Trouble changes BBs forever! In the mid-1920s, Daisy began receiving returned BB guns with split shot tubes (the true barrel on a BB gun). The offending guns came mostly from the Minneapolis region, so Cass S. Hough, grandson of the founder, traveled to that city to learn the problem. What he discovered forever changed the BB-making business. The American Ball Company of Minneapolis had noticed small boys rummaging through their discard pile of ball bearings to find steel balls that would fit their airguns. Company managers learned there was a strong market for airgun ammunition, so they began to manufacture steel BBs under the name Bulls Eye. The top shot tube has a punched or swaged constriction (the round dimple) that serves to retain the lead BB before firing. The bottom tube has a wire spring to serve the same purpose. The ball bearing maker regarded BB shot as a non-precision item, so they didn't hold the tolerances of their Bulls Eye ammo very tight. Oversized steel balls being harder than the BB gun shot, tubes would sometimes split the tube open or get stuck. Daisy management initially felt that the steel BB posed no real threat, since their owner's manual clearly warned shooters to only use Daisy lead shot. But Cass Hough argued that the returns were increasing because steel shot was both cheaper and shot faster in their guns. Unless the company wanted a black eye for standing on its principles, they had better get with the program! When early steel shot was "headed" or chopped from steel wire, one or two flat spots remained after the BB was fully formed. This condition prevailed from the mid-1920s into the 1980s. Hough convinced upper management, and in 1928 Daisy and American Ball penned an agreement whereby Daisy would be the exclusive distributor for Bulls Eye air rifle shot. Daisy got a share of the profits and American Ball was connected to worldwide distribution channels. Best of all, Daisy gained control of the specifications and ended the oversized ball problem. A decade later, Daisy bought American Ball, bringing the Bulls Eye brand in house. Cont to pg3>>>>