Hard rubber balls

[doc623]

Has anyone tired using hard rubber balls for practice?
If so where did you find/source for the balls?
How did they work?

[Flint]

Sounds like a good way to get a ball right back in your face, I would suggest not trying it.....

[blhof]

I've used the 38/9mm hard rubber/plastic wadcutters primer powered for my cartridge powered guns as a garage practice and rat killer.  They're very accurate at short ranges, although I did take a squirrel at 15yds with one, thought it would only scare it and bang flop.  A friend with a 36cal b/p revolver tried some in his, using only caps and they worked, don't know about the accuracy, he's not a good shot with real bullets.  Speer makes them and Midway had another brand that were hard rubber in assorted calibers, thye are reusable and a box of 100 lasted me a few years.

[AtlLaw]

We talked about glu-balls a while back.  I now use them in my basement range with 5 gr. of BP and 10 gr. of CofW.  Not bad, at least I get to shoot the revolvers some more then I would.

[doc623]

I seem to remember reading on possibly another thread that someone found a source for hard round rubber .45 or.50 dia. balls that were used for practice using a cap and little or no powder.
I cannot remember or find that post.
I have seen the X-ring rubber bullets and Midway does have them.
I would like to find a source for round balls.
Any help form anyone?
And as far as having them bounce back and him me; well I think that would be not very likely.

[coyotejoe]

If you were to fire them at a hard surface I think bounce back would be almost certain, even lead balls will bounce back from wood if fired with a very light powder charge and they come back with enough force to really hurt, I'd hate to catch one in the face.

[45LCshoooter]

The X-ring bullets are not round and have a slightly wasp-waisted shape similar to airgun pellets. They can bounce, i suppose, but they are thin in cross-section and very light, i think the bounce would be rather erratic... The suggested method for using them on targets is to shoot into a heavy cardboard box with a window cut out which the target is placed over. If you do it with flaps on top side, they will deflect into the bottom of the box. I've used them against squirrels that were raiding birdfeeders when there were houses in the background.

I don't know about solid rubber projectiles, tho.

[.22-5-40]

Years ago, I drilled out a set of niples for an 1860 Colt repro. Made up a swaging die for making beeswax balls.  worked great at garage length distance & did wonders to beat those long-winter blues!    Just make sure you remove those oversized nipples before loading powder charged loads!