New non lead shot alternative

[Heym SR20]

As they said necessity is the mother of all invention. A sneak peek at British development to develop a soft maleable alternative to lead for use in guns. Still clearly early days but from the video looks promising.

Hortonium lead shot alternative drop test

There are many uses for a Brumagem screwdriver, doing a drop test on the new non toxic shot we’ve invented

www.hortonguns.com

 

[Andy RV]

Tin?

 

[Heym SR20]

Tin?

Not a clue. They have submitted patents but patents have yet to be published.

Whole basis of patents is that you cannot publish or make public any of the details until patents have been published so no clue as to what these pellets are made from.

 

[Andy RV]

I understand what a patent is but there are only so many elements on the period table!

 

[MarinePMI]

I wonder if, like our own "Blackcloud" and "Heavishot" alternatives here, that you have to run one size up, to get the same effective killing capability as lead shot.(?)

 

[Smellydog]

Don't recall seeing hortonium on the periodic table.....
Maybe they fused berillium with cobalt and with a hint of plutonium.

 

[MarinePMI]

Don't recall seeing hortonium on the periodic table.....
Maybe they fused berillium with cobalt and with a hint of plutonium.

Sure, it's right there on the periodic table...."Unobtainium".

(The same crucial component used to make bullets, primers and powder.)

 

[GunQuarter]

As they said necessity is the mother of all invention. A sneak peek at British development to develop a soft maleable alternative to lead for use in guns. Still clearly early days but from the video looks promising.

Hortonium lead shot alternative drop test

There are many uses for a Brumagem screwdriver, doing a drop test on the new non toxic shot we’ve invented

www.hortonguns.com

I've put all the information into one page on our website. Including a drop test video. We've tested the hell out of this, it works perfectly and it just needs ammunition manufacturers to pick up the phone and order it (after March next year as machines being built now). Gunsmith Gun Repairs and Gun Engraving at Horton Guns If you want it, contact Hull, Eley, Lyalvale and Gamebore and ask when it is available.

 

[User00048]

Will the shot itself be cheaper than bismuth and tungston varieties? Thus making manufacturers cartridges cheaper than those available in the two above?

If so, it would be great in .410 and judging from the testing, it looks to be good in any size choke?

 

[Heym SR20]

I've put all the information into one page on our website. Including a drop test video. We've tested the hell out of this, it works perfectly and it just needs ammunition manufacturers to pick up the phone and order it (after March next year as machines being built now). Gunsmith Gun Repairs and Gun Engraving at Horton Guns If you want it, contact Hull, Eley, Lyalvale and Gamebore and ask when it is available.

Great to see good old fashioned British Innovation.

 

[Heym SR20]

Will the shot itself be cheaper than bismuth and tungston varieties? Thus making manufacturers cartridges cheaper than those available in the two above?

If so, it would be great in .410 and judging from the testing, it looks to be good in any size choke?

They have already commented that it will likely be cheaper than Bismuth/ Tugsten etc. However Horton will be licencing the production to individual cartridge and bullet manufacturers so ultimately end wholesale price will be somewhat out of their hands.

 

[GunQuarter]

Will the shot itself be cheaper than bismuth and tungston varieties? Thus making manufacturers cartridges cheaper than those available in the two above?

If so, it would be great in .410 and judging from the testing, it looks to be good in any size choke?

If you read the page Gunsmith Gun Repairs and Gun Engraving at Horton Guns Hortonium is the only alternative to lead that works in any choke. Can be loaded with fibre wad, patterns like lead, kills like lead. DOES NOT SHATTER. Is non-toxic. Works in all calibres of rifle ammunition too.

 

[GunQuarter]

They have already commented that it will likely be cheaper than Bismuth/ Tugsten etc. However Horton will be licencing the production to individual cartridge and bullet manufacturers so ultimately end wholesale price will be somewhat out of their hands.

We've gone one step further. We are actually manufacturing the shot, wire and billets to supply ammuniton manufacturers.

 

[Heym SR20]

We've gone one step further. We are actually manufacturing the shot, wire and billets to supply ammuniton manufacturers.

Excellent to see that you are doing this. I hope doing so in the UK, despite all the challenges we face when it comes to exporting.

 

[HonestJohn]

Herein lies your challenge and strategy.
The big manufacturers would likely not wish to purchase your product as ingredients, they would most likely wish to make it themselves under licensing agreements, to control QA and economies of scale, many/most will already have in-house production.

However, you will also find that paying you royalties (if just using your recipe), will be unappetising for them, and so they will firstly do everything they can to legally ‘copy’ / reverse engineer your product, or come up with their own close performing one (after all, it’s a matter of trial and error in the mixing bowl, and any small change from your recipe avoids patent infringements).

Big companies will want an exclusivity arrangement, so if you found a partner, make it count for both pellets, bullets, etc and esp a player that covers the US market, but they’d likely copy and dump you, and get away with it.

Personally, I’d target small niche and strategic ammo manufacturers who do not have the skills to reverse engineering, and who do not produce pellets in-house.

instead of taking the risk of being copied and thrown by the wayside, you would have a niche.

Maybe purchase production assets from George Young and manufacture cartridges in-house?

 

[Smellydog]

I'd sure like to see some for sale loose for us that use muzzeloaders.

 

[Heym SR20]

We've gone one step further. We are actually manufacturing the shot, wire and billets to supply ammuniton manufacturers.

I am looking forward using some no6 size shot in a 2 1/2” 410 cartridge in my vintage little WJ Jeffery side by side 410.

 

[User00048]

Some 3" .410 offerings in number 4 would be interesting for duck

 

[Liveonce]

Herein lies your challenge and strategy.
The big manufacturers would likely not wish to purchase your product as ingredients, they would most likely wish to make it themselves under licensing agreements, to control QA and economies of scale, many/most will already have in-house production.

However, you will also find that paying you royalties (if just using your recipe), will be unappetising for them, and so they will firstly do everything they can to legally ‘copy’ / reverse engineer your product, or come up with their own close performing one (after all, it’s a matter of trial and error in the mixing bowl, and any small change from your recipe avoids patent infringements).

Big companies will want an exclusivity arrangement, so if you found a partner, make it count for both pellets, bullets, etc and esp a player that covers the US market, but they’d likely copy and dump you, and get away with it.

Personally, I’d target small niche and strategic ammo manufacturers who do not have the skills to reverse engineering, and who do not produce pellets in-house.

instead of taking the risk of being copied and thrown by the wayside, you would have a niche.

Maybe purchase production assets from George Young and manufacture cartridges in-house?

Most cartridge manufacture will buy in shot ready to load, that may be from a dedicated independent shot manufacture or from another part of their cooperate empire. They have not said how hortonium is manufactured but it may not be as simple as dropping molten hortonium like it is for lead, It may need wire cut into little bits and then a process like that used for steel or copper shot. Or it may be swaged as large diameter lead shot is made.

As for manufacturing cartridges nice shot, USA, tried that and it looks like they gave up. Given due to price demand is going to be small, possible better to get one of the manufacturers to make x thousands for them to then sell.

HSE recommendations are certainly going to be a ban on lead for live quarry shooting so leaving clay shooting out for now, it going to be a bun fight on what wins out. In what may be three, five or even ten years, plus what an additional two years for the law to be implemented. Then after the legal transition as we have steel, copper, bismuth and hortonium competing for sales, steel will probably remain the cheapest but who knows where the price of copper, bismuth or hortonium will be by the time of a legal lead shot ban then throw into the mix the type of wads.

VHS vs Betamax

 

[Smellydog]

Some 3" .410 offerings in number 4 would be interesting for duck

Stick to #6or#7 buddy. Keep the #4 for larger gauge's.