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Shattered Balls*

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 5:36 am
by chaos
Hmmm well can i ask all of those who have marble long arms what you get when you shoot at 4mm thick aluminum (or similar)?

my marbles i use are the cheapest i can find, 101 marbles for $1.00AUD
there cat eye type marbles and just seem to turn to dust when shoot at 180psi+ at a harder surface.

does anyone else get this problem? or should i just start collecting old batteries for some sinkers?

input appreciated

~chaos

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 5:39 am
by jackssmirkingrevenge
Nature always chooses the path of least resistance - if your target's harder than your projectile, then the latter will suffer. In World War 2 for example, while experimenting with very high velocity steel shot, the Germans found that steel sheels would simply shatter when striking steel armour, the solution was to move to very hard tungsten carbide penetrators.

Ballbearings, anyone? ;)

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 5:56 am
by chaos
JSR wrote:Ballbearings, anyone? Wink
lathed cro moly dart anyone? :wink: :wink:

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:14 am
by Hotwired
4mm thick ally needs something serious to get through it. A sharpened and stabilised bit of hard steel rod should do it :)

My money is on the aluminium if you use ball bearings and it really is 4mm thick.

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:29 am
by jackssmirkingrevenge
Hotwired wrote:My money is on the aluminium if you use ball bearings and it really is 4mm thick.
It depends. My friend has a 0.25 cal Career Infinity, it fires 31 grain lead pellets at over 900 fps. At 60 yards it won't penetrate a 3mm sheet of aluminium, just leaves almight dents. However, using a harder projectile might well make the difference.

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 7:03 am
by chaos
nice gun that,


so i think ill either start making lead alloy balls or cro-moly stabilized darts it will just depend on what one is easier to make

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 7:41 am
by to_live
nah marbles shatter easy as, there good bcoz they r so cheap, but if u want to reali do some damage go to bunnings u can get like 400 6mm ball bearings for like 4 bucks n they r made of aluminium i duno y there so cheap? my mate uses his in shotgun cartridges!

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 10:59 am
by pyromaniac
I bought 120 marbles fo 4 dollars and they hold up very good. i've had 2 shatter.

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 12:18 pm
by Bubba05
If you use lead there going to pancake! Try an alloy

Bubba

Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 12:38 pm
by Hotwired
I use lead slugs but theres not enough force in a spudgun to really pancake them.

Flattens off a bit of it but nothing amazing.