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Hull Cartridge are celebrating their 50th anniversary this year and to celebrate they have slipped another cartridge into their already comprehensive range of clay loads. The new Storm High Velocity is aimed firmly at the average club shooter and it is priced to sell below the magic £100 per thousand mark. In terms of Hull's existing range, it slots neatly between the Vantage V12 and the Chevron, which is marketed as a low recoil load.

Hull Cartridge Company are looking to grab a bigger slice of the club cartridge market with their new Storm. Does it live up to its name or is it just a passing shower?

Competition is fierce at all levels of the cartridge market these days, but never more so than in this sector. The price/performance equation is a delicate balancing act and the shooters quickly vote with their feet if the equation goes awry. Hull have kept unnecessary frills to a minimum in order to put maximum effort into delivering the best performance possible.
Having said that presentation is well up to the company's usual standard. The box is printed in a combination of gold and (not so shrinking) violet, which will certainly give it shelf appeal.

The cartridges themselves are loaded into standard 70mm dark blue plastic cases, with just an 8mm brass head to keep costs down. The crimp is a neat six star job. The key internal components are well up to the mark - Neodisc 28 powder and a Baschieri and Pellagri wad are the choices. The shot is 2% antimony, rather than the 3 or 5% Hull use in their premium loads. For their intended use this is unlikely to affect performance to any noticeable degree. The pellets were well formed and regular in size which to me is just as important. Shot size is limited to the main clay range of 7 1/2, 8 and 9.
Although it says High Velocity on the box, by modern standards 'medium' would probably be a fairer description. Tested figures show just over 1400 feet per second at the muzzle, 1095 observed at 20 metres (with 7 1/2 shot). Students of ballistics will know that pattern quality becomes harder to control as velocity increases, so I had hopes of some good patterns from the Storms, even if the speed was down a touch from the top competition loads.

This proved to be the case, with excellent and consistent breaks on a mixture of targets, including a long tower crosser and some trap targets as well. They inspired plenty of confidence. Pressure is quoted at 495 bars and recoil was judged on the firm side by all three of us who tried the cartridge. If you are sensitive to it, Hull's Chevron is an excellent alternative. Most people would probably view the Storm's recoil as within the normal, acceptable range.
 
So, what we have here is yet another strong contender in the middle market. Quality components, carefully balanced and well presented, give all the performance the average shooter could want.
 
All this, at a price that looks right, should give Hull Cartridge another powerful string to their bow.
 
Further information: Hull Cartridge Company Ltd. Tel: 01482-342571.

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