Bio Ammo Rex Steel

Yes, another steel loading, but why not? They are gathering more interest and acceptance as the months roll on. What I like about the new Bio Ammo rounds is that not only do they use non-lead shot, but they are 100% eco-friendly, as they also contain 0% plastic too. This is because Bio Ammo has developed the first truly 0% plastic cartridge with biodegradable, bio-compostable and non-toxic wads and cases. Yet, they function as any other normal cartridge and now have a nice combination of both hunting and clay-suitable loadings.

Keeping it clean

These REX Steel loads on test are standard performance/velocity and shoot a steel load instead of the alloy-based pellets. The 0% plastic case is designed to fade away into the environment, rather than melt away with moisture like some other non-plastic casings. They can take six months to two years to break down via the enzymatic action of naturally occurring bacteria. That’s because the cases and wads are made from a very clever vegetable biopolymer material that is not just bio-degradable, but it is bio-compostable too, so they leave no toxic residue after degradation. They are fully biodegraded into carbon dioxide, water, mineral salts and new microbial cellular constituents (biomass). The whole biodegradation process is clean and odourless due to micro-organisms, fungi and algae, which are present in the surroundings. Also, the brown colour of the wads makes them far less noticeable when compared to plastic wads or cases that can take hundreds of years to degrade! Yes, the case head of each cartridge is metal, but they are made from a nontoxic alloy that will rust away eventually.

At this point, it is very important to note that these new bio ‘plastic’ materials do possess very good tensile strength, so the cartridge cases are always uniform, with a tight crimp closure for correct powder ignition and to stop moisture ingress. Another point worth mentioning is that the biopolymer used is heavier than standard HDPE plastics, so these wads weigh around 60-grains compared to standard plastic wads that weigh between 42 and 46-grains. This has the effect of producing an efficient driving wad to ensure that the hot gases are contained in the barrel and do not slip past the wad. Very good and consistent velocities are produced, which ultimately helps to achieve excellent ballistic efficiency and patterning. The wads also provide a good level of protection down the bore if you are using non-lead pellets too.

All of these features should mean a more pricey cartridge, but these REX Steel Bio Ammo 12-gauge cartridges retail at Just Cartridges for £274 per 1000, which I think is very reasonable with all things considered.

One important point is that they need to be stored in normal climates and then they will last 5 years. They won’t last in wet climates for as long.

Spec

The Bio Ammo Rex Steel is only available with the ECO wad and with No. 7.5 steel shot size. There is a choice of either 24 or 28-gram loadings. There is a 70mm case with a nice ribbed neutral grey finish to it, plus all the salient details are printed on the outside.

I used the 24-gram loading, which I find much nicer to shoot and it still has a really good payload. In use, it would also make a good simulated game load that’s easy on the shoulder. I tested them through the new Beretta A400 Xcel Sporting ATS at 30 yards onto pattern boards with both ¼ and ½ choke to see how they perform down range.

I found that they were really smooth when fired, making them pleasant to shoot. You can detect that the steel pellets do seem to be travelling faster (1350 fps), so at normal ranges, you need to make a slight adjustment to the amount of lead needed, less though at range, as the momentum of the lighter steel shot decreases.

The patterns produced by the ¼ choke were lovely, as they were well centralised and evenly dispersed, with pellet hits right from the centre that then radiated outwards. We had a total of 257 pellets on the board and literally every corner or sector was hit. This was a good start and the outer sectors had the majority of the pellets, as expected, with 183 strikes. The remaining 74 pellets hit the inner 15”. Overall, a great pattern.

We have seen before with some steel loads that going up to ½ choke can actually move the pattern upwards on the board and produce fewer pellet strikes than the more open ¼ choke. Surprise, surprise, it happened here too. We had an upward bias of shot with a total of 245 pellets on the board, so 12 pellets down on the ¼ choke (they probably went over the top of the board). However, we did have a more dense inner sector hit rate of 78 strikes and then 167 outer hits.

Personally, in an over and under, I would go cylinder or skeet choke for the first barrel and then ¼ choke. Alternatively, with this semi-auto, I would just leave the ¼ choke in, and then you would have a perfect combination.

Conclusion

I really like these Bio Ammo clay cartridges. My son usually uses Blue Diamond 24-gram loads but if steel becomes mandatory, I think these would be a very good alternative, especially when you see the actual shot pattern boards. Also, the price point is very good and you are still doing your bit for the environment too.