Wax bullets

A wax bullet is a bullet made of wax, often paraffin wax or some mixture of waxes and other substances that produce the desired consistency. Wax bullets are typically used in a primed cartridge case, with no gunpowder. The primer provides all the necessary power to propel the wax bullet at low velocities. Wax bullets have been in use for over a century, providing a projectile for use in training, indoor shooting, and shooting competitions where a high velocity metal bullet would be needlessly hazardous.

Wax bullet cartridges do not provide enough force to cycle automatic firearms, so they are most commonly used in revolvers and other manually cycled firearms. Specially designed cartridges and conversion units can be combined to convert automatic firearms into wax bullet firing guns, and these are used for training police and military.

In the past, wax bullets were used by illusionists for illusions involving firearms, such as the Bullet Catch. This practice goes back at least as far as Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin, who used hollow wax bullets colored to resemble lead balls. When placed on a charge of gunpowder, the wax bullet would disintegrate upon firing.

Wax bullets are not normally lethal, and will not penetrate sturdy walls, so they are safe to use indoors or in situations where live ammunition is dangerous. This is not to say that they are entirely safe, as velocities are around 500 feet per second (160 meters per second). This exceeds the velocities of paintballs, and serious damage could be done to sensitive areas, so suitable precautions should be taken when using them.

Wax bullets can be easily constructed by using a cartridge case to punch a cylinder out of a sheet of paraffin wax, and then priming the cartridge using normal handloading equipment. The optional addition of beeswax and/or grease will produce a softer, more flexible bullet than pure paraffin. Higher velocities may be obtained using special cartridges drilled out to accept shotgun primers, which provide higher velocities, and some fast draw competitions allow the use of a small amount of black powder or black powder substitute to provide higher velocities for certain events. Commercially produced wax bullets are also available, and may be required for competitions. These pre-formed bullets are simply pressed into the case mouth.

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Wikipedia