Quick early morning hunt - 3 ring bullet???

[kpmoose]

I had 1/2 a day in the morning to myself today, so I decided to hit an area that I've been wanting to check out. No cellar holes found as I had hoped. As I was making my way down towards a small river, I was randomly swinging the coil on an existing trail (State land with some trails). I was getting a few strong signals here & there, but they were all very shallow 1-2". I pulled the usual shotgun shells and some modern pennies and a nickel. Then I had another strong signal, but this time it was deeper- 6". I dug it, and out came what I believe to be a 3 ring bullet of some kind. It has a very odd shape though. It does not have a cone shape at the point and there is no cavity, just a small indentation on the base. It is also not the typical whitish color- it is more grayish, but definitely has the weight of lead. Length is about 1" and diameter is 7/16". Can anyone give this a positive id?

[MangoAve]

I was gonna say the same thing about the shape, but also the length. It should be more pointed near the front. It definitely is lead tho. Maybe a weight.

[OxShoeDrew]

Is there a date on that rabies tag? I see 1773 :lol: They just toughed rabies out back then :lol:

On paths, old roads, 4 wheeler roads, the targets are liable to be near the surface.

I always assumed those 3 ringed things were bullets :dontknow: Nice pictures!

[Skamaniac]

That's got one heck of a blunt tip. I've never even seen a pic of a bullet like that. Pretty cool though!

[giant056]

I've found similar bullets myself, I've never really measured the diameter of one but they're a really heavy slug for sure and the ones that I found I think were probably used in an earlier centerfire probably black powder.

[kpmoose]

Is there a date on that rabies tag? I see 1773 :lol: They just toughed rabies out back then :lol:

On paths, old roads, 4 wheeler roads, the targets are liable to be near the surface.

I always assumed those 3 ringed things were bullets :dontknow: Nice pictures!

:lol::lol::lol: Rabies tag is dated 1989

[Timewarpdigger]

Congrats for the finds.. Safe & HH

[Bell-Two]

I think the bullet is a modern sabot used in black powder rifles. They have a black powder deer season in Ohio so I assume they do elsewhere.

[MangoAve]

Bell had the right info to search upon. It looks like it is a sabot for a trapdoor 1873 or 1884 Springfield. Now whether it's authentic or modern.....idk? It looks like it has been fired versus dropped due to being curved, but obvi they were not a good shot as they hit nothing but the ground.

[Trooper Bri]

I think the bullet is a modern sabot used in black powder rifles. They have a black powder deer season in Ohio so I assume they do elsewhere.

Yep. We have a muzzle loader season for deer in CT.

[kpmoose]

I think the bullet is a modern sabot used in black powder rifles. They have a black powder deer season in Ohio so I assume they do elsewhere.

Thanks for the info. Any ideas why the tip is so blunt? I'm not a hunter, so have no idea.