cap making dies

[Squeeze]

if your just looking for alternatives, heres a guy thats done a bunch of experimenting with electronic ignition http://www.ctmuzzleloaders.com/ctml_experiments.html ( scroll to bottom of page )

[Kodiak-KingOfAlternatives]

To those who said they have a Tap O Cap, but would not recommend it, for whatever reasons.
Willing to sell it?

[n.h.schmidt]

Hi Kodiak
I'm still using my auto-cap( press mounted tap-o cap). I'm willing to send you some already formed cap cups to experiment with. I have experimented with a moonman suggested method of loading the cups. To all you guys out there this works. Alittle fffg bp put into the cup first with a single toy pistol cap on top. I made a scoop for the bp out of a fired sm rifle primer soldered to a copper wire. This has proved to be about right. I made a percussion cap tester where I could see what comes out of the nipple when a cap is fired. The caps loaded as suggested have almost no bang to them.They do however,send a spray of red sparks a good ways from the nipple. This is working on my percussion rifles .I shoot mainly pyrodex too,sometimes bp as well. The spray of sparks must be acting like sparks from a flintlock falling onto the powder in the pan. Only it is contained and is faster.
n.h.schmidt

[mooman76]

Some have reported that they have had problems when pushing the cap on the nipple or inserting the cap into the cup, the cap going off. I am at a loss on this because I have done a few thousand caps and never had on go off this way. I have yet to try my idea of caps with a small amount of BP in them. I did load some but they didn't sound very loud so I assumed they wouldn't work well but in light of what N H Schmidt stated, I think I need to revisit this. I did also get a smaller punch so it makes it easier to get more caps in for more power.

[n.h.schmidt]

I have tried up to five toy pistol caps in the cup.No bp at all. They give a loud bang but when viewed from the tester. Almost no blast made it through the nipple. There is just too much paper trieng to go through the nipple. I am also experimenting with adding magnesium fileings from a camp firestarter. A small amt added to the bp make the spark spray bright with white hot sparks. No actual shooting tests yet,winter got in the way. I am now making the cups with two layers of pop cans. The tap o cap works harder but is ok and the cups are much stronger .
n.h.schmidt

[dtknowles]

I bought so me "ring-o-caps" at Walmart last week and reading this thread got me to go test them in small pistol primers. Smashing the cap on the concrete made a nice bang. Removing the little paper disk with the compound and smashing it on the floor again made a nice bang. Loading the little paper disk in a reformed small pistol primer with anvil, and loading in pistol case made very little noise when fired in pistol. Same thing with small powder charge and paper wad just pushed the paper wad and powder a ways down the barrel. Same thing but with a couple flakes of powder on primer before seating and a round ball seated deep to hold the powder against the flashhole fired the powder and ball. Seem like a bit of a hang fire, very slight double sound, pa pow. Powder did not burn completely but ball penetrated the target and some of the newspaper in the backstop. Ring-o-caps will go on the shelf for more development later if needed or if boredom sets in.

Tim

[Kodiak-KingOfAlternatives]

Hi Kodiak
I'm willing to send you some already formed cap cups to experiment with.

I would be most gracious. I have an entire book of compounds I would like to try.

[camotes2]

Hello; Just catching up on my reading, a shame to get so far behind. And also finishing up a .58 1/2 stock Hawken, had the parts laying around for years. But anyway being percussion, i see the discussion of how to make caps, and you had mentioned shortened rimfire brass. Wow, did that bring back memories, back in the 70's I made a different nipple, and I used .22 short brass the nipple was flat on top, and I sit the top of a strike anywhere match on the nipple, and slide the case down over top. Worked ok, but as it was way back then with limited skills and few tools my flask hole was way too big, and the shot would cock the hammer, and the case would go up thru where my hair used to be. Not so safe?
But has anyone tried a paste made from tannerite as a priming mixture? That was the actual question.
camotes2..

[Eddie2002]

Since I haven't had any luck finding #11 caps lately I have turned a new nipple that takes berdan primers instead of caps. I have a brick of them from Graff's which I bought a few years ago.

[drhall762]

Just saw a Forster Tap-O-Cap sell at auction for $178.50. I don't need one that badly.

[rupe01]

Just saw a Forster Tap-O-Cap sell at auction for $178.50. I don't need one that badly.

I agree! Especially as one of these must be fairly easy to make with a small ram and a former............? Also, you know, there is a FreeChex tool available in .22 size that might be usable.....??

[Texantothecore]

I have heard of some who slice the charge off the roll cap using a razor blade and then using that as the charge in the primer. It seems to work and you don't get the paper jamming the nipple.

I wonder what a cap would look like that was designed to be used many times. Would it be any different?

Would brass or copper shimming material work any better or would it be easier to form?

[Texantothecore]

Has any one considered making caps from tin? Would it work?

Could you pour them using existing equipment?

[mooman76]

Tin may be too soft, I don't know for sure but it is expensive and not readily available.

[n.h.schmidt]

Kodiak
PM me for details.I have some cups ready to go.

[Texantothecore]

Would a pinch of sulfur provide enough spark? It burns at 51l f and could be an answer.

[mooman76]

I came up with an idea of adding a tiny pinch of BP before adding the cap. I never got around to actually trying them partly because I dry fired some and they didn't sound any stronger. Someone else here took the idea further and tested some and even though they didn't sound stronger, they produced a better flame. He actually test fired some and got pretty good success with them.

[n.h.schmidt]

Hi
Moonman76 That was me. The bp in the cap cup has worked better for me than any other combination tried so far. A scoop made from a small rifle primer soldered to a copper wire is about the right amt. I have only used fff and a single cap dot on top of that. The Cap dots I'm using are the german ones. A spray of Rave hairspray over the cap helps keep it all in the cup and provides at least some moisture protection. In testing in my bench cap tester ,these percussion caps had almost no blast. Very unimpressive but, and a big but at that. The caps had a spray of orange sparks.Every time. This spray is what is working. This isn't just armchair talk. I have shot these out of several of my sidelocks. Very good results ,the best I have ever had .I used BP and pyrodex and caps worked with both well. No hangfires. I will be shooting local matches with these starting in April. This discovery, though not my own has made the Tap O Cap concept actually work. Now more than ever something is needed to replace the Tap O Cap .
Some of you know I make and sell PB gas checks.I make my own dies for this. I'm considering making dies for sale to make percussion cap cups. Now that the Tap O Cap is no more ,something should be done.
n.h.schmidt

[mooman76]

Good idea on the primer cup for a measure. I've been trying to figure out what to use that would deliver a small amount of powder and be consistent. I used a small flat stick. It worked but wasn't consistent. I think I'll try again after I make a new scoop.

[Ammastor]

any luck on adding a few granuals of BP to a toy cap for a little extra? Can't find caps anywhere. have hundreds of toy caps but they will not set off my Pietta 1858.

Figured maybe adding a few granuals of BP to the cap might give them a little more of a kick. Not saying to fill the cap as they could because an issue but just a tiny bit for a little extra kick to the cap.