TheOutlawKid
Member
- Joined
- May 31, 2018
- Messages
- 1,480
A couple people have asked me how i make percussion caps so im putting together this small post. Its my version of making some very reliable MOISTURE proof caps that are very stong/hot...and the best part is theyre very inexpensive. Materials needed are:
- percussion cap maker
- sheet aluminum or sheet brass thats .005 thick.
- roll caps, german ones "legends of the west" brand
- cheap craft razor blade. Has to be new and SHARP
- Duco cement. Has to be this brand a its a nitrocelulous glue that burns up leaving no residue behind. Also is WATERPROOF
- 1/8inch hex head fitting (its the best tool ive found to tamp in and compress roll caps and glue into the aluminum cap)
I get my sheet brass/aluminum at hobby lobby and use the 40% off coupon online. Spend about 3-5 bux on the roll of 1x10 feet of aluminum...but the brass is 1x5 ft...makes a lot of caps and the brass caps are reusable! I also got a 1x50 ft roll of aluminum on amazon that was also .005 thick but it was flimsier..had to use two plys of it to make a stronger cup/cap. The german brand roll caps are "Legends of the west" brand...theyre the best/hottest...costs 3 bucks for 2400 "shots" at walmart or if youre in texas you can get them at almost every H-E-B stores toy section for the same price. Just one packet can make me 400-600 caps that are very hot. The craft razor i get costs about 30 cents at walmart in the tool dept...they are small, sharp, and thin enough for what i need them for. The glue is very important, i use Duco cement..its a nitrocellulose glue. This flammable glue will burn up without residue but also WATERPROOF your caps. Ive actually dunked a few caps in water.. Dried them by just blowing the water out with my breathe and they fired without fail. Heres a pic of the supplies next posts are the steps..
First punch out caps...i prefer the reusable brass caps but aluminum will do. U can also use aluminum canss.
Second grab your roll of caps and press it tightly against a table edge and use the craft razor blade to "slice" the raised bubble of combustible material from the roll. Get as close as you can under the bubble and slice under it...but dont remove it all..just till you reach the opposite end leaving a small bit of paper attached. Like this..
Remember to get as much of the combustible material off as you can. Keep going down the row..it will look like this...
Next pull off each little "bubble dot" of combustible material and place them in a pile and then lick the tip of your 1/8th hex tool bit tip (or similar METAL tool, no wood as wood absorbs/sticks to the glue) and press it against a "bubble dot"..it will stick to the hex tool tip and make it easy for you to place 4-6 dots per empty cap/cup and place atleast the last two dots to be paper side up, its important!...like this...
Once you have placed 4-6 (usually 4 will do but 5 or 6 to be extra sure its powerful) then tamp it down with ur 1/8 inch tipped hex tool..then place ONE small drop of Deco cememt in the cup and then tamp it down hard and twisting
it fast with ur hex tool for about 5 seconds. It compresses the glue and "dots" down tightly...like this..
Then set the caps aside to dry. I usually assemble a bunch of caps but only apply glue to about 10-20 at a time since the glue dries but it doesnt dry so fast that u dont have time to put glue in a good dozen before you have to get to tamping them down. Once dried you have a cap that has a hard glossy red finish inside thats moisture/water proof. They dont degrade with time either from what i can tell...and are sealed tight against any oxygen or gasses that might degrade them. Also when the caps pop they dont fall into the guns works.
- percussion cap maker
- sheet aluminum or sheet brass thats .005 thick.
- roll caps, german ones "legends of the west" brand
- cheap craft razor blade. Has to be new and SHARP
- Duco cement. Has to be this brand a its a nitrocelulous glue that burns up leaving no residue behind. Also is WATERPROOF
- 1/8inch hex head fitting (its the best tool ive found to tamp in and compress roll caps and glue into the aluminum cap)
I get my sheet brass/aluminum at hobby lobby and use the 40% off coupon online. Spend about 3-5 bux on the roll of 1x10 feet of aluminum...but the brass is 1x5 ft...makes a lot of caps and the brass caps are reusable! I also got a 1x50 ft roll of aluminum on amazon that was also .005 thick but it was flimsier..had to use two plys of it to make a stronger cup/cap. The german brand roll caps are "Legends of the west" brand...theyre the best/hottest...costs 3 bucks for 2400 "shots" at walmart or if youre in texas you can get them at almost every H-E-B stores toy section for the same price. Just one packet can make me 400-600 caps that are very hot. The craft razor i get costs about 30 cents at walmart in the tool dept...they are small, sharp, and thin enough for what i need them for. The glue is very important, i use Duco cement..its a nitrocellulose glue. This flammable glue will burn up without residue but also WATERPROOF your caps. Ive actually dunked a few caps in water.. Dried them by just blowing the water out with my breathe and they fired without fail. Heres a pic of the supplies next posts are the steps..
First punch out caps...i prefer the reusable brass caps but aluminum will do. U can also use aluminum canss.
Second grab your roll of caps and press it tightly against a table edge and use the craft razor blade to "slice" the raised bubble of combustible material from the roll. Get as close as you can under the bubble and slice under it...but dont remove it all..just till you reach the opposite end leaving a small bit of paper attached. Like this..
Remember to get as much of the combustible material off as you can. Keep going down the row..it will look like this...
Next pull off each little "bubble dot" of combustible material and place them in a pile and then lick the tip of your 1/8th hex tool bit tip (or similar METAL tool, no wood as wood absorbs/sticks to the glue) and press it against a "bubble dot"..it will stick to the hex tool tip and make it easy for you to place 4-6 dots per empty cap/cup and place atleast the last two dots to be paper side up, its important!...like this...
Once you have placed 4-6 (usually 4 will do but 5 or 6 to be extra sure its powerful) then tamp it down with ur 1/8 inch tipped hex tool..then place ONE small drop of Deco cememt in the cup and then tamp it down hard and twisting
it fast with ur hex tool for about 5 seconds. It compresses the glue and "dots" down tightly...like this..
Then set the caps aside to dry. I usually assemble a bunch of caps but only apply glue to about 10-20 at a time since the glue dries but it doesnt dry so fast that u dont have time to put glue in a good dozen before you have to get to tamping them down. Once dried you have a cap that has a hard glossy red finish inside thats moisture/water proof. They dont degrade with time either from what i can tell...and are sealed tight against any oxygen or gasses that might degrade them. Also when the caps pop they dont fall into the guns works.