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Steel Pellets.

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PeeBee

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Does anyone remember when steel airgun pellets were sold in gun shops? I'm not sure if they were actually steel but they were absolutely lethal. This was in the early/mid 1980s and when their destructive capabilities came to the attention of the authorities they were quickly banned.

I never bought any myself but clearly recall seeing a news report where a sub 12 rifle was fired from about 3feet distance into a thick woodchip(?) board with the obvious results. The same thing was done, but that time with a steel pellet and it blew a fist sized hole in the board.
 
PeeBee said:
Does anyone remember when steel airgun pellets were sold in gun shops? I'm not sure if they were actually steel but they were absolutely lethal. This was in the early/mid 1980s and when their destructive capabilities came to the attention of the authorities they were quickly banned.

I never bought any myself but clearly recall seeing a news report where a sub 12 rifle was fired from about 3feet distance into a thick woodchip(?) board with the obvious results. The same thing was done, but that time with a steel pellet and it blew a fist sized hole in the board.
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Do you mean Prometheus pellets?, you can still get them just google them.
 
Again, sounds like Prometheus with a bit of added colour for dramatic effect.

Pretty sure they were zinc rather than steel and the board at 3ft would be to guarantee a hit 🎯

It does bring back a memory of very biased reporting of the Saxby Palmer Lee Enfield. They started by showing some plinker that was denting empty drinks cans, and then compared it with the 'dangerously powerful' Saxby shooting at sealed fizzy drinks cans with the obviously more impressive results. I'd put money on them giving them a good shake just to make sure.
 
mickson said:
Do you mean Prometheus pellets?, you can still get them just google them.
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I don't know what they were called and I'm not familiar with the pellets you mentioned. I doubt if they were the same as they'd be banned. Would a Promethethus pellet do the same to a 1/2" thick chipboard target with a sub 12?

I've no need for anything other than pellets for plinking nowadays, but it piqued my interest when I was hunting in the 1980s.
 
all the steel pellets i ever saw or heard of were in fact a steel insert into a plastic type body.i doubt there was a whole pure steel pellet as it would have destroyed the rifling in no time at all
 
Does sound like Prometheus which were a hard zinc alloy IIRC - dire pellets as were the Champion Ballistic.

Neither were banned and can't remember any pellets from that era being banned either
 
Theoben offered unchoked Anschutz barrels specially for Prometheus ammo. God Knows where the Rep took Ben & Dave for lunch when that decision went through. I seem to remember we swore at them rather than by them. They looked mean and had a cool black plastic tub though. (y)
 
That hurts said:
Does sound like Prometheus which were a hard zinc alloy IIRC - dire pellets as were the Champion Ballistic.

Neither were banned and can't remember any pellets from that era being banned either
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No they wern't banned just so inaccurate anyone with a jot of sense stopped using them, still got a box i was given with my mpt titan ,nearly full, I've never been tempted to shoot even one through any of my guns.
 
Danthepainter said:
Theoben offered unchoked Anschutz barrels specially for Prometheus ammo. God Knows where the Rep took Ben & Dave for lunch when that decision went through. I seem to remember we swore at them rather than by them. They looked mean and had a cool black plastic tub though. (y)
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Came in yellow tubs too, got a couple of empty ones i use for storing my spare daystate mags in which they fit perfectly, imo the tubs were more useful than the pellets.
 
Prometheus were steel at the start then zinc alloy .

They sold well abroad compared to here in the UK.


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They were made by a rivet manufacturer , The bifurcated and tubular rivet company in Aylesbury, Bucks.


There was also Titan Blacks that were the same idea.
 
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Bighit said:
Prometheus were steel at the start then zinc alloy .

They sold well abroad compared to here in the UK.


View attachment 546829

They were made by a rivet manufacturer , The bifurcated and tubular rivet company in Aylesbury, Bucks.


There was also Titan Blacks that were the same idea.
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I've had a think about this and I'm sure the ones I'm referring to were banned not long after the news report I was speaking about. Still we're talking mid-1980s here so I've slept since then so, possibly it could have been a call for a ban which never materialised and I assumed they had been? I vividly remember the pellet test against the board though. I wonder if These early Prometheus had the same punch?
 
PeeBee said:
I've had a think about this and I'm sure the ones I'm referring to were banned not long after the news report I was speaking about. Still we're talking mid-1980s here so I've slept since then so, possibly it could have been a call for a ban which never materialised and I assumed they had been? I vividly remember the pellet test against the board though. I wonder if These early Prometheus had the same punch?
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Do you remember what they were being shot from? Just wondering if it was the NATO bullets out of the Saxby Palmer.
 
A fist sized hole from an air rifle pellet? I really think not. I can’t remember any steel pellets being around either, the Prometheus pellets were useless, as were the Titan black and all the others like them, you could literally shoot around corners with them 😂
 
Drake267 said:
A fist sized hole from an air rifle pellet? I really think not. I can’t remember any steel pellets being around either, the Prometheus pellets were useless, as were the Titan black and all the others like them, you could literally shoot around corners with them 😂
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I saw it. It's the thing which stuck in my mind.
 
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