Shot Tower

Used in making shot. Lead is heated until molten, then dropped through a copper sieve high in the tower. The liquid lead forms tiny spherical balls by surface tension, and solidifies as it falls. The partially cooled balls are caught at the floor of the tower in a water-filled basin. The now fully cooled balls are collected and checked for roundness and sorted by size; those that are "out of round" are remelted. These types of towers have been replaced by more modern methods of manufacturing.