Reinforced Wax Shotgun Slug

Many YouTube users make wax slugs with many different procedures (like this). I wanted to make a wax slug that would (hopefully) stay together a millisecond longer than regular wax slugs before disintegrating and dumping all it's energy in the disintegration, hopefully ensuring some more penetration before power transfer. I basically want to have my cake (easy wax slug production) and eat it, too (getting closer to regular shotgun slug performance without the higher cost).

The design is inspired by the rebar used in concrete pylons.

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I opened the shotgun cartridges using a thin flat screwdriver and a permanent marker and poured the lead shot into a container.

I cut off around half the crimp with scissors since making an even/round shaped star crimp is very hard with a crudely opened shell, but using shot cards and half the crimp is easier. I wanted to preserve some of the crimp for safety since if all the crimp is gone, the wax slug can slide into the barrel and create a dangerous squib load condition. There are crimp putters for sale that will open the shell while preserving some crimp with a simple twist of the wrist.

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Twist a piece of steel wire (around 6" long) around a permanent marker, twist a few rounds. Bend twist 90 degrees and make another loop around the pen. Twist gain and bend twisted stub into the loop you made.

Try to find a permanent marker or a dowel with diameter a little smaller than the inside of the shot cup.

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Make several of these cages. Put the loop with the twisted stub against the piston so the strongest loop is in the middle of the wax slug. Put some lead shot and waste candle wax into a container and heat. I used a double boiler (a tuna can inside a regular pot of water), but heating it directly is supposed to make the wax slugs stronger according to a few YouTube wax slug makers.

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Pour lead shot and wax into shot cup. I tried to scoop as much lead as possible, and then added a little liquid wax.The wax is perfectly clear in this picture, but will turn white when it cools. I then covered with shot cards -basically small discs I had cup from the flat pieces of a plastic milk jug. I used scissors to cut these, but you can get hole punches in hobby stores that will make discs in the right size. I then put the crimp back as smooth as I could (I used my hands and a tea spoon) and dropped some glue in the center.

I will weigh each round (comparing it to an unmodified shell) to make sure that I'm not shooting a heavier load than the round is design for. I have a 3" magnum chamber in my shotgun barrel, so I should be fine even if there's a gram more than original, but I don't need to gamble, so I'll reopen any shells heavier than an unmodified shell and reload differently.

Wish me luck and that I keep all my limbs!

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