Quote Originally Posted by Geezer View Post

When, and by whom, exactly, did the first diabolo get introduced? Was it the Kynoch “Witton” or “Match” of 1905?
In the latest article by John Atkins (Airgunner, Jan 2021) he says:

"Apart from true American size BB (.180) ball, small calibre ammunition for airguns at the turn of the last century was largely parallel-sided slugs, pointed or round nosed, made both solid and hollow, prior to the first appearance of the ‘modern’ waisted air rifle pellet, developed in 1904. Most likely it was introduced by E. Bowen and George Kynoch of Lion Works, Birmingham as the .177 Kynoch ‘Match’ followed immediately by their lighter weight Kynoch ‘Witton’. Shortly afterwards ‘Britannia’ pellets by C. G. Bonehill of The Belmont Works appeared in 1905 with his low-waisted pellet, developed to suit the Fred. Cox designed ‘Britannia’ model air rifle that Bonehill built."

Commenting to me further on this, John says "Although I've said 'most likely’ - I believe this is perfectly correct. Of all the rival waisteds, there was nothing else around that was earlier, despite the 1930s claim by Kynoch Ltd., as to their ‘discovery of the ‘waisted’ principle' being much earlier in 1895. Maybe they did, and applied it unsuccessfully to bullets for firearms at that time. Why wait another 9 years before making a pellet of that shape in late 1904? There were plenty of rifled larger cal. a/guns around at that time to shoot it successfully!"

"First waisted was, without much doubt, the Kynoch ‘Match’ - according to all the ‘Lectures to Young Gunmakers' and other contemporary mentions, pellet tests etc., I have now since studied. The patent does not appear to have been published for some reason. The patent people (you mentioned) who I offered to pay what it took to make a search never came back to me."

So unless something totally unexpected turns up from the historical record, we can safely assume that 1904 was the date and Kynochs of Witton, Birmingham the originator. That kind of pleases me as I was born and raised only a mile or so from the Kynochs factory, and in fact I had relatives who worked there in the 1940's and 50's, long after it had become part of ICI.