Seams inevetable- Why not get ahead of it- Plastic Wads.

[tightgrouper]

It seems inevitable that there will be a push to biodegradable shot wads. Why aren't plastic wads for shot shells available in the Canadian ammunition market.

[silveragent]

I agree. When we do clean up in the swamps after our hunts and during organized clean ups we are always picking up plastic wads. And during hunting it is next to impossible to pick up your wads. Hulls yes but wads are anywhere from 10 to 30m out.

[warnniklz]

Do frequent wad walks while hunting fields... but yeah waterways are near impossible to get them all.

Kind of reminds me though of when people were calling for Marijuana to be legalized so they could make hemp products... like plastic alternatives. But now you see plastic containers and foil packets everywhere.

Would be nice if hunters could be the frontrunner in using biodegradable. Especially in their shotgun shells.

No I wouldn't want to go back to cardboard shells.

[VLD43]

It seems inevitable that there will be a push to biodegradable shot wads. Why aren't plastic wads for shot shells available in the Canadian ammunition market.

Not sure I understand all of your question. Plastic wads for reloading are available. Were you asking if bio plastic wads were available? I was in the UK about 20 years ago and they had banned plastic wads. Everything sold has fibre wads. I think you will see a gradual transition to fiber over the years. I don't know if fiber wads will be an issue with some shotguns that have forcing cones removed or altered.

[silveragent]

the issue is to get manufacturers here doing so in enough quantity to make it more than a boutique thing. You know what will happen is that suddenly a government will mandate it and there will be a huge adjustment for consumers and manufacturers. I am positive it is going to come, so how can we make the shift sooner so there is less disruption and so industry can do it their way and not follow some bureaucrat's vision of it.

[tigrr]

Ya lets use something to help those steel pellets rust faster. I hate change!!
I still have 1000 rounds of BB, 2, 4, 6 and 7 1/2 in lead. I keep it for the young ones to knock over stuff.
I once was so poor I recycled the wads into new shells.(410)

[VLD43]

The reality is there are very few places in Canada that plastic wads would be a concern. I could see this happening in some places in the USA that are heavily gunned every season or in California. As much and all as we don't want to intentionally pollute, wads are pretty small potatoes. There is more plastic waste washed ashore from passing freighters and more deposited into the ocean from micro plastics. Unfortunately things like plastic has been politically sensitized to push the Enviro agenda. So changing or degrading the performance of shot shells just to cater to the snowflakes isn't a great idea in my mind. It just encourages them.

[Dano]

Each ammunition manufacturer has their own wad design to maximize their shell’s performance. Currently we have excellent shotshells available and lots of options.
If manufacturers design a bio product that works well, all is good. But if legislation forces manufacturers to put something out that’s not up to the current standard of performance we could have inferior shells.
A lot of guys stopped waterfowling when steel came in because of poor performing shells. A wad is important to protect the barrel, cushion initial ignition in shell, and protect the shot from damage inside the petals. New materials need to deliver the payload at least up to where we are now.
We always pick up hulls and wads at our fields. Keep it clean and the farmers will be happy. Any hulls or wads you shoot should be picked up if possible. They will be around for a long time if you don’t and the mess makes all hunters look like slobs....
I do hope manufacturers are designing bio wads for their products now, if the performance is there, we should all use them.

[tightgrouper]

This is what I want:https: //www.rioammo.com/en/rio_ammunition/new_rio_products#

Very difficult to get, even in the US right now. Pretty much none existent in canada.

[lorneparker1]

The reality is there are very few places in Canada that plastic wads would be a concern. I could see this happening in some places in the USA that are heavily gunned every season or in California. As much and all as we don't want to intentionally pollute, wads are pretty small potatoes. There is more plastic waste washed ashore from passing freighters and more deposited into the ocean from micro plastics. Unfortunately things like plastic has been politically sensitized to push the Enviro agenda. So changing or degrading the performance of shot shells just to cater to the snowflakes isn't a great idea in my mind. It just encourages them.

I disagree. No farmer i know wants to feed his cows shards of plastic. PLus if you hunt as much as we do in some of our spots it would be completely irreasonsible to leave them. We fill 5 gallon buckets full at the end of the season. We pick up our wads every hunt in some places and in others we pick them up at the end of the season. Bio degreadable wads should have been a thing a long time ago and i look forward to when they are mandated.

[Blockcaver]

Couple issues: Without a plastic shot wrap (when using with fiber wads) around steel shot it will score the heck out of a barrel. Without at least a plastic gas seal over the powder, pattern performance will suffer at distances beyond skeet range...assuming old style nitro card wads are used directly over the powder charge. I know...I started reloading shotshells before the advent of plastic one piece wads, plastic gas seals for over the powder, and shot wraps.

[Surrey Boy]

Sounds like a business opportunity.

[VLD43]

I disagree. No farmer i know wants to feed his cows shards of plastic. PLus if you hunt as much as we do in some of our spots it would be completely irreasonsible to leave them. We fill 5 gallon buckets full at the end of the season. We pick up our wads every hunt in some places and in others we pick them up at the end of the season. Bio degreadable wads should have been a thing a long time ago and i look forward to when they are mandated.

Agree with your comments. What I as referring to had more to do with hunting on the salt chuck and not farm fields. I too will and would do all I could to leave any area as clean or better than I found it. Picking up shotshells is easy, but wads are a different story on the ocean.

[Redthies]

Last years clean up from 112th. The wads get a pass, the hulls, 50% probably could have been cleaned up, but the boxes are inexcusable.

url=https://postimg.cc/nXxHRTrf]https://i.postimg.cc/nXxHRTrf/09-A56-EF9-B5-E9-4-D14-89-D9-DDBB0-AB2-B037.jpg[/url]


https://i.postimg.cc/ZWLJ13vB/2-C2951-F0-336-C-4-AB8-B125-16-BC85-B4-CF13.png (https://postimg.cc/ZWLJ13vB)

[silveragent]

BTW there is going to be an organized cleanup of both Boundary and Robert's Bank. Watch for the announcement. A few groups are coordinating this.

re: wads. I wonder if any companies are looking into bioplastic which are said to degrade over months as compared to regular plastics which won't in a lifetime.

EDIT: it seems the groundwork has been done https://www.vims.edu/ccrm/research/marine_debris/solutions/wads/index.php#:~:text=CCRM%20has%20developed%20a%20sho tgun,in%20land%20and%20aquatic%20environments.

[MichelD]

The reality is there are very few places in Canada that plastic wads would be a concern. I could see this happening in some places in the USA that are heavily gunned every season or in California. As much and all as we don't want to intentionally pollute, wads are pretty small potatoes. There is more plastic waste washed ashore from passing freighters and more deposited into the ocean from micro plastics. Unfortunately things like plastic has been politically sensitized to push the Enviro agenda. So changing or degrading the performance of shot shells just to cater to the snowflakes isn't a great idea in my mind. It just encourages them.

I had permission in a Delta field when he was growing potatoes, but then switched to cranberries and the farmer said don't shoot anywhere near the cranberries as the wads screw up the harvesting machine screen mechanisms.

[VLD43]

I had permission in a Delta field when he was growing potatoes, but then switched to cranberries and the farmer said don't shoot anywhere near the cranberries as the wads screw up the harvesting machine screen mechanisms.

Absolutely. I used to hunt a farm where they grew hay and grazed cattle. I would always pick up all shells or any other garbage I found before leaving. It's just common sense. Unfortunately wads are not always recoverable. Yes pick them up if you can. Another concern I have heard of is the use of lead around farm land. I know that applies more to upland game, but I am sure that there are those who will use that as an excuse to not allow hunting.

[LeverActionJunkie]

I’m with Lorne on this one. I would happily shoot biodegradable wads and non tox shot for all my shotgunning. The British have been for years and they still shoot lots of fowl. There’s no reason North America shouldn’t follow suit. We as hunters and the industry surrounding need to begin leading non these issues rather than being mandated. We are a minuscule segment of the population and getting smaller all the time. Our rights and abilities to do these activities are not guaranteed and one day there simply won’t be enough of us so we should be setting the best possible example and leaving the smallest footprint possible.