Eley Olympic Blue Shotgun Cartridge Review: A Classic Clay Load

I started shooting shotguns at a very early age on my uncle’s farm in Kent. We used a Webley 700 side-by-side, and the only cartridge he would use was Eley Impax, bought from the local grocer’s. Those were the days, and I’ve had a soft spot for Eley ammo ever since.

Founded in London by the Eley brothers in 1828, the modern incarnation of Eley Hawk continues to produce quality cartridges with plenty of options for all kinds of shotgun disciplines.

What is the Eley Olympic Blue and Why is it Popular?

A true classic still in regular use today, Eley’s Olympic Blue was a favourite among trap shooters in the 1970s. This cartridge is very popular with local clubs, instructors and competitors alike, as the consistency of this loading is legendary. There is a wide range of load options, and the cartridge is renowned for its low recoil and consistently reliable ballistics. It sits in the mid-range between budget and premium, but performs more like a premium if today’s results are anything to go by.

As the Blues are designed for clay pigeon disciplines, they are offered in a variety of options suitable for sporting clays, DTL, and skeet shooting.

 
• Shot Sizes: 7.5, 8, and 9
 
• Wad Types: Plastic or Fibre
 
• Load Weights: 28g (standard) and a lighter 24g load

This makes for an excellent training round for new or recoil-sensitive shooters, and it’s also ideal for simulated game days.

What Are the Technical Specifications of the Olympic Blue?

For the test, we opted for the 28g No.7.5 loading with a plastic wad. The 70mm HDPE (high density polyethene) casings are fully recyclable and finished in a vivid blue, with the load data and sizing printed in silver around their full circumference.

The closure features a typical six-star crimp, which helps maintain consistent velocities and also keeps out moisture. At the other end is a larger 12mm brass head, which aids ejection in all types of shotgun mechanisms and is simply marked up with ‘Eley’ and ‘12’ on the underside. 

Inside the brass head is the Signature primer, which delivers 100% ignition and, more importantly, consistent flame progression and duration to ensure a clean, accurate powder burn. This helps ensure each shot performs as closely as possible to the last, maintaining consistency downrange. It has also been thoroughly tested as an all-weather primer, providing fast, dependable ignition in all conditions.

Powder-wise, Eley uses CSB and PSB powders, which are low-smoke-emission powders with a low recoil factor to ensure quick second-shot acquisition, along with excellent shot-to-shot velocity consistency that makes for dependable patterns downrange. The grey, square-flaked powder produces decent velocities, approaching 1,350fps with the fibre wad loading and fractionally more with the plastic wad system at 1,375fps. This 19gr powder charge delivers impressive speed, a hallmark of these cost-effective yet high-energy powders.

How Are the Wad and Shot Designed for Performance?

The next interesting feature of the Blues is the plastic wad, known as the Maxam A24, and since Eley was acquired by this Spanish firm, its use makes sense. The wad has a distinctive design that not only reduces felt recoil for the shooter but also helps to cushion the pellets against the initial shock of the gas expansion. The wad measures 44mm in length and is specifically designed for a 28g load of lead in a 70mm case. Visually, it features a series of circles within the ladder-like or concertina-style stack system, which is why it performs so consistently under pressure, quite literally. This design also contributes to the tight, dense patterns observed during the field test. Furthermore, this design guarantees an effective gas seal behind the wad while travelling down the barrel, delivering superior ballistics.

On close inspection, the lead shot appears highly spherical, with a silvery colour and no signs of clumping, deformation or oxidation. It also contains a mid-range level of antimony, making it harder than standard loads. This helps prevent deformation as it passes down the barrel and through the chokes, resulting in longer-range performance and clean clay breaks.

How Do Eley Olympic Blues Perform in a Field Test?

I have to say, the recoil was very manageable, just as we expected from the Browning Shadow test gun. We shot the Eley Blues using ¼ and ½ chokes at 30 yards, as usual, to assess their performance.

With the ¼ choke, we recorded 297 pellet strikes from the 28g loading of No.7.5 shot. Given that there are around 350 pellets in the original cartridge, that’s a very impressive result for a ¼ choke. A tighter pattern was expected from the outset due to the use of a plastic wad. We counted 95 strikes within the inner 15”, with the remaining 202 spread across the 30” circumference. So, a superb ¼ choke pattern that I would happily use for vermin all day long, as well as for the cartridge’s intended use in clay shooting.

Interestingly, the ½ choke produced nearly the same pattern size, but that’s because the overall pattern had shifted slightly north of the point of aim. This sometimes occurs when a tighter choke is used. Now we had a total of 308 pellet strikes, distributed with 217 outer hits and 91 inner hits.

Overall, both patterns were very consistent, which is likely why Eley continues to produce this particular cartridge. Once you become familiar with its characteristics and the required lead for different clays or birds, you can rely on the Olympic Blues to deliver time and again.

Conclusion: Are Eley Olympic Blues Good Value For Money?

Regardless of the clay discipline, the Olympic Blues are clearly a great all-rounder with a long and proven track record. They are also very well priced and definitely worth trying. A stack of 1,000 typically costs around £300.

Contact:
Eley Hawk - www.eleyhawkltd.com