Mag-Spark 209 primer adapter

[DickelDawg]

Anyone here ever use one of Mag-Sparks 209 primer adapters? Did you figure out an easy way to get the primer out after firing. Seems to be quite the chore.

[johnson1942]

its all i use. dont tighten the cap down real tight. buy a tiny high quality real pliers. a very very small one. carry that at all times and use that to extract the primer. also when you are about to put the cap on spit a little on top of the primer and the threads. the steam will make it easier to take the cap off of and extract the primer. i like the aluminum shot gun primers better than the brass ones as they come out easier. dont over load, use reasonable loads and that helps also. if the loads are too heavy it can be a problem with extraction. also i would suspect a safey issue. never ever put powder under the primer in the nipple. it becomes a bomb and will blow appart. when i said not to tight on the cap, just slight finger tight, never plies tight. its a good nipple, adapt to it and get the rhythm of useing it. i wouldnt use anything else. the breech areas of my sidelocks are cleaner than with other nipples as the powder burns more complete.

[DickelDawg]

Thanks, Johnson

[Good Cheer]

johnson,
A while back there was discussion of a vent to prevent the primer impulse from moving the boolit prior to the wanted rate of powder ignition. What kind of venting are you using?

[oldracer]

On the rifle that I have that uses them, made by Roger as he noted above they are all he uses and there is a small vent plug just forward of the nipple. I keep the opening where the primer goes by using a drill bit with the point ground off and after 8 to 10 shots I use it to pull out any carbon build up. I tilt the rifle backwards so any goop falls out instead of down into the fire channel.

One thing I noted, on the gun Roger made, the striking surface of the hammer is flat, not concave as most hammers are (catches the percussion cap) and when I was trying the adapter on some other rifles, the depression was too great and the hammer would not hit the striker to ignite the 209 primer. I'd suggest a test fire or two so as to make sure the 209 primers do ignite.

[johnson1942]

i know i promised to post pictures of the vent and most likely never did. my wife does this for me and her day is very full. again i will aproach her this evening to post the vent on the barrel for the gun im building for baja traveler. it is a small hole into the cumbustion chamber and the purpose is to let the trapped air their out as the flame comes in. the flame reaches the powder a lot faster with the vent hole. a lot less miss fires and i also found that the breach area is a lot cleaner with the vent when fired. must burn the powder more complete. it is not my idea. as ive posted before i first saw this several years ago on a very very high end as new side lock from the 1840/s that had one that was lined with a metal that didnt let the steel of those days burn out in the hole. i though what an idea. also dixie gun works wrote about it and said it was used by some gunsmiths to make their side locks go off every time. now i will ask a question here ive never really had answered. you shooters who have side locks in both rock locks and precussions. do your rock locks on the average have cleaner breaches after fireing than the precussion rifles? to me if i just looked at the science of it they would, but what one figures out in the head isnt always the way it is. also another question. is it easier to maintain a consistant ft. per second out of the barrel of a rock lock than a precussion? i would think it would be with the touch hole in the rock lock rifle. i believe the vent hole in the precussion rife would even out the diff. if their is a diff. again i will get some pictures of baja travelers rifle barrel on this post and hope my wife can do it this week end. baja travelers gun is comming along nicely. the bedding of the barrel and tang is really takeing time as i do it a little at a time and their is always a day of drying the bedding. once that is done it is down hill all the way. it will be one heck of a 50 cal round ball shooter.