View attachment 307874 It is definitely not fiction . 32 leopards have fallen to the 12 bore twelve pellet SG cartridge at my hands . Even two of my four Royal Bengal tigers were killed with this type of ammunition. When we used to reload our cartridges due to low availability of fresh cartridges in Darjeeling , the ideal solution was to treat the cartridge with hot wax from bees. We would pour hot wax over the pellets which would hold the shot together , thereby reducing spreading and increasing range a little. However , it is an inconsistent performer at any distance greater than ten feet . I learnt to content myself with a 12 bore Ishapore side by side two trigger shot-gun loaded with SG in both the barrels , because that was what l had . If l had good central fire calibre rifle , l would have used that instead. Today , modern fire arms have made such risky practices antiquated.
The picture you see was taken in 1969 and it was the last of the four Royal Bengal tigers which l had shot. My proud late father lies on the freshly removed skin , still red at the edge . I killed it with two barrel's worth of SG shot ( 24 pellets ) at it's neck at a distance of 7 yards .
This is one of the few color pictures which l possess of that time.