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"The first step--in the direction of preparation to avert war if possible, and to be fit for war if it should come--is to teach men to shoot." -Theodore Roosevelt

This is my own personal homage to Rob Cockerham's How Much is Inside? series over at his site, Cockeyed.

How much is inside a shotgun shell? Shotgun shells are made up of many components, a primer which ignites, wadding which creates a seal for the gas that is created when the primer is ignited, then the actual shot itself, which is made of small metal balls that are propelled outward by the pressure of the ignited primer built up by the wadding.

This is, of course, similar to the way celebrities file for divorce.

But how much shot is inside a shotgun shell? That depends on the gauge of the shell, the size of the shot, and the current position of Saturn and Mercury.

Undeterred, on Saturday afternoon, I set to find out how much is inside.

I started by acquiring shot. A friend from back home provided me the shot from a size-7 1/2, 12-gauge shotgun shell.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This friend is extensively knowledgeable in firearms and firearm safety. DO NOT attempt to remove shot from a shotgun shell! It is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS and should not be tried.

This is the shot I was provided.

While the shot is in the shell, it is house in what is called a "shot cup." This is made of thin plastic, with slits on the side. The slits let the cup peel back as it is forced out of the shell when fired, so the shot itself will spray out.

The shot cup is about 1" deep and has a diameter of 3/4".

Rather than spread out the shot all over a table and start bean-counting, I used a different method. I took the shot and poured it into a small cup. I then got a strip of gray tape. I counted out five pieces of shot at a time, then would stick one piece onto the strip of tape, and the other four back into the original shot cup.

This is what the strip of tape looked like when I was finished. In all, I had 46 groups of five (which is represented by the shot in the corners) and four pieces left over (which are in the middle.)

So, with simple pre-algebra, (46*5)+4= 234 pieces of shot.

Just for fun, this is what all the shot looks like when on the tape strip.