1-233-265 - Historic England/Heritage Images

Machinery in the Lead Shot Tower, Cheese Lane, Bristol, 2000. Uniformed shot is produced by pouring lead through a sieve or colander, called a 'card', allowing it to form into spheres as it drops, and then catching it in cold water. Lead from the Mendip hills is rich in arsenic, which lends itself to this process. Lead from elsewhere will often have arsenic added to it to prevent it forming strips or sheets when dropped.