Lead shot is a collective term for small balls of lead. These were the original projectiles for muskets, and today are fired primarily from shotguns, although shot shells are available in many calibers in a configuaration called "Bird Shot" or "Rat-shot". It is also used for a variety of other purposes such as filling cavities with dense material for weight/balance. Some versions may be plated with other metals. Lead shot was originally made by pouring molten lead into moulds and later more economically mass-produced using a shot tower. The Bliemeister method has largely supplanted the shot tower method.
Read more about Lead Shot: Manufacturing, Sizes, Applications Outside Firearms, Non-lead Alternatives
Famous quotes containing the words lead and/or shot:
“Horrible experiences lead us to wonder whether the person who experiences them might not be something horrible.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“Next to a shot of some good, habit-forming narcotic, there is nothing like travelling alone as a “builder-upper.””
—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)