Caps Sticking

[kblack1101]

Hello everyone,

So I just started out, I got myself a TC Renegade .54cal. It is the percussion model, and my first time out with it, all of my caps were sticking to the hammer.
They all went bang, but were pulled off the nipple, and remained inside the hammer. Its not difficult to pluck them out, but when I am hunting, I don't want to deal with this.
Any easy fixes?
The caps were Remington #11's (what Cabelas had in stock) The caps fit nice and snug on the nipple.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
Cheers

 

[Prairieofthedog]

Kblack1101,You want the caps to be snug on the nipple.Your best bet is to polish the inside of the hammer cup.That way it will clean-up better when you clean the gun and caps shouldn't stick as bad.At least you are keeping a eye on it,that is important,because if you get a couple jammed in there it can really cause problems.

 

[Zonie]

You might want to look at the hammer to see if it has a notch cut thru the metal that surrounds the flat face that strikes the cap.

Some have a hint of a notch cut thru this area, usually to the side but sometimes towards the front of the gun.

These notches help the cap to break up and will reduce the tendency of the spent cap to wedge into that pocket.

If your hammer has a small notch you can use a triangular file or the 90 degree corner of a flat file to increase its size and to extend it down to the flat face.
If the hammer has no notch at all, you can file one in. Just be sure to put it on a side that will be away from your face.

This doesn't always work with the TC hammers for some reason and more than once after shooting a string of 5 shots I've found 3-4 cap remnants stuck up in there.

On my TC Hawkens, it doesn't seem to cause any mis-fires but it is annoying to have to get out my pocket knife and pry them out.

As for hunting, I guess everyone has their own way of going about it.
After firing a shot, I am in no great rush to reload so the idea of having to pry out a spent cap isn't a great concern to me.
Either the deer is down or it's moving away.

More than one person has found that after firing a shot that hits a deer, if they just sit tight for a little while and take their time reloading they can be listening for any sounds that will give them an idea of which way the wounded deer might be moving (if it is moving at all).

Often, the deer won't move far if no one is pursuing them so they'll stop and lay down because they aren't feeling too good.
After a couple minutes of laying down they'll die in their bed.

 

[Billnpatti]

I had a rifle that had a cap sticking problem and I pretty well solved it by filing a notch in the nose of the hammer with a 3 corner file. I filed the notch all the way down to the face of the hammer. Then I used a Dremmel tool with a very small pink stone to polish the face of the hammer. It didn't totally prevent caps from occasionally sticking but it reduced the occurance to practically nil.

 

[kblack1101]

First off, thanks for all of the advice. I do have a notch in my hammer. I will try and clean it up with a small file, perhaps it can be deepened or de-burred. I also thought about more thoroughly cleaning/polishing the cup, perhaps there is some corrosion or gunk in there.

Does anyone know if this could also be due to the nipple? Like I said, I do have a snug fit, but this is my first muzzle loading rifle. Perhaps if the nipple is worn, or mushroomed, it wont hold the cap as well??

Anyways, thank you to those who have responded. I appreciate the insight.
Cheers :grin: :grin: :grin:

 

[Zonie]

I really doubt that the nipple has anything to do with it.

The cap is splitting as it's fired and the gas pressure is blowing the copper shell outward into the hammer nose pocket. It's pretty common with a lot of percussion guns.

That's better IMO than having the cap not split and just stay stuck to the end of the nipple as some do when light powder loads are fired.

If that happens, often the only way to get the dam cap off is to get out your pocket knife and scrape/pry it off. Talk about a PITA.

 

[kblack1101]

That makes sense. Thanks. I see your point about hunting. Being an archer, I still anticipate the possibility of needing a follow up shot if I should miss. Especially hunting turkey. (that's a whole other situation though) This gun is a deer gun, and when it goes bang, I won't need to reload in a big hurry.
Thanks again :grin:
It is a relief to hear you say this is a common issue. I was hoping I didn't have a damaged part.

 

[mjulihn]

This gun is a deer gun, and when it goes bang, I won't need to reload in a big hurry.
Thanks again :grin:

I think it is fair to say that for most of us "fast reloading" is an oxymoron when it comes to front stuffers! :shake:

 

[DOUBLEDEUCE 1]

Next time you take your rifle apart to clean it, look into the cup on the face of the hammer. Sometimes a lot of crude can build up in there making caps stick. I just take a vent pick, paper clip or safety pin and sort of scrub out the cup. I pay attention to the side of the cup where it meets the bottom of the cup. You'd be surprised what you can dig out of there if it has gone unattended. I clean the cup every time and have very little or no caps sticking during shooting sessions. :thumbsup:

 

[newkid]

Before you do anything,try a different brand of caps. My TC Renegade .54 gets CCI caps stuck in the hammer, the newer Remington caps work fine. For what it's worth the old Remington caps would stick, but the new ones (that say 40% Hotter on the package) work great. Also, I use to buy the German made caps (can't remember the name) and those worked great, but I can't get them locally anymore.

 

[kblack1101]

Got 'er out on the range today. After cleaning up the hammer and making sure to seat the cap down good and tight, they were no longer sticking in the hammer cup.
I bought a tin of the new Remington 40% hotter and they run great.
Thanks for the help. Now I just need to start getting better groups! :hmm:

 

[M. De Land]

I also think one of the contributing causes of cap fragments lodging in the hammer cup is if the nipple does not strike in the middle. I have seen hammer nipple interface off to one side and what happens is the cap splits open and jams against the skirt interior then the fouling from back blast pastes it there. Usually if this is the case the hammer needs to be heated up and re-bent to facilitate a center hit on the nipple.
I have also had to re-cut the bottom of the hammer cup to square with the nipple top. A quick look at the hammer cup interior and the nipple imprint will tell you if it needs worked on. MD

 

[mdbeck1]

....
Does anyone know if this could also be due to the nipple? Like I said, I do have a snug fit, but this is my first muzzle loading rifle. Perhaps if the nipple is worn, or mushroomed, it wont hold the cap as well??
...

The only time I have had problems with nipples is when they have been used A LOT. Those tend to be mushroomed and won't let you put a cap on them.

 

[cruiser96]

when you say to put a notch in it are you saying across the the bowl or just on the inside of it?

 

[Zonie]

The notch I'm talking about is just on one side of the "bowl", either the forward side or the side towards the lock.
(It should not be towards your face).

It extends from the mouth of the pocket to the face that hits the cap forming a open "V" completely thru one wall of the "bowl".