Shotshell base wad

Claim 1

A BASE WAD ADAPTED TO BE SEATED WITHIN AND CORPORATE WITH THE HEAD OF A SHOTSHELL, SAID BASE WAD COMPRISING: A GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL PLASTIC BODY HAVING A BASE END AND A CONCAVE FRONT END TO RECEIVE A POWDER CHARGE THEREIN, AN ANNULAR FLANGE INTEGRAL WITH SAID BASE END AND PROJECTING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY AND SLIGHTLY AXIALLY THEREFROM AND DEFINING WITH SAD BASE END OF CONCAVE CUSHIONING POCKET BETWEEN THE BASE END AND SHOTSHELL HEAD, A PRIMER IN SAID BODY EXTENDING AXIALLY FROM SAID BASE END FOR RECEIVING A PRIMER CAP THEREIN, SAID BODY HAVING AN OPENING THEREIN EXTENDING AXIALLY FROM SAID CONCAVE FRONT END AND COMMUNICATING WITH SAID PRIMER POCKET, SAID OPENING BEING OF A SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER CROSS-SECTIONAL SIZE THAN SAID PRIMER POCKET TO DEFINE AN ANNULAR SHOULDER FOR OVERLYING THE END OF A PRIMER CAP IN THE PRIMER POCKET, SAID BODY HAVING A PLURALITY OF SIMILAR SEALING AND CUSHIONING ELEMENTS INTERALLY FORMED THEREWITH THROUGHOUT THE LENGTH THEREOF AND PROJECTING OUTWARDLY FROM THE EXTERIOR SURFACE OF SAID BODY AND ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE INNER CIRCUMFERENTIAL SURFACE OF THE SHOTSHELL, EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS BEING EQUALLY SPACED APART AND DISPOSED IN CLOSELY PROXIMAL RELATION TO EACH ADJACENT ELEMENT TO DEFINE A PLURALITY OF CLOSELY SPACED APART OUTWARDLY OPENING GROOVES OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME SIZE WHEREBY SAID ELEMENTS MAY BE READILY URGED TOWARDS EACH OTHER TO FORM A SEAL WITH THE INNER SURFACE OF THE SHOTSHELL AND TO PRODUCE A CUSHIONING EFFECT THEREAT WHEN THE BASE WAD IS SUBJECTED TO PRESSURE FORCES PRODUCED BY A DETONATED PROPELLER CHARGE.