Came up with this idea 10 yrs. ago for some fun target shooting using Hornady FTX brass that I don't use modified for 209 primers. I made up the 28-30 gr. hardwood bullets on my lathe cutting the grooves for the O rings. NO powder is used.
Had my 1858 Remington out for some fun and decided to try one to see how well it would shoot. Looked like the Remmie likes it from 20 ft. Testing .45 cal. wooden bullets with 1858 Remington - YouTube

Well primers are hard to find nowdays but it was a cool idea at that time. I still have some 209 Magnum primers left over from 2010.

Attached Images

45 colt wood bullet load.jpg (73.4 KB, 328 views)

Just watched your Vid. It's excellent.
Now I need to get the dowel rod.

__________________
never get out of the boat

I remember hearing about a 2-cylinder motorcycle that (temporarily) had one wooden piston. (The other one was aluminum.) Ran fine... maybe long enough to sell it?

That's exactly how Washington did it, only with teeth

Some history from WW2 of wooden bullets
History: Wooden Bullets

My father served in the Pacific Theater including Guadalcanal and Marshall Islands. He spoke of wooden bullets used by the Japanese, which was thought to be done because of supply difficulties. In 1944 Dad was hit in the head, but with a conventional bullet that passed through his helmet and entered his skull. Evacuated to New Zealand, finally got home in 1946. In addition to years of malaria attacks, Dad suffered with severe headaches and some neurological problems for the rest of his life (died 1980). Never drew a dime of disability payments, always worked and took care of whatever life put in his path.

As the old soldier noted in the attached article, steel helmets weren't much good against bullets.

Coincidentally, in Vietnam I was also hit in the head. Something (shrapnel or bullet) zipped through my helmet and tore a chunk out of my scalp, but my head must have been harder than Dad's because all I had was a little skull fracture, back for limited duty after 3 days at a hospital in Yokota, Japan. No long-term adverse effects (as long as I part my hair right), but people have commented on my stubborn nature over the years.

There was swedish Mauser practice woodlen bullets not sure but in the last century.

__________________
Plant garlic in the fall

Speer offers plastic bullets powered by primers.

I went with BB guns. Anything that shoots.

__________________
Plant garlic in the fall

I recall seeing blue plastic training ammo for 7.62 mm NATO for sale a few years ago.

Does anyone think the wood bullets would be good for hunting termites?

__________________
Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

I tried to buy some wooden bullets at Woody's but they wouldn't accept my wooden nickles as payment.

Even cheaper and less labor intensive. Wax bullets. Size a case(any caliber) and push said case through a block of warm canning wax. Prime and shoot. Good for targets and shooting wasp nest off the eaves.

__________________
S&W Accumulator

If I remember reading about it correctly, wooden bullets were once loaded officially in .30-06 ammo by the government for guard duty purposes. Wooden bullet blank ammo has been produced in the past.

I also have read that the Germans issued training ammo with wood bullets during WWII.

John

__________________
- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

I have some plastic training bullets, never tried them though

Poetic justice, for sure.

We used hunt vampires with wooden bullets. Some buys used garlic oil as bullet lube.

One of my great uncles was shot through both jawbones by a Japanese soldier firing one of these training bullets from a rifle.
Blew out several molars and filled his gums and cheeks with splinters.
It was thought the Japs were using these bullets because of conventional ammo shortages at the time.
I have since wondered if they may have been used by choice at night if they were quieter, and the shooter could get in really close to his target.

I bought a Box of Norwegian 9mm wood training ammo, only thing left was the Brass and primer, powder and wood bullet gone, fine dust in the case.

When I was in the Big Green Machine, we used these to train with the M2 BMG. There is a special barrel that increases the recoil so that the gun will function. In a clean gun, they worked pretty well. They are supposed to be good to 175 meters but I don't remember shooting at anything more than 75 to 100 meters and at that distance, the accuracy was just ok.

J & G Sales sells 6.5 Swede ammunition with wooden bullets very cheap! I bought a bunch a few months ago for the brass.

The Japanese Type 2 grenade launcher used wooden bullets to propel the grenade. That may have been all the Japanese soldier had left at the time he shot your uncle.

I have some of these.

Attached Images

DSC04516.jpg (141.3 KB, 62 views)

I had a couple of cases of these Egyptian 8X57 Wooden Bullets
Still have a few boxes kicking around.

Attached Images

DSCI1638.jpg (84.7 KB, 59 views)

Desperate times call for desperate measures, but wood bullets?

I kinda did a little of both.
I drilled some 357 cases to accept a 209 shotgun primer (6mm drill bit) for shooting wax bullets. I picked up a couple of thousand 38 cal wax bullets a couple of years ago.

The shotgun primers have quite a bit more OOOMPH than regular or even magnum pistol primers. They sound about like a 22 short and have some pretty good zip to them.

Next I want to try them in 9mm too. With a shotgun primer and the higher pressures it will generate in the short 9mm case they ought to really cook.

Attached Images

	Primer2.jpg (33.1 KB, 43 views)
	Bullet2.jpg (29.8 KB, 40 views)
	Loaded2.jpg (35.1 KB, 36 views)

__________________
Send lawyers, guns & money...

That is interesting. But I think you would have much less work, and about the same results if you used wax bullets instead. Just melt some candle wax in a recipient and make sure the melted wax has a depth of about .45, after the wax is solid just press the cases into it until you reach the bottom of the recipient. You will end up with a wax wadcutter. In spite of the bullets being made of wax and having no powder make sure you only shoot against an effective back stop. This still is no toy and can still be dangerous and make damage at stuff you don't want to shoot.

The bonus. You can collect the spent bullets remelt them and start all over again.

PS. You can use standard primers. Just open up the flash holes on the cases intended for "wax shooting".

Edit. As I kept reading the thread, I found out that Mike, SC hunter beat me to te draw.

__________________
Expect the unexpected

Now you have me wondering if I can cast some 148gn DEWC out of wax in my Lyman mold. Might be just the ticket for indoor practice in my barn this winter.

Wasn't it good, Norwegian wood?

Wasn't it good, Norwegian wood?
AHHHH Very Good Telecaster. I expected some to comment with XXX rated remarks about using wood but realized the cliental here are way too High Brows for such remarks.

Wax bullets would be easier & cheaper.

__________________
NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

George Washington did not have wooden teeth, I should know, see the last 3 letters in my screen name.

__________________
VCDL, GOA, NRA

The Speer plastic "bullets" work pretty well for basement shooting with normal primers.
I used to catch them in a box full of crumpled newspaper.
They do break if running into anything harder and are still dangerous if used carelessly.
Seeings how primers are the weakest link these days, I'll save them for real shooting.

__________________
NEMO
"Everything 44"

That's another great thing about converting some cases to use shotgun primers. They seem to be a little easier to find right now and you don't have to use up those precious pistol primers (say that 3 times fast). You can save them for real pistol rounds!

__________________
Send lawyers, guns & money...

if you bore out a cartridge with a 6mm bit for 209 primers. How do you countersink for the rim of the 209 into the case so it flush and will not bind in the cylinder?

__________________
S&W Accumulator

I used the tip of a 3/8" bit to countersink the area around the 6mm hole. If you look at my first picture in post 24 above you can see it worked quite well.

__________________
Send lawyers, guns & money...

Why the wooden bullets? Being a retired toolmaker half the fun for me is making things and see how they work. Yes wax and plastic bullets are easier but wanted to see my idea work.

I have the same ones. Been a long time, but if remember correctly, I was very surprised to see the amount of fowling from just the primer. The problem now is that I don't want to use up my primers.