Has anyone used clear fingernail polish to keep out moisture when capping a percussion revolver or rifle?
Just interested, thanks.
Just interested, thanks.
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Fingernail Polish Seal Caps?
- Thread starter Smokey Plainsman
- Start date
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Walkingeagle
54 Cal.
How do I say this without offending anybody???
Never mind, most people find me offensive anyhow....
If I showed up in elk camp with finger nail polish, I’d likely be gutted and hanging from the meat pole!!
Walk
Never mind, most people find me offensive anyhow....
If I showed up in elk camp with finger nail polish, I’d likely be gutted and hanging from the meat pole!!
Walk
I’m thinking more at home before the hunt to seal it.
I have not . but I think it would work well for an extended hunt. You can never be too cautious.
That has been done for many years. I first heard of it about 1977, but it was done before that. You could leave your poplock loaded for a long time in camp. Clear polish seals the cap well, but It could make the rifle illegal to haul capped in a vehicle. You would have to uncap it and repaint the cap upon arrival at your destination.
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Guess it would depend on the color and how well it matched your ensemble. Off topic, but if you watched the World Series, did you happen to notice the lovely colored nails of the Astros’ catcher?
Ok, back on topic, I use these silicone cap/nipple covers in foul weather and have never had an issue (notice they are the same color as used in MLB). Also use grease (Never-Seez) on the nipple threads to seal moisture out. Don’t remember where I purchased them (maybe Cabelas), but have a limited lifetime supply. Also have some light blue ones.
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I have something similar. it is a silicon ring that fits over the cap and slides down over the cap to the bottom where the cap fits in the cylinder or drum on a rifle. The top of of the cap remains exposed but the bottom is sealed off. I think they were made by CVA. Unfortunately I don't remember where I bought them. Probably a local gun shop that has muzzy supplies.
"I have something similar. it is a silicon ring that fits over the cap and slides down over the cap to the bottom where the cap fits in the cylinder or drum on a rifle. The top of of the cap remains exposed but the bottom is sealed off. I think they were made by CVA. Unfortunately I don't remember where I bought them. Probably a local gun shop that has muzzy supplies."
I've considered the rings myself by making them from tubing but I'm too lazy. You can buy them on ebay https://www.ebay.com/itm/Percussion...No-10-and-No-11-caps-Color-BLUE-/141321540211 a lot cleaner than trying to slather nail polish....
I've considered the rings myself by making them from tubing but I'm too lazy. You can buy them on ebay https://www.ebay.com/itm/Percussion...No-10-and-No-11-caps-Color-BLUE-/141321540211 a lot cleaner than trying to slather nail polish....
Treestalker
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A good friend of mine who taught me hand blacksmithing was a Blacksmith at a big forge company in East Texas. They would work all night and when the shift was over the men would shower and don fresh clothing in the men's dressing room. Well, Leo had a spat with his wife, an Alabama-Coushatta Indian, and she caught him asleep on the couch and slipped his socks off, painted his toenails bright red, and put his socks back on. Next night after work Leo got undressed for his shower, and there he was, a man among men, with painted toenails! Bet he didn't upset the lady of the house for a while after that benighted episode! Sorry for usurping the thread, but the polish idea reminded me of that incident long remembered in the Settlement.
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Just take a small beeswax candle with you to camp. About the size you would use on a birthday cake.
Rub the outside of the nipple with it and press the cap down in place.
Rain on the way? Use a cows knee.
Rub the outside of the nipple with it and press the cap down in place.
Rain on the way? Use a cows knee.
I have used a empty .380 handgun case with a leather thong tied around the extractor groove and the other end tied to the trigger guard. Fits snuggly over the capped nipple, and easy to remove when a shot presents itself.
The elk camp solution is simple. Remove the fingernail polish label and make label that says cap seal. Do use clear fingernail polish though.
Having the cap sealed at home before the trip to camp means you are traveling with a loaded firearm and that is prohibited in many states. The plastic cap covers also provide some protection from the weather for the cap.
You guys could carry New Skin liquid bandage in your first aid kits, and nobody would care if you applied it over top of your caps. You should pop some caps to clean out the flash channel before loading. You should never be loading with the caps already in place and painted with the nail varnish.
LD
Yup, mine look like the ones on ebay except they are red. I dug out a package and they were sold by Blue and Grey. They are called cap guards.
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Have not tried these, and could see them working, but would be concerned with the wall thickness interfering with the hammer, if the hammer is not perfectly centered over the nipple.
I have heard of using aquarium tubing, just cut it into small rings and a touch of melted wax over that to seal it further.
I've heard of the use of the tubing too. You need to be sure the cavity in the hammer clears the diameter of the tubing and that the tubing is cut short enough that the hammer strikes the cap. Otherwise you have a flexible plastic nipple and cap protector and dry fire practice accessory.
