliffe Hill by adding a three-[[storey]] tower and digging a shaft under the house through the caves underneath to achieve the required drop. The process was patented in 1782.<ref name="PbAlloy">{{cite book | title = Engineering Properties and Applications of Lead Alloys | chapter = XIV. Ammunition | first = Sivaraman | last = Guruswamy | publisher = CRC Press | year = 1999 | isbn = 978-0-8247-8247-4 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=TtGmjOv9CUAC | pages = 569–570}}</ref> The process was later brought above ground through the building of [[shot tower]]s.

Molten lead would be dropped from the top of the tower. Like most liquids, [[surface tension]] makes [[Drop (liquid)|drops]] of molten lead become near-spherical as they fall. When the tower is high enough, the lead droplets will solidify whileduring stillthe droppingfall and thus will retain their spherical form. Water is usually placed at the bottom of the tower, causingcooling the lead to be cooled immediately afterupon droppinglanding.

Roundness of manufactured shot produced from the shot tower process is graded by forcing the newly produced shot to roll accurately down inclined planes. Unround shot will naturally roll to the side, for collection. The unround shot was either re-processed in another attempt to make round shot using the shot tower again, or used for applications which did not require round shot (e.g., split shot for fishing).<ref name="PbAlloy"/>

The ''{{visible anchor|Bliemeister method}}'', named after inventor Louis W. Bliemeister of Los Angeles, California, ({{US patent|2978742}}, dated April 11, 1961) is a process for making lead shot in small sizes from about #7 to about #9. In this process, molten lead is dripped from small orifices and dropped approximately {{convert|1|in|cm}} into a hot liquid, where it is then rolled along an incline and then dropped another {{convert|3|ft|cm|-1}}. The temperature of the liquid controls the cooling rate of the lead, while the surface tension of the liquid and the inclined surface(s) work together to bring the small droplets of lead into highly regular balls of lead in spherical form. The size of the lead shot that is produced is determined by the diameter of the orifice used to drip the lead, ranging from approximately {{convert|0.018|in}} for #9 lead shot to about {{convert|0.025|in}} for #6 or #7.0 shot, while also depending on the specific lead alloy that is used.

The roundness of the lead shot depends on the angle of the inclined surfaces as well as the temperature of the liquid coolant. Various coolants have successfully been used, ranging from diesel fuel to antifreeze and water-soluble oil. After the lead shot cools, it is washed, then dried, and small amounts of graphite are finally added to prevent clumping of the lead shot. Lead shot larger than about #5 tends to clump badly when fed through tubes, even when graphite is used, whereas lead shot smaller than about #6 tends not to clump when fed through tubes when graphite is used.

Buckshot is a shot formed to larger diameters so that it can be used against bigger game such as [[deer]], [[moose]], or [[caribou]]. Sizes range in ascending order from size #B (0.17 in, 4.32  mm) to Tri-Ball. It is usually referred by the size, followed by "buck", e.g. "#000" is referred to as "triple-aught buck" in the [[Bible Belt|AmericaUnited States]] or "triple -o buck" in other English speaking countries. Buckshot is traditionally [[Swaging|swaged]] (in high volume production) or cast (in small volume production). The Bliemeister method does not work for shot larger than #5 (0.12 in, 3.05  mm), and works progressively poorly for shot sizes larger than about #6.

| 0000
| || Buck || 82 grains
|
| || 0.38 || 9.65

| 000½
| || Buck || 76 grains
|
| || 0.37 || 9.4

| 000
|LG|| Buck || 70 grains
|6
|n/a|| 0.36 || 9.14

| #21½
| || Buck || 3644.67 grains
|
| || 0.2931 || 7.3787

Lead shot is also often used as [[ballast]] in various situations, especially where a dense, pourable weight is required. Generally, small shot is best for these applications, as it can be poured more like a liquid. Completely round shot is not required. When used as a pourable/mouldable weight, thelead shot may be left loose, or mixed with a bonding agent such as [[epoxy]] to contain and stabilize the pellets after they are poured. Some applications are:

| journal = PLoSPLOS ONE

|bibcode = 2008PLoSO...3.4022G | doi-access = free }}</ref> Among condors around the [[Grand Canyon]], lead poisoning because of eating lead shot is the most frequently diagnosed cause of death.<ref name="Green08PLoS"/>

In an effort to protect the condor, the use of projectiles containing lead has been banned for hunting wild boar, deer, wild pigantelope, elk, pronghorn, antelope, coyotescoyote, ground squirrelssquirrel, and other non-game wildlife in areas of California designated as its habitat range.<ref name="leadout">{{cite web |url = http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/condor/ |title = Get the Lead Out (Protecting the Condor) |access-date = 2009-07-28 |publisher = California Department of Fish and Game |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090730044105/http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/condor/ |archive-date= 30 July 2009}}</ref> The [[bald eagle]] has similarly been shown to be affected by lead originating from dead or wounded waterfowl—the requirement to protect this species was one of the biggest factors behind laws being introduced in 1991 by the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]] to ban lead shot in migratory waterfowl hunting.<ref name=Elliott>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=grkZKbBzzTMC&pg=PA371 |pages=371–372 |title=Wildlife Ecotoxicology: Forensic Approaches |year=2011 |first1=John Edward |last1=Elliott |first2=Christine Annette |last2=Bishop |first3=Christy |last3=Morrissey |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0387894324}}</ref>

Hunting restrictions have also banned the use of lead shot while hunting migratory waterfowl in at least 29 countries across by international agreement,<ref name=Lahner/> for example the [[Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds]].<ref name=AEWA1>{{cite report |url=https://www.unep-aewa.org/sites/default/files/publication/lead-shot-en_0.pdf |title=Phasing Out The Use Of Lead Shot For Hunting In Wetlands: Experiences Made and Lessons Learned By AEWA Range States |page=3 |publisher=[[AEWA]] |date=5 Nov 2009 |access-date=17 November 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=Countryside Alliance |location=Ireland |url=http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/protecting-waterfowl-from-lead-in-wetlands---guidance.pdf |title=Protecting Waterfowl From Lead In Wetlands: A Practical Guide to the Lead Shot Regulations in Northern Ireland |date=24 Apr 2009 |access-date=24 Mar 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130227215208/http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/protecting-waterfowl-from-lead-in-wetlands---guidance.pdf |archive-date=2013-02-27}}</ref> Depending on hunting laws, alternatives to lead shot are mandated for use by hunters in some locations when hunting migratory birds, notably waterfowl. In the US, the restrictions are limited to migratory waterfowl, while Canadian restrictions are wider and apply (with some exceptions) to all migratory birds.<ref name=Elliott/> The hunting of upland migratory birds such as [[mourning doves]] was specifically excluded from the 1991 US restrictions as scientific evidence did not support their contribution to the poisoning of bald eagles.<ref name=Elliott/> In 1985, Denmark banned the use of lead in wetlands covered by the [[Ramsar Convention]], later expanding this restriction to the whole country.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eQhsZhjTF7kC&pg=PA54 |page=54 |title=Legal Measures for the Conservation of Natural Areas |firstfirst1=Cyrille|lastlast1=de Klemm |first2=Claire |last2=Shine |publisher=Council of Europe |year=1996 |isbn=978-9287130709}}</ref> The use of lead has been banned for all hunting activities in the [[Netherlands]] as of 1992.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wb4Du3C_elkC&pg=PA307 |page=307 |title=Industrial Ecology and Global Change |first=R |last=Socolow |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0521577830}}</ref>

The [[Missouri Department of Conservation]] introduced regulations in 2007 in some hunting areas requiring the use of non-toxic shot to protect upland birds.<ref name=Lahner>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/Documents/lead_poisoning_wild_birds_USGS2009.pdf |title=Lead Poisoning in Wild Birds |page=2 |firstfirst1=Lesanna L. |lastlast1=Lahner |first2=J. Christian |last2=Franson |publisher=USGS National Wildlife Health Center |access-date=4 Apr 2013}}</ref> Some [[clay pigeon shooting|clay pigeon]] ranges in the US have banned the use of lead after elevated levels of lead were found in waterfowl, small birds, mammals and frogs in their vicinity.<ref name=Lahner/>

{{seealsoSee also|Green bullet}}

Approved alternatives while hunting migratory waterfowl include pellets manufactured from [[steel]], tungsten-iron, tungsten-polymer, [[tungsten]]-[[nickel]]-[[iron]], and [[bismuth]]-[[tin]] in place of lead shot. In Canada, the United States, UK,the CanadaUnited Kingdom, and many western European countries (France as of 2006), all shot used for hunting migratory [[waterfowl]] must now be non-toxic, and therefore may not contain any [[lead]].

Within recent years, several companies have created non-toxic shot out of [[Bismuth#Lead replacement|bismuth]], [[tungsten]], or other [[Chemical element|element]]s or [[alloys]] with a [[density]] similar to or greater than lead, and with a shot softness that results in ballistic properties that are comparable to lead. These shells provide more consistent patterns than steel shot and provide greater range than steel shot. They are also generally safe to use in older shotguns with barrels and chokes not rated for use with steel shot, such as for bismuth and tungsten-polymer (although not tungsten-iron) shot. (Unfortunately, all non-lead shot other than steel is far more expensive than lead, which has diminished in its acceptance by hunters.)

[[Category:Shotgun shellscartridges]]