Well, well, well... isn’t this mass spectrometer result interesting.
The 228-grain Eley 450/400 paper patched copper-tubed bullet is
92% lead
7% tin
1% copper plus other contaminant stuff that was likely all on an individual basis byproducts of the various processes associated with mining and refining lead and tin separately, and then again those processes associated with combining them together.
I think Mike Rowe gets the prize for being right, again. Bravo! If I respected your opinion on these matters before, I really really respect and value it now.
Now, about that C&H #6 gunpowder that was in the Eley case...we also studied this in the mass spectrometer, and obtained some fascinating results. If the readings are correct, then C&H had a secret ingredient that made their powder especially energetic. Their ratios of carbon, sulfur and potassium are also unique. We are going to further study the powder in a destructive way in a mass spectrometer better designed for analyzing the organics inside the black powder. Then we will know for sure what C&H was up to, and why their powders were so highly successful.
