From Victor3:
"Would this type of ball (in correct diameters) be within the rules of N-SSA target competition? If so, I'd think some guys would jump on relatively inexpensive precision ammo to give them an edge over those shooting cast balls."
Solid steel or iron balls are not allowed in NSSA competition. See the pertinent section of their current Rules below. Maybe someone who participates regularly in their competitions can tell us exactly why this is so?
"10.10.2 PROJECTILES
a. Projectile shall not be of a configuration that may cause unsafe pressures. Weight of projectiles shall be limited to that amount permitted by TABLE 10.1.
b. Solid ferrous, combustible, explosive or pyrotechnic projectiles are prohibited."
Victor3, yours is not a silly idea, it's just that organizations these days are micromanaged by their lawyers. Just a guess, but I bet some sharp legal eagle picked up on the word 'fragment' in some conversation at some meeting in the past, and 'faulty cast iron' was also mentioned and discussed. So, to ban 'faulty cast iron' projectiles you get a ban on 'solid ferrous' which includes solid steel, solid malleable iron and solid cast iron projectiles. When it comes to exclusions, lawyers tend to cast a very large net. No surgical strikes for these guys, they want Nukes right away! The reason is, of course, that if an accident occurs, they want the language of those rules they wrote to be 'bullet-proof', because the plaintiff's lawyers are going to be dissecting the Rule Book minutely. This is all conjecture, but I bet the truth is in there, nevertheless.
Tracy and Mike