Home made caps

[PWC]

Question....what if you took a spare nipple and pushed it into the nipples in the "loading block" to size the caps before they are loaded with primer?

They do look a little rough on the jagged edges.

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

It is possible to improve the punch to die fit so there is a lot less of the metal hangup as you punch out cups. My copper sheet looked like yours when I first used it. The pop cans punch out cleaner though. Your filled caps look good to me You also are on the road to good performance of your caps . Yes you can pre-size the cups to fit . It's more effort than I like to do though.
Black Jack Shellac

 

[The old gunsmith]

my theory is that the original motive for making caps was saving money and buying both the #11 and #10 tool costs more. However in these times of scarcity the motive has changed. I wouldn't be surprised if someone pops up soon who's got the #10 and #11 maker to avoid having to worry about "supply chain issues related to the pandemic"

I'm that guy LOL. I bought the cap makers and a couple priming compound kits just to have as a backup. I really don't have any intention of using them unless I completely run out of factory caps. Thankfully, I have enough caps to keep me going for several years as I don't shoot nearly as much as I used to.

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

It is possible to improve the punch to die fit so there is a lot less of the metal hangup as you punch out cups. My copper sheet looked like yours when I first used it. The pop cans punch out cleaner though. Your filled caps look good to me You also are on the road to good performance of your caps .
Black Jack Shellac

I seen your post about spreading the cutter edges, I might try that down the road. Wealth of info here and much appreciated by everyone I'm sure! I tried a cylinder full of both kinds of caps and all 12 went pop with authority, 100%. I'll try them with full loads tomorrow or the next day. I need to make a better measure to fill the caps next... thanks to the info here my caps was 100%, and the powder is staying in the caps really good with the Duco glue/Acetone mix..

 

[Appalachiannative]

I'm that guy LOL. I bought the cap makers and a couple priming compound kits just to have as a backup. I really don't have any intention of using them unless I completely run out of factory caps. Thankfully, I have enough caps to keep me going for several years as I don't shoot nearly as much as I used to.

I am too kinda. There is only one small local shop that has caps for a couple weeks year before they all get bought up. I just finished priming 24 caps. Couldn't find acetone at the store so I put a drop of super glue in them. Tested a couple with a hammer. Worked just fine. Will test them on guns tomorrow

 

[Appalachiannative]

I know you have used matches for a prime with your 209 percussion caps. Here is another way with matches. Get the little strike on box only matches. 32 per box.They are only about a inch long with no white head. Crush the heads of 20 of them and grind to a fine powder. Scrape the striker surface off of one side of the box. Grind into a fine powder and mix with the match head powder. You can put the powder in the cups dry or mix with water first. When in the cups press down firmly.Let dry if wet. A binder of hairspray will usually work to keep it all in place. Some/many will put three drops of Duco cement in a tablespoon of acetone and drip that into the cups as a binder.Very good binder even using the prime-all mix. This match head primer seems to have a lot more power than when using white head matches. Just something to play with.
Black Jack Shellac

I've heard of this and attempted it. I believe this is called Armstrong mix. I found scraping the red phosphorus off the strike pad to be super tedious. Funny this is also done when making a certain elicit substance that is sadly become quite popular in these hills

 

[Appalachiannative]

Well the results are in and so far I have yet to make functional caps. Can hit them with a claw hammer on the sidewalk and they go off just fine but the hammer on my rifle just doesn't seem to like them. Maybe I need to aquire acetone

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

You can buy acetone at any hardware store or paint shop. It's not expensive. Here is another binder you likely already have on hand. Elmer's white glue. Two drops in a tablespoon of water. Shake up in a small bottle.Stirring works too but takes forever. I use a pipe cleaner for a dip stick to get a drop to put in the cups. I have used this for hundreds of caps.They have all worked and none crumbled or fell out. The glue thinned this much does not slow the power. To more easily get the strike pad removed,wet it down with water or alcohol . A sharp knife will get it off the strip in peals. I don't do this anymore as the real powders we are now using work so much better.
Black Jack Shellac

 

[Appalachiannative]

You can buy acetone at any hardware store or paint shop. It's not expensive. Here is another binder you likely already have on hand. Elmer's white glue. Two drops in a tablespoon of water. Shake up in a small bottle.Stirring works too but takes forever. I use a pipe cleaner for a dip stick to get a drop to put in the cups. I have used this for hundreds of caps.They have all worked and none crumbled or fell out. The glue thinned this much does not slow the power. To more easily get the strike pad removed,wet it down with water or alcohol . A sharp knife will get it off the strip in peals. I don't do this anymore as the real powders we are now using work so much better.
Black Jack Shellac

You putting in the glue on top or under the powder? And about how full do you fill the cup?

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

The water/glue mixture is placed on top. You put your powder in the cup. Press it down firmly.Then add the glue/water drop on top. It will soak in.. As to how full? I'm thinking you mean the powder.. A good measure can be made from one of the red cups the plastic ring caps use. Cut it down to half or less and glue it to a matchstick. Any more powder only makes it too powerful and will give you cap fragments to worry about. If this is for the revolver,you can use even less powder and have fewer cap frag problems. If done right you will have all the power you could want. The flame from this is especially effective with Pyrodex. Goes without saying great for real BP. Here is one more great binder to use. ADD a pinch of high energy pistol powder(bullseye 700X ect) to the acetone and let it mix in.NO Duco used here.The pistol powder becomes the glue and works really well .It may even add a little power to your percussion caps. I have made many like this .No crumbling,good power.
Black Jack Shellac

 

[Appalachiannative]

The water/glue mixture is placed on top. You put your powder in the cup. Press it down firmly.Then add the glue/water drop on top. It will soak in.. As to how full? I'm thinking you mean the powder.. A good measure can be made from one of the red cups the plastic ring caps use. Cut it down to half or less and glue it to a matchstick. Any more powder only makes it too powerful and will give you cap fragments to worry about. If this is for the revolver,you can use even less powder and have fewer cap frag problems. If done right you will have all the power you could want. The flame from this is especially effective with Pyrodex. Goes without saying great for real BP. Here is one more great binder to use. ADD a pinch of high energy pistol powder(bullseye 700X ect) to the acetone and let it mix in.NO Duco used here.The pistol powder becomes the glue and works really well .It may even add a little power to your percussion caps. I have made many like this .No crumbling,good power.
Black Jack Shellac

I don't have any pistol powder. Only smokeless I've got on hand is ramshot competition or Winchester super handicap for shotshells. I think I'll give the Elmer's a try

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

ADD a pinch of high energy pistol powder(bullseye 700X ect) to the acetone and let it mix in.NO Duco used here.The pistol powder becomes the glue and works really well .It may even add a little power to your percussion caps. I have made many like this .No crumbling,good power.
Black Jack Shellac

Interesting, another thing to try. I'll have to look through my shelf of powders and see what I have for shotgun powders... I added a couple extra drops of Duco glue to the Acetone in the batch I made this evening. I know you have experimented a lot and I'm curious what the most Duco you have added and what amount do you think is best? Thanks.

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

I used to put one drop in a table spoon. It mostly worked but I had some fall out. Now if I doing Duco I will use three drops in a tablespoon. You can use the pop can bottoms for mixing .All of us will have them and you don't have to bother cleaning. .700X and red dot are old time shotgun powders. So is herko.There is no proof of what is best here. When I have the 700X mixed with the acetone (I use only a pinch)it becomes syrup like. I use a pipe cleaner for a dip stick. You get a nice big drop that way. I'm shooting a match today and I will be using my home made caps with the Elmer's glue binder. I have been using my caps in matches for 10 years. My results in the first years was not good. Now with the real priming powders for the last five years all has changed. Rule of thumb,use the least binder that will do the job
Black Jack Shellac

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

I was wondering what the limit of Duco you can add before it becomes a problem... first time I added 4 drops into what I thought was about a tablespoon, and my last batch I added two more drops of Duco for 6 drops. I'm mixing in a small thimble like cup with thick sides, it works perfect but I was surprised today to find out with measuring spoons I was only using about a teaspoon of Acetone not a Table spoon. So I had to test the caps today to see if I messed up adding too much Duco glue, but they all fired perfect! But I'll probably cut that amount in half next time. Unless curiosity makes me try to find the limit it starts having problems.

 

[Lyle]

I don’t measure the Duco cement. I just squeeze the tube, and a stream of cement goes into the acetone. My guess is that I use a lot more than you are using. The cement is flammable so I don’t think it is a problem using more.

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

I don’t measure the Duco cement. I just squeeze the tube, and a stream of cement goes into the acetone. My guess is that I use a lot more than you are using. The cement is flammable so I don’t think it is a problem using more.

That's good to know. I thought I messed up a batch using too much.. so had to test them before I went shooting again.

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

The limit for me may be on how fast the tube gets empty. If you aren't using it fast the tube will dry up anyway. It appears that you can use a lot and still have it work. I know you can easily use too much hairspray. Used too much and messed up a batch of percussion caps.

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

The limit for me may be on how fast the tube gets empty. If you aren't using it fast the tube will dry up anyway.

It is a good for glue for attaching the wood sticks on the red cup caps to make powder measures too. The orange sticks in the wife's fingernail kit work perfect for scoop handles and are a perfect diameter to tamp down the powder in the caps... I don't think she will miss a few (looking over shoulder) but they are really cheap at Walmart too.

 

[noelf2]

I have used small pistol primers in vinyl tube to shoot my NMA, and I bet that spent primers can be reused this way as well. Just remove and discard the anvil and clean out the crud from the cap, hammer down the dimple from the firing pin, add your priming compound, harden with duco/acetone, and push it into the vinyl tube. You can even re-use the vinyl tubes since they usually stay on. Maybe a bit more work, but you don't need a cap maker or aluminum cans, copper sheets, etc. Just a supply of dead small pistol primers.

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

That will work on some rifles.On many it will not. The hammer pocket must be big enough to allow the the primer and tubing to fit inside it. Not only that the hammer will need to hit the nipple almost perfectly in the center or there will be interference and not fire. Same if you want to use musket caps on a regular rifle. This can work on some revolvers as you have found out. I wouldn't count on it working with the colts.Maybe with the anvil removed and dimple hammered out as you suggested. I do like the can do ways to get around the lack of caps. Me,I have been punching out cups for so long that other ways seem too much effort.
Black Jack Shellac

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

I shot some of the reduced priming compound in a batch of caps today. They worked perfect. I seen one of your earlier posts about the caps being too hot. I also tested some caps made out of the aluminum baking pans. They cut better and not as ragged edges and none of the little pieces left in the cap maker die. Nice looking caps and they all shot good. Making caps is not a option for me, I found out after I bought my pistol that I couldn't buy any caps. But making caps is working out great!

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

I made another batch of caps. The last 6 caps I just put in a drop of Duco glue, no Acetone mixed in... how much is too much question. The drop of glue spread the priming mix out to the sides some. As you can see in the pictures two of the caps split, I was forcing them on with a push stick when they split. The other 4 caps went on fine, and to my surprise they fired perfect first time and with a loud bang! Not how I'm going to load them, but interesting experiment for me.

 

[JamesSh@@ter]

Nice box at Dollar Tree for storing homemade caps. It will hold a few layers, and the lid has a rubber gasket seal.

 

[Black Jack Shellac]

James It's good that you have tried full strength Duco cement and found that the charge will still go off.Man you would go through a tube fast that way..The split cap lets us know not to go this way..Are you using single layer pop cans? I like your way to sort and hold the caps.. Careful with them all upright.They can cut you. Us home made cap makers used to be thought different .Now we can claim respect. I would like to find a faster way to put the charge into the coups.Any ideas?
Black jack shellac

 

[noelf2]

Had anyone tried using water glass instead of duco/acetone? A gallon of that stuff would last a lifetime or more.