Lead ball ID Help

[johnhardt03]

Found this lead ball over the weekend, could it be a musket ball from a pistol or small caliber or what else is it. Seems to be roundish, solid, has some white on it....I am new to this hobby and I hope it's something cool, thanks for the help and happy digging to y'all.

 

[tennessee digger]

That is what it looks like but really hard to tell. Tennessee digger

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

First, welcome to Treasurenet.

The lack of much oxidation/patina on your find and its size in comparison to the penny indicate it is a buckshot ball made in the 20th-Century. Prior to that time, buckshot was made of "pure" lead. Your buckshot is made of "hardened" lead, an alloy of lead and tin or antimony. That alloy is much more resistant to oxidation (patina-forming) than pure lead.

I should mention that towards the end of the 20th-Century, Federal law mandated that buckshot have a thin coating of copper, to help protect birds and other animals who think the buckshot is a seed from being poisoned by the lead when they eat the buckshot. You will probably eventually dig some of that kind of buckshot, so I'm telling you in advance what it is.