Making Percussion Caps

[Taurian]

I am interested in rolling my own #11 percussion caps and recently received the tool to do it with.

I recently watched a video of a fella making his own percussion caps with roll caps as his ignition source. Although he demonstrated that the homemade percussion cap will fire, he did not actually fire the pistol (a revolver, in this case) loaded.

Has anyone used roll caps as an ignition source and will it actually work.

 

[rafterob]

The old "Tap-a-Cap" used roll caps. These new kits use a liquid compound.

 

[Grimord]

With my Tap a Cap I use 3 dots from roll caps pushed down into the cap with a nail set, then spray the open end of the caps with hair spray. So far I would estimate that I get roughly 97% ignition. Sometimes I charge the nipple with some Null B just to make sure things go boom.

 

[Winchester97]

You can do a search on here and get some good info from previous discussions. I use this capmaker using the company's Prime-All compound. I get 25 caps per batch of priming mix, and they work excellent...truly close to 100% ignition, I have my store bought ones tucked away, and these are all I use now.

 

[Dark Wolf]

I recently picked up an order of Prime-all, but have not used it yet. Nice to hear that they are so reliable!

DW

 

[TrapperDude]

I recently picked up an order of Prime-all, but have not used it yet. Nice to hear that they are so reliable!

DW

I ordered some of the Prime-All a while back but haven't yet used it. I'm keeping it tucked away for a back-up. I will do a few caps up with it at some point just for experimentation purposes, though.

 

[Captain Eddie]

I have made and fired a couple hundred of the aluminum caps in my C&B revolvers. Virtually 100% reliability. I only tear my revolvers down completely about once a year and this year I was surprised to find aluminum scraps everywhere. Even some small ones in the trigger return/bolt spring area. Has not caused any reliabiltity issues, but it sure makes me remember to put on my glasses before shooting.

 

[Paul Nelson]

I am interested in rolling my own #11 percussion caps and recently received the tool to do it with.

View attachment 95372

I recently watched a video of a fella making his own percussion caps with roll caps as his ignition source. Although he demonstrated that the homemade percussion cap will fire, he did not actually fire the pistol (a revolver, in this case) loaded.

Has anyone used roll caps as an ignition source and will it actually work.

I had some old percussion caps that did not work, so I cut some roll cap to fit. I placed two cap in each and they worked well

 

[deerstalkert]

if you use soda cans, punch the cup so the inside of the can forms. the outside is treated with something that without using acetone and duco will make the prime all shed out,
if you want stronger cups half stroke the plunger, move the sheet, full stroke and it doubles the cup. the prime all works well. i even used it to reload 22 mag unmentionables. jm2cents.

 

[Wolfman0125]

Ive used 8 roll caps with a 1/10 ratio of fine aluminum powder sealed with ducco cement acetone mixture. I have had fire come out the end of my barrel.

 

[n.h.schmidt]

The toy role caps will work ok for real black powder.Not as good for Pyrodex. They also work best if you lift the dots off the paper role. The paper does nothing for you and you don't need it to go through the nipple anyway. The inside of the pop cans must be coated with something too. Pop would eat right through untreated aluminum. The instructions that come with the cap maker tells you to have the outside of the can (painted side ) be the inside of the cap cup. I went my own direction and am happy with the results.

 

[JCKelly]

Toy caps are very corrosive.
They are also what I used to make "explosive devices" back in the 1950's, age early teens.
By the kindness of God, I survived anyway. Some of my contemporaries lost body parts.
Good luck to those who choose to act like teenagers.

 

[Wolfman0125]

The toy role caps will work ok for real black powder.Not as good for Pyrodex. They also work best if you lift the dots off the paper role. The paper does nothing for you and you don't need it to go through the nipple anyway. The inside of the pop cans must be coated with something too. Pop would eat right through untreated aluminum. The instructions that come with the cap maker tells you to have the outside of the can (painted side ) be the inside of the cap cup. I went my own direction and am happy with the results.

I actually have not tried making them out of soda cans. I make mine out of brass. It seemed like a better material. I also soak my roll caps to remove the paper and to make filling the caps safer.

 

[n.h.schmidt]

I will be trying brass soon .I do use two layer pop cans and also copper. soaking the dots off is by far the best way to use the role caps. I used to use so many dots that the cost was getting too high for all the effort. Now I'm using the formulas with really good results. Some I have had made up for over three years and they still work fine. The role caps seem to even more corrosive than the sharpshooter powders.Clean and preserve most carefully. I used to use the brass caps sold by Dixy in the 70s. Boy they were a trip for the unprepaired. They were the most corrosive things on earth. They also tended to stick themselves to the nipple .I had to use pliers to get them off.I still have about 500 of them left.They haunt my dreams. Lots of guns were ruined because of them.

 

[SgtMaj65]

I actually have not tried making them out of soda cans. I make mine out of brass. It seemed like a better material. I also soak my roll caps to remove the paper and to make filling the caps safer.
View attachment 95789I’m

I actually have not tried making them out of soda cans. I make mine out of brass. It seemed like a better material. I also soak my roll caps to remove the paper and to make filling the caps safer.
View attachment 95789

What gauge or thickness of brass do you use? I’m thinking of using it for caps

 

[Wolfman0125]

What gauge or thickness of brass do you use? I’m thinking of using it for caps

.005

 

[TDM]

You can easily find .005” copper sheets/rolls too.

 

[Wolfman0125]

You can easily find .005” copper sheets/rolls too.

The copper looks better but is much softer and more expensive. Using brass I can actually reuse the hulls a few times if I want to be frugal.

 

[TDM]

The copper looks better but is much softer and more expensive. Using brass I can actually reuse the hulls a few times if I want to be frugal.

Agree on the cost. Both work fine.

 

[jeff b]

I actually have not tried making them out of soda cans. I make mine out of brass. It seemed like a better material. I also soak my roll caps to remove the paper and to make filling the caps safer.
View attachment 95789

I actually have not tried making them out of soda cans. I make mine out of brass. It seemed like a better material. I also soak my roll caps to remove the paper and to make filling the caps safer.
View attachment 95789