Here are a couple of photo's of original ELEY wasps in .177
http://i547.photobucket.com/albums/h...t/P1110590.jpg
http://i547.photobucket.com/albums/h...t/P1110591.jpg
Right, have taken some pics......The Wasps I opened were week 23, 2002 dated, with a lead hazard slip, so quite near the end of production?....
Wasp Tin (2002)
They have the distinctive 'circle ' on the head, and heavy skirt, and are really bright as they should be.
Next to the plastic tub 'Wasps', the difference is striking, note the thin wall of the left hand ones, and the many misshapen pellets.
"Genuine' pellets to left here.....the 2002 wasp tin I opened had had a knock in the post (it came with about 40 others with no padding, so some are marked.
Now.....as to my theory about the plastic tub contents not being IMI produced (I am betting L J Cammel....they just look like their stuff), here are the other Eley "badged" pellets I was wittering on about....They say made in Europe" on the tins, although they have the Brummie addy.
So....looking at the labels on the lids of the plastic tub and European tins together, ..I would say they are pretty close in period of manufacture due to the very marked similarity's.
What does all this mean...dunno really, unless an ex IMI employee comes along, but the plastic tub "Wasp' pellets IMHO, are nowt to do with IMI, and are around the same period as these other farmed out ones....maybe the real Wasp dies had run their course, and they looked at outsourcing the last run of production....shame they didn't go to RWS
Never mind.......enjoy this....a rare 'full house' set of all sizes of 1930's Wasps, complete with original flyer
Flyer reverse with similar period .22 tins.
Just my opinions of course.......may well be total twaddle
Thank you DI Edbear
Funny that your 2002 pellets and my 1994 pellets are quite different.
On my 1994 pellets the fluting goes right to the pellet's base, on your 2002 pellets there is an obvious skirt.
It's all soooooooo confusing...
Glad that your Plastic Tub pellets look the same as mine
Cheers for all your input guys on this convoluted topic
Opportunity is missed by most people, because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.
I bought one of those plastic tubs last year. I have only ever seen the one! Yes, they are rubbish, mostly bent and thin and too light. They say Eley on the label unlike the later ones in a tin, which are better. The original Eley Wasp which I still have some of are superb though. I wonder what the real story is with these plastic tub horrors?
Join BASC. You know it makes sense!
I have Wasps from though out the production history in sealed tins, I will have a look at some 90's ones, as you are correct about those ones I photographed, They made the things for 70+ years, so I would imagine they changed the dies / design a bit as time went by......I will try and get a piccy of the various ages of pellet side by side to confirm.
Very nice to find a tin with a date label inside.
Notice the label on the wrapped 5 tin stack ...
made by KYNOCH !
-----------------------------
Frank
I bought a tin of wasps from our local gunshop when I started shooting again about eight years ago, put them in my Vulcan and couldn't beleive the fliers, lousy fit damaged heads/skirts, they had twists in them chips out of them some were even just half a pellet!!
a week later my mate came down and brought with him a tin of 5.56 wasps (blue tin) made by Eley in the mid eighties, we did a back to back test, the old Wasps did a ragged one holer at 30yds the new bought tin made a two and a half inch group
Pleased I found this thread, I hadn't realised the manufacture had changed. I have an tin of Eley .22 Wasps which I bought many years ago and thought I may as well buy some more... because they seem to be well made. I'll steer clear! Also have a tub of Sussex Sabot pellets which I don't think are made now (?).
http://i970.photobucket.com/albums/a...0/P1000986.jpg