We've now got theories that the bottom pellets get deformed, that the leading pellets get deformed and that the pellets in contact with the bore get deformed. It's a surprise that any round pellets remain. Just to add fuel to the fire, does it make any difference as to the size of the pellets?
Yes, very much so.
Tom Roster:
It is a fact that the larger the lead pellet being employed, the lower the antimonial content needs to be for that pellet to have the same degree of resistance to deformation as a lead pellet of a smaller diameter. Thus it is a common practice among American shotshell manufacturers to generally adhere to the following table for antimonial content in lead shot they call “hard”:
Shot Size
Antimonial Level
Buckshot
˝ to 1%
No. BB to 2
1 to 2˝%
No. 4 to 6
3 to 4%
No. 7 to 8
5 to 6%
No. 8˝ to 9 for
skeet shooting
3%
Therefore, for example, it takes about a 6% antimonial level to make a size No. 8 lead pellet as resistant to deformation as larger buckshot-sized lead pellets containing only ˝% antimony. Regarding the above table, just where the shot size break occurs and just what the actual amount of antimony added per pellet size and load type may be, can vary from U.S. manufacturer to manufacturer.
SRH
