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Easy snap caps for 12 gauge


Ausgunner
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Hi guys, just thought would share this as it's saved me 100£ on snap caps with my 6 shotguns, an easy perfect snap cap recipe

All you need is an empty hull, kitchen roll, pencil with eraser on end, and a soft eraser

cut hull 2/3rds way down,

Punch the primer out over a gap in a vice etc,

Then take the eraser section of a pencil off and push the rear of it through the eraser, it takes out a section of rubber the same size as primer hole.

Push the rubber you removed into hole and stuff the hull with kitchen roll just to add weight/ or oil.

And there you have it

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No. no, no. My own strong opinion is that one should never use a fired cartridge as such a thing. Like the now long discredited British military practice of the "aiming disc" it is an accident waiting to happen. Use a proper snap cap that other than its dimensions is obviously, clearly and visibly different from an actual cartridge. 

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cant see the point of snap caps.............only a gunsmith would need them checking the ejectors after mending them..........

snap caps are nothing to do with releiving tension on springs leaf or coil.............i mean lets face it you dont wind off your tappets on the valves of you engine...everytime you are finshed with the car ??

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11 minutes ago, ditchman said:

cant see the point of snap caps.............only a gunsmith would need them checking the ejectors after mending them..........

snap caps are nothing to do with releiving tension on springs leaf or coil.............i mean lets face it you dont wind off your tappets on the valves of you engine...everytime you are finshed with the car ??

Don't know many cars with v springs, When your gun has v spring mains and you don't like the idea of firing a pin against the breach wall they are cheap peace of mind, my miroku 1970s handbook recommends them and thats all the info i need. 

27 minutes ago, enfieldspares said:

No. no, no. My own strong opinion is that one should never use a fired cartridge as such a thing. Like the now long discredited British military practice of the "aiming disc" it is an accident waiting to happen. Use a proper snap cap that other than its dimensions is obviously, clearly and visibly different from an actual cartridge. 

Not sure if you read it but a cartridge cut in half with kitchen roll isn't exactly hard to see, and if you are not smart enough to keep live rounds away from the gun when its not at a range or field you probably shouldn't own them

42 minutes ago, Scully said:

Or alternatively, just don’t bother with snap caps! 🙂

I have v springs , i would rather use them when miroku themselves recommend them who built the gun, each to their own they cost nothing and thats all that matters to me

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23 minutes ago, DUNKS said:

Good idea but I fear my firing pins would very soon destroy a pencil eraser.

If snap caps are not required why do Beretta insist that you use them? I think they know a bit more about gun maintenance than me!

Possibly if you have very long pins? Havent had any puncture yet 

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When does the OP use his snap caps? For as soon as you open the gun it recocks the maionsprings and as soon as you close it it recocks the ejector springs. Or is he pulling the triggers in the assembled gun and then leaving the snap caps in it without opening the gun until it's next taken out of the gun cabinet or gunroom to be used? The true purpose of snap caps is pretty much only to check ejection and timing of the ejectors. 

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9 hours ago, Ausgunner said:

Don't know many cars with v springs, When your gun has v spring mains and you don't like the idea of firing a pin against the breach wall they are cheap peace of mind, my miroku 1970s handbook recommends them and thats all the info i need. 

Not sure if you read it but a cartridge cut in half with kitchen roll isn't exactly hard to see, and if you are not smart enough to keep live rounds away from the gun when its not at a range or field you probably shouldn't own them

I have v springs , i would rather use them when miroku themselves recommend them who built the gun, each to their own they cost nothing and thats all that matters to me

So how do you ease the springs in the ejectors? 

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1 hour ago, enfieldspares said:

When does the OP use his snap caps? For as soon as you open the gun it recocks the maionsprings and as soon as you close it it recocks the ejector springs. Or is he pulling the triggers in the assembled gun and then leaving the snap caps in it without opening the gun until it's next taken out of the gun cabinet or gunroom to be used? The true purpose of snap caps is pretty much only to check ejection and timing of the ejectors. 

Although on one make of English gun it’s recommended for long term storage

that you dry fire the gun with snap caps remove the forend break the gun and then all springs are not under tension 

this is not something you can do to all guns and not everyone wants to store a gun in a motor case or parts 

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just to lighten up the thread...............i do know of a couple of shooting folk......normal well ajusted people with resposible jobs in society..............that put snap caps in their hammer guns....(non-ejector)

this is a thread that has run many times.........

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1 hour ago, Scully said:

So how do you ease the springs in the ejectors? 

I all too well understand the for vs against debate mate- not really why i posted to start a debate so 👍, yes theoretically there is always a set of springs under pressure, but as i said my 70s miroku is main v spring, and a set of snap caps gives me piece of mind that they can be released- just like it says in the book that came with my gun, from the people that made it, and if you understand a v spring if kept under tension for long periods they can fail, not so much coils. If an ejector spring fails whoopty do gun will still work, if a main goes you are done for the day

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I always stored my guns (all SxS) with the actions cocked until about ten years ago when the mainsprings in a cheap Spanish gun, made in 1974, both lost tension and began to give weak striker blows within one season. New springs fitted and now all the hammerless guns are stored with the springs eased.

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This topic comes up regularly - and as always - there are different views.

Personally, I own snap caps, but only use them to check the gun (i.e. rarely).  I never release the mainsprings or ejector springs to store.

I have hammerless guns over 100 years old with V springs - no problems left cocked for over 100 years, and coil springs (60 years old+) - no problems with springs in either.

Springs do break from time to time, but in my known mainspring failures (two, both flat V main springs) quite unrelated as far as I can tell to storage state.  Ejectors are nearly always stored cocked - and I have never had an ejector spring break.

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7 hours ago, Ausgunner said:

I all too well understand the for vs against debate mate- not really why i posted to start a debate so 👍, yes theoretically there is always a set of springs under pressure, but as i said my 70s miroku is main v spring, and a set of snap caps gives me piece of mind that they can be released- just like it says in the book that came with my gun, from the people that made it, and if you understand a v spring if kept under tension for long periods they can fail, not so much coils. If an ejector spring fails whoopty do gun will still work, if a main goes you are done for the day

I’m quite familiar with leaf springs. 
Each to their own. 👍

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11 hours ago, JohnfromUK said:

This topic comes up regularly - and as always - there are different views.

Personally, I own snap caps, but only use them to check the gun (i.e. rarely).  I never release the mainsprings or ejector springs to store.

I have hammerless guns over 100 years old with V springs - no problems left cocked for over 100 years, and coil springs (60 years old+) - no problems with springs in either.

Springs do break from time to time, but in my known mainspring failures (two, both flat V main springs) quite unrelated as far as I can tell to storage state.  Ejectors are nearly always stored cocked - and I have never had an ejector spring break.

This is the thing though i didn't post to ask for a debate haha i just thought it may help someone, the debate came to me 😅, understand both sides to the argument, i myself use them as it's cheap piece of mind knowing i can release them without a chance of damaging a pin, yes the chances of that are low as are the chances a spring failing, but when a set of pins and springs is 10 fold plus over a set of snap caps i look at it like why not, takes 2 seconds of google to find stories of pins chipping etc without caps so to me its worth the 1minute it took me to make a pair. Each to their own

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THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE TRY NOT TO TALK ABOUT

  1. Cats
  2. Snap caps
  3. chokes
  4. manual flappers..(motty dosnt like them)
  5. fat Sarah
  6. Jack the gripper
  7. BASC effectivness
  8.  people from hot countries
  9. discussing different religions as "franchises"

as you can see snap caps is fairley high up on the list:lol:

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1 minute ago, ditchman said:

THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE TRY NOT TO TALK ABOUT

  1. Cats
  2. Snap caps
  3. chokes
  4. manual flappers..(motty dosnt like them)
  5. fat Sarah
  6. Jack the gripper
  7. BASC effectivness
  8.  people from hot countries
  9. discussing different religions as "franchises"

as you can see snap caps is fairley high up on the list:lol:

10. Moaning about a debate following on from your post!:lol:

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14 minutes ago, ditchman said:

THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE TRY NOT TO TALK ABOUT

  1. Cats
  2. Snap caps
  3. chokes
  4. manual flappers..(motty dosnt like them)
  5. fat Sarah
  6. Jack the gripper
  7. BASC effectivness
  8.  people from hot countries
  9. discussing different religions as "franchises"

as you can see snap caps is fairley high up on the list:lol:

😂

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