Cap question

Has anyone tried Pyrodex in home-made caps ?

Are you, @Unclelevi, planning to use Pyrodex as the percussive igniter in the cap or are you asking if a home made cap can fire a main charge of Pyrodex?

I've stamped out about 2K caps and have the mix that came with the kit. I'm going to charge them this winter, but I was wondering if Pyrodex would work in my home-made caps as well as the black powder mix. I was just thinking it might burn a little cleaner and save me having to mix up powder to load into my caps..

Grenadier1758 said:

Are you, @Unclelevi, planning to use Pyrodex as the percussive igniter in the cap or are you asking if a home made cap can fire a main charge of Pyrodex?

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It sounds like you intend to use Black powder and or Pyrodex in the cups along with the priming powders. Don't do that. The priming powders are very powerful. Nothing more needs to be added although a better binder will hold the priming in better. Also neither black powder or pyrodex will fire from a hammer hit and is useless as a primer. If you are using a single layer of pop cans they are not very strong and will blow apart. A double layer is much better or brass for the cups.

The components that come with the tap-a-cap kits when mixed do not make black powder.

Something to note, a forum member was using a mortar and pestle to mix the components and got burned pretty bad when it went off. So go off script at your own risk. I haven’t made any of my tap-a-caps yet, but when I do, I’ll follow he instructions on the provided video explicitly.

I have emailed Sharpshooter 2 times with no response and no one answers the phone and voicemail is full this has been over three or four weeks I dont think customer service is even possible with this place I am very disappointed

Not in addion to----instead of.

Unclelevi said:

Not in addion to----instead of.

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Neither black or Pyrodex will be set off by the concussive force of a percussion cap hammer.

If you want to make caps.......

Yes, .22,s work as cap substitute,s

22RF cost more than percussion caps.This is not a way to go. You could take fired cases cut them short and put a real prime in them.Others have gone down this road and found it not so good.

n.h.schmidt said:

22RF cost more than percussion caps.This is not a way to go. You could take fired cases cut them short and put a real prime in them.Others have gone down this road and found it not so good.

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Some people cant find caps at a reasonable price but have or can get 22 shells also some cap prices are higher than 22 ammo jmo

How about .22 Hilti charges used in a Hilti gun? Some of those can be acquired quite reasonably. Homer D Poe has them for $11.00 per hundred!

n.h.schmidt said:

22RF cost more than percussion caps.This is not a way to go. You could take fired cases cut them short and put a real prime in them.Others have gone down this road and found it not so good.

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Our local Walmart has .22 LR ammo for $14-18/ for a 325 round pack. Caps? IF you can find them, are around the same price.... per HUNDRED. If you can acquire caps for less than $6 / 100, buy all you can! No one around here is selling caps that cheap, IF they have them to sell. But, I do have about 1-1/2 cases of .22 LR that I almost never shoot, so.........

Ok that may work. I couldn't bring myself to destroy completed ammo for a percussion cap The charge in these RF cases is only in the rim.Granted some of the fire will go into the nipple ,most will go down the outside and do nothing. I can punch out a double layer pop can cup and prime it with the FA-42 formula (22 reloader prim-all) For about $.20 per hunderd.They work great in all my rifles and work perfectly with Pyrodex. No misfires in the last two years in local matches.

Interesting. Use .22" shorts and keep the heads. Try not to deform them and use them in you PCP. At about 2700 PSI there good to 80yrds+ for head shots on Bunnies. O.D.