Musket Caps

[grimmpaul1]

I have a TC Hawkens .50 cal, I just started in the BP world. I bought musket caps because of the #11s being so hard to find. Yesterday went shooting for the second time with the rifle. I had a brand new musket nipple installed and was ready to go. I popped a cap first and found that they would not go on the first try. After that they would fire. Not acceptable for hunting, Is there a way to lengthen to throw of the hammer ? on half cock it is only just clear of the nipple. On full cock it is only maybe a inch and a half off the nipple. This fires #11s no problem but not so good with the musket caps. If I'm asking this in the wrong place let me know where to look Thanks

 

[dave951]

The problem you're seeing the the geometry of your tumbler is set up for a shorter nipple. Short hammer throw isn't a problem in and of itself. My competition musket is set up that way to speed up the lock time and I don't have any misfires. But there is a part 2 to this.

Your misfire is probably because your caps are Scheutzen. That doesn't mean they're bad caps. They are made from steel instead of brass like RWS and as such, they don't "quite" seat onto the nipple. Sometimes it takes a hammer strike to fully seat them and the next strike will go off. On all my guns that take musket caps, I've slightly altered the geometry of the nipple to eliminate this. It's not hard, you just need to remove enough material on the diameter of the nipple to let the cap fully seat. With this mod, all my guns shoot 100%

 

[grimmpaul1]

The problem you're seeing the the geometry of your tumbler is set up for a shorter nipple. Short hammer throw isn't a problem in and of itself. My competition musket is set up that way to speed up the lock time and I don't have any misfires. But there is a part 2 to this.

Your misfire is probably because your caps are Scheutzen. That doesn't mean they're bad caps. They are made from steel instead of brass like RWS and as such, they don't "quite" seat onto the nipple. Sometimes it takes a hammer strike to fully seat them and the next strike will go off. On all my guns that take musket caps, I've slightly altered the geometry of the nipple to eliminate this. It's not hard, you just need to remove enough material on the diameter of the nipple to let the cap fully seat. With this mod, all my guns shoot 100%

Thanks, yes they are Scheutzen caps. I will massage the nipple to get them to seat and see if this cures it. I'm sure it will thanks again

 

[Daveboone]

I have been shootng musket caps exclusively for a year now on my Lyman GPR and T/C Renegade. 100% fires, but luckily the geometry was perfect from the start. Like all our rifles, they all usually need some tuning at the start.

 

[wtilenw]

When I have experienced that problem over the years, I chucked the nipple in a drill, using it like a lathe and slowly removed material until I had just the right fit. You can put the drill in a vise to help control. Use the adjustable speed on the drill.

 

[grimmpaul1]

I think a vise and a dremel will do the job thanks all for the advice

 

[dave951]

I think a vise and a dremel will do the job thanks all for the advice

It's easier to get a smooth job using a variable speed drill.

 

[grimmpaul1]

It's easier to get a smooth job using a variable speed drill.

Sounds good thanks

 

[morehops52]

FWIW the same goes for the German 1075 caps on #11 nipples. Take a little of the nipple.

 

[APG]

The problem you're seeing the the geometry of your tumbler is set up for a shorter nipple. Short hammer throw isn't a problem in and of itself. My competition musket is set up that way to speed up the lock time and I don't have any misfires. But there is a part 2 to this.

Your misfire is probably because your caps are Scheutzen. That doesn't mean they're bad caps. They are made from steel instead of brass like RWS and as such, they don't "quite" seat onto the nipple. Sometimes it takes a hammer strike to fully seat them and the next strike will go off. On all my guns that take musket caps, I've slightly altered the geometry of the nipple to eliminate this. It's not hard, you just need to remove enough material on the diameter of the nipple to let the cap fully seat. With this mod, all my guns shoot 100%

I had the same problem. Got a musket cap nipple for my Traditions Hawken style rifle just in case #11caps were hard to come by. It's like I read the future on that one. Had to remove a little of the nipple using a strip of Emory cloth. Now it goes boom everytime.

 

[ord sgt]

Make sure that your hammer and hammer spring are not binding. That will alter the speed of the hammer fall. Function test the lock after removing it from the stock. Lubricate if needed. Reinstall the lock and check again for binding. Don't over tighten the lock screw.

 

[chorizo]

The problem you're seeing the the geometry of your tumbler is set up for a shorter nipple. Short hammer throw isn't a problem in and of itself. My competition musket is set up that way to speed up the lock time and I don't have any misfires. But there is a part 2 to this.

Your misfire is probably because your caps are Scheutzen. That doesn't mean they're bad caps. They are made from steel instead of brass like RWS and as such, they don't "quite" seat onto the nipple. Sometimes it takes a hammer strike to fully seat them and the next strike will go off. On all my guns that take musket caps, I've slightly altered the geometry of the nipple to eliminate this. It's not hard, you just need to remove enough material on the diameter of the nipple to let the cap fully seat. With this mod, all my guns shoot 100%

I have found the treso musket nipples work well with the Scheutzen caps without alteration

https://www.buffaloarms.com/1-4x28-treso-ampco-musket-cap-tre115002.html