As the five-year transition to non-lead shot for live quarry shooting continues, BASC has taken the initiative and organised a series of Sustainable Ammunition Days around the UK. These workshops aim to provide accurate, honest and practical experience of lead-free ammunition for your shotgun on a simulated game layout. Shooters’…
Ammunition
Ammunition is one of the core elements of the shooting experience.
Choosing the right load is key – and will depend on the gun being used, the level of shooting expertise, the quarry, the terrain and the target.
Is it best to buy online or visit a specialist supplier? Online is convenient but talking to somebody experienced could make a big difference to your shooting.
What are the laws on lead shot and steel shot? When should each be used?
Here our team of experts at Shooting UK give you the latest information on choosing and using the right ammunition, whether shotgun cartridges or air rifle pellets, with tips on storing, wearing and maintaining it safely.
We talk you through the best choices for clayshooting, gameshooting, pigeon shooting, wildfowling and stalking. What’s new on the market and which are the tried and tested favourites.
Being a responsible shooter also means being a safe shooter so we cover the safety rules when using ammunition too.
Shotgun cartridges | Clay cartridges | Air rifle pellets | Ammunition reviews |
Best airgun pellets – our list of tried and tested picks
Airguns are known to be notoriously fussy about the ammunition you put in them, so how can you find the best airgun pellets for you and your purposes? It’s really a matter of trial and error and experimenting. Luckily airgun pellets aren’t particularly expensive and putting some time in to…
Best air rifle slugs: these are the ones you should be trying out
Air rifle slug ammunition is gaining popularity with airgun shooters and the choice of readily available airgun slugs is now far wider than it was just a year ago. Many of the big airgun ammo names are producing slugs and several new players have emerged. Here’s my list of the…
Shotgun wads explained – here’s what you need to know
Besides checking our shotgun cartridges are loaded with the correct shotgun wads type to comply with the rules of the ground we are shooting on, it’s likely we don’t give much thought to that small item between powder charge and shot load. Prior to the introduction of plastic, all wads…
Which lead-free airgun pellets would you recommend?
Q: After all the talk about shotgun shooters moving away from lead shot, I feel inspired to try using lead-free pellets in my airgun. Are there any brands you can recommend, and should I expect them to perform differently? A: Many of the best airgun pellet manufacturers, such as JSB,…
Non-lead rifle ammunition put to the test
Oh, the joys of moving to non-lead rifle ammunition. No, I’m not being sarcastic. I had forgotten how much fun testing new ammunition can be. Especially when it goes well. Testing non-lead rifle ammunition I have been trying out some new stuff for my 7mm-08 deer rifle. First, I searched…
Steel shot vs lead – why I switched a while ago
Steel shot vs lead I suspect that most shooters realise that lead is dead. It’s only a matter of when. I am not going to reiterate the arguments for steel shot vs lead, they have been done to death. The inexorable tightening of the legal noose around lead was widely…
We looked for the best clay cartridges around – here’s what we found
Nowadays there is a whole selection of cartridges designed specifically for clays. Some are general-purpose, some for specific disciplines like trap and skeet and some are dedicated competition cartridges for 12-bore, 20-bore, .410 and even 28-bore. The golden rule for finding the best clayshooting cartridges is to pick the one…
Fibre wads – it’s time to ditch the plastic
Plastic pollution is a major cause for concern these days and as shooters we have to do our bit to protect the environment and show that we are behaving responsibly. So does that mean we should turn our back on plastic wads and make a wholesale switch to fibre wads?…
Eley VIP Steel Pro Eco – tested by Sporting Gun magazine
My expectations were not high when I tested the new Eley VIP Steel Pro Eco. But I was floored when I found that they were every bit as good as cartridges with lead shot. I tried to be scientific about testing the new eco cartridges and used a pattern…
All about small calibre cartridges
Q: Do you have any information on the .14 or .12 calibre cartridges? I would like to rebarrel a rifle in one of these calibres but what’s your advice on small calibre cartridges? A: There are some worthwhile small calibre cartridges around. The .14 is a unique calibre and a…
How to choose the perfect airgun pellets for your rifle
Having the perfect airgun pellets for your particular gun can make the difference between hit and miss. So how can you decide? Read through the following and you’ll be in a good position to make the right purchase – and make that all-important difference to your shooting. You can find…
How to match ammunition to your rifle using a chronograph
Q: I am after a cheap way of measuring the velocity of my .22 subsonic CZ rimfire so I can work out its trajectory. Is the new FX Chronograph any good? I use a lot of different chronographs to measure my rifle’s muzzle velocity. A: The new FX model is…
Why doesn’t everyone pick up their plastic cartridge cases?
What do you do with your empty plastic cartridge cases? Plastic wads are already verboten on many game shoots. But plastic cartridge cases are another matter. They are still very much the rule rather than the exception. Unlike wads, which are blasted to God only knows where, cases are much…
How to choose the best load for a 20-bore
A 20-bore shotgun is really used for game shooting and although 20-bores can easily and convincingly be used to shoot clays, most dedicated clay Shots use a 12. In this article I give overview of the most appropriate cartridge loads for differing quarry types. Ease of movement with 20-bore The…
The pros and cons of lead-free bullets
There is a growing push towards lead-free bullets. But what are the pros and cons of lead-free bullets? These are the advantages and disadvantages as I see them and of copper bullets. There are serious considerations for both but lead shot is, of course, being phased out over a five-year…
What happened when Bruce Potts carried out a high velocity ammunition test?
Speed, power and accuracy are essential for successful pest control — Bruce Potts tests six of the classic .22LR high velocity ammunition rounds to see which is the top performer. There is a vast number of manufacturers and styles of bullet to choose from – most popular are the .22LR…
What are the choices available if you’re looking for lead-free ammunition?
Like many people, you may be considering trying some steel shot for your game shooting this season. But with so much misinformation available online, how do you know where to start? Moving towards lead free ammunition We must begin by realising that what is right for somebody on Facebook may…
We asked some keen partridge shooters which cartridges they use. Here’s what they said.
With the partridge season starting on 1st September, shooters are going to be thinking about the best cartridges for partridge shooting. So we asked around some experienced Guns for their tips and advice. 8 of the best cartridges for partridge shooting Gamebore Dark Storm Quad Seal Hull Cartridge Partridge Cartridge Lyalvale Express…
How does your shot measure up?
Like much in game shooting, our choice of shot size has evolved. The era before international corporations dominated the UK shooting market, and US-style marketeers brought professional persuasion to an unsuspecting public, was quite different. But not necessarily bad. There is much in modern game shooting to be proud of,…