Nice Shot?

Ever heard of nice shot? Where can I get some to try? I have read that it is softer than steel, nearly as heavy as lead, legal in every state, and ok to use in a black powder shotgun.......Robin

Deputy Dog said:

Ever heard of nice shot? Where can I get some to try? I have read that it is softer than steel, nearly as heavy as lead, legal in every state, and ok to use in a black powder shotgun.......Robin

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Correct on all accounts...I have it in #6's and #4's...ballistically identical to lead shot.
I think it's still only sold by the manufacturer but haven't checked in a few years now:
http://www.ecotungsten.com/online-store.html

I though gas was high cost, but really $$$ for 6 lbs.

The link below works. It's great shot, obviously expensive, but so are Bismuth and Hevi Shot. With Nice Shot you can buy a kilo, which is more than I get to shoot ducks in a season.

Precision Reloading carries both bismuth and Nice Shot.

Regards,
Joel

I thought I had read that although it is soft enough not to harm barrels, it is somewhat harder than lead so that it actually patterns better with fewer flyers and yields a denser pattern. Is this correct?

hunts4deer said:

I thought I had read that although it is soft enough not to harm barrels, it is somewhat harder than lead so that it actually patterns better with fewer flyers and yields a denser pattern. Is this correct?

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Don't know...if you read that on their website I must have missed it...conversely, I was left with the impression the EcoTungsten/Niceshot site really seemed to emphasize the notion of it being soft, not harming even old original barrels, etc.
But regardless, it does pattern very well out of my 20ga

If I under stood makeumsmoke right the nice shot is the same as Black Cloud in pellet design. As far as the softeness of the shot I can't say on that one.

Wish everybody weren't out o' stock on most sizes.

I just looked at the website that Roundball included in his posting. All I can say that if I had to use shot costing $205 plus postage for a 6 pound bag, I'd start hunting in places that allow lead shot or I'd be using steel shot for waterfowl.

Bill, nearly all the no-tox shot substitutes save steel sell for that kind of money. Too bad steel is so hard on barrels and so mediocre on birds.

BillinOregon said:

Bill, nearly all the no-tox shot substitutes save steel sell for that kind of money. Too bad steel is so hard on barrels and so mediocre on birds.

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Yes.

Joel/Calgary said:

Precision Reloading carries both bismuth and Nice Shot.

Regards,
Joel

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They do, but they only have #2 and #7.5 in stock.

GreenMt said:

BillinOregon said:

Bill, nearly all the no-tox shot substitutes save steel sell for that kind of money. Too bad steel is so hard on barrels and so mediocre on birds.

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Yes.

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AND......to use steel you have to go up a couple pellet sizes to get the same weight for penetration (ie: #4's instead of #6s) which reduces pellet count significantly.
AND......you have to use a special protective shot cup which takes up even more room in the bore making it practically impossible to use something as small as a 20ga and still have an effective size shot charge.
SO.......you then have to lay out the money for a big 10 (or 12) gauge bore Muzzleloader and associated support items to accommodate all the above. (and if you prefer Flintlocks instead of caplocks, it gets worse).

Considering all that huge expense, buying a couple Kilos of Niceshot is pretty reasonable...a dozen shots or so / Kilo with an existing 20ga. And since they basically pattern just like lead...do the load development with the same size / less expensive lead shot as the Niceshot you're going to use, then take a verification shot or two with Niceshot, and go hunting.

Wonder what the melting point is on that stuff and can it be cast into round balls? That may b the answer for the folks in Cali who cant use lead balls anymore.

Had similar thoughts...

I believe that it is a very specific alloy, and that production goes way beyond the ratio of Tungsten and Tin.

Same kind of problem as the secret of the Zildjian Cymbals.

Hmmmm :hmm: There is merit in what you say. :thumbsup: I know it is fun to hunt birds with a muzzleloader so in those situations where you must use non-lead shot, I will admit that the non-lead shot is worth the cost so long as it works as you say and you can do your practice shooting and patterning with lead and can reasonably expect the same performance from the non-lead shot in the field. But, I am on a fixed income so it prices me out of that field of hunting. I stocked up on lead and powder when I was working and had the income to do so and that allows me to continue shooting a rifle for now.

Agree, and I'm not into bird / duck hunting...content to use my 28 & 20 ga smoothbore Flintlocks on upland game

W-O-W, Thanks for the response, but Nice Shot is out of the question, for me. Guess I'll stick with lead......Robin