Patent ID: 9605936
Date: 2017-03-28
CPC Classifications: F42B

Claim:
1. A method of splaying fingers of a wad prior to loading the wad into a shell, said method comprising steps of: providing a wad, the wad comprising a generally cylindrical plastic sleeve having a first diameter, a first end, a second end, a bottom covering at the second end and the first end being open, and a plurality of parallel slits extending from the first end to between the first end and the second end, the plurality of parallel slits defining fingers of the wad; providing a wad splaying tool, the wad splaying tool comprising at least one mandrel, including a first mandrel, the at least one mandrel having a free end, a shank, a transition extending from the free end to the shank, a supported end, the shank extending from the supported end to the transition, the free end having a second diameter less than the first diameter of the wad, the transition comprising a frusto-conical segment extending from the shank to the free end, the transition having a third diameter at the shank, the third diameter being greater than the first diameter of the wad; positioning the wad in alignment with the free end of the first mandrel of the wad splaying tool with the first end of the wad proximate to the free end of the first mandrel and the second end of the wad distal to the free end of the first mandrel; sliding the wad onto the first mandrel until the free end of the first mandrel reaches the bottom covering of the wad, the transition of the first mandrel causing the fingers of the wad to bend outwardly; removing the wad with the outwardly bent fingers from the first mandrel; and loading the wad into a hull, the hull being a hull of a shotgun shell.